Singapore launches national Artificial Intelligence programme

Abstract

The initiative will be driven by a government-wide partnership comprising NRF, the Smart Nation and Digital Government Office (SNDGO), the Economic Development Board (EDB), the Infocomm Media Development Authority (IMDA), SGInnovate, and the Integrated Health Information Systems (IHiS). Local talent in AI will also be trained though their involvement in the development of these deep capabilities in AI. 3) Broaden adoption and use of AI and machine learning within industry AI.SG will work with companies...

The National Research Foundation (NRF) Singapore will launch AI.SG, a national programme in Artificial Intelligence (AI) to catalyze, synergize and boost Singapore’s AI capabilities. Up to $150 million will be invested in AI.SG over the next five years.

The initiative will be driven by a government-wide partnership comprising NRF, the Smart Nation and Digital Government Office (SNDGO), the Economic Development Board (EDB), the Infocomm Media Development Authority (IMDA), SGInnovate, and the Integrated Health Information Systems (IHiS).

AI:SG will bring together research institutions, AI start-ups and companies developing AI products, to grow knowledge, create tools and develop talent to power Singapore’s AI efforts.

AI.SG has three objectives:

1) Use AI to address major challenges that affect society and industry

For example, AI can be used to increase traffic throughput during peak hours, or to address healthcare challenges that are to come with an ageing population.

Mr Bruce Liang, Chief Executive Officer of IHiS and CIO of Ministry of Health said: “We see significant applicability of AI in the future for safeguarding the health of Singaporeans. AI could play a big role in supporting prevention, diagnosis, treatment plans, medication management, precision medicine and drug creation. Healthcare manpower, augmented with AI tools, could better address increased healthcare demands in the future.”

2) Invest in deep capabilities to catch the next wave of scientific innovation

These may include next-generation “explainable” AI systems exhibiting more humanlike learning abilities, as well as adjacent technologies such as computing architectures and cognitive science. The NRF Fellowship and Investigatorship schemes will be deployed to support such scientific activities. Local talent in AI will also be trained though their involvement in the development of these deep capabilities in AI.

3) Broaden adoption and use of AI and machine learning within industry

AI.SG will work with companies to use AI to raise productivity, create new products, and translate and commercialize solutions from labs to the market. It aims to deliver 100 meaningful AI projects and proofs-of-concept to solve real-world problems quickly for end-users. NRF sees particular potential in the sectors of finance, healthcare and city management solutions, and the initiative will start with these.

Prof Low Teck Seng, CEO of NRF, said: “AI.SG builds on the current AI knowledge and capabilities that we have built up across our Singapore-based research institutions with our past R&D investments. I am confident that the modality of AI.SG will fully integrate existing R&D and facilitate the translation of R&D into solutions for business commercialisation and better provision of public services. NRF will also continue to monitor global shifts in technology and drive new opportunities in technology areas that are strategic for Singapore.”

Mr Steve Leonard, Founding CEO, SGInnovate said: “R&D in Singapore has already gained international recognition, and there is tremendous momentum in areas around AI such as computer vision, natural language processing and machine learning. AI.SG will serve as a powerful point of concentration of intellectual, physical and financial resources committed to working with AI. At SGInnovate, we work with entrepreneurial people focused on taking their ‘deep-tech’ research further, and we look forward to a rich pool of new AI-related opportunities to pursue.”

Mr Tan Kok Yam, Deputy Secretary, Smart Nation and Digital Government Office, said: “Through AI.SG, we intend to work with AI research performers, start-ups and companies to audaciously tackle tough challenges in areas such as transportation and urban management. We hope that the programme will be a stellar example of how a Smart Nation will use digital technology in an impactful way to improve citizens’ lives, and create new opportunities.”

Prof Ho Teck Hua, Executive Chairman of AI.SG and Deputy President (Research & Technology) at NUS, said: “AI.SG provides unparalleled opportunities for universities and research institutions working in AI. The scale and approach of AI.SG are unique. The multi-disciplinary project teams in AI.SG will work collaboratively across institutional affiliations, disciplines and national borders to investigate fundamentally different approaches to develop innovative AI technology and solutions.

A key feature of AI.SG will be a series of Grand Challenges that will inspire both the researchers and the end users to tackle major societal challenges that are not only relevant for Singapore but also the global community. AI.SG aspires to develop smart technologies that transform societies."

Credit: By Tan Wee Kwang