Singapore can be ‘bridge-builder’ in more fragmented world by serving as trusted innovation hub: DPM Heng

NEW STEPS TO BOOST RESEARCH EFFORTS

Mr Heng, who chairs the National Research Foundation and Future Economy Advisory Panel, also announced two major new initiatives for the Research, Innovation and Enterprise (RIE) sector from 2026 to 2030.

The first is on applying artificial intelligence (AI) in priority sectors such as healthcare, education, finance, advanced manufacturing, connectivity, logistics and transport, he said.

A S$120 million AI for Science initiative was launched last October, to help researchers tap into AI in fields such as advanced materials and biomedical sciences, said Mr Heng.

“Applied AI sits at the intersection of AI and domain knowledge. Building on the strong domain expertise of our practitioners and researchers in healthcare, education, finance, engineering and many others, we will invest more in developing ‘bilingual’ scientific talent, researchers who can bridge between AI technologies and domain expertise,” he said.

New large-scale research and development programmes called RIE Flagships and RIE Grand Challenges will also be launched.

RIE Flagships will focus efforts on key economic sectors, while RIE Grand Challenges will address national strategic priorities.

“These Flagships and Grand Challenges will pull together relevant research and translational capabilities across our universities, A*STAR and other research institutes, public agencies and private sector players, to form a suite of purposefully coordinated and synergistic programmes,” said Mr Heng.

“The linkages between research, translation and commercialisation will be tightened, to advance key economic areas, produce new products and companies, and address real-world needs and problems.”