Atiqah said she was inspired by Western camping culture and the tiny-home movement.
But in Malaysia, building a tiny home isn't easy.
"It's not a very popular concept," Atiqah, who graduated with a bachelor's and master's degree from Stanford University in 2009, told Insider. "I was interested if it was possible to have a self-sustaining home in the Malaysian context," she added.
In July 2016, Atiqah purchased 43,000 square feet of land in the outskirts of Kuala Lumpur. And in September 2017, she gathered a dozen of her friends and began building the home.
With a budget of 300,000 Malaysia ringgit (around $68,000), Atiqah decided she would build a 530-square-feet (49 meter square) loft-style tiny home with a balcony. Insider viewed a detailed breakdown of Atiqah's budget sheet for the project.