Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak and his predecessor turned nemesis Dr Mahathir Mohamad have expressed sadness over the death of renowned scientist Stephen Hawking.

“Saddened to hear that one of the world's greatest minds, Prof Stephen Hawking, has passed away.

“It is a great loss to the scientific community, but his legacy will live on for generations to come. My condolences to his family,” Najib tweeted in the evening. 

Mahathir took to Facebook to offer his condolence on his official page. 

"‪In his limitations, Stephen Hawking has opened up the universe to all of us with his scientific findings. He inspires me to live a life of no excuses - and that is my theory of everything," wrote the former premier. 

The text accompanied a photo (below) of Mahathir with the 76-year-old Hawking, who died peacefully at his home in Cambridge in the early hours of Wednesday.

CNN reported that the British scientist was famed for his work with black holes and relativity, and wrote several popular science books including A Brief History of Time.

At the age of 22, doctors had given Hawking only a few years to live after being diagnosed with a rare form of motor neurone disease.

Due to the illness, the scientist was confined to a wheelchair and spoke via a voice synthesiser.

"We are deeply saddened that our beloved father passed away today.

"He was a great scientist and an extraordinary man whose work and legacy will live on for many years,” said his children Lucy, Robert and Tim, in a statement, according to CNN.

Praising his courage, brilliance and humour, the children added: "He once said, 'It would not be much of a universe if it wasn't home to the people you love.' We will miss him forever."