Yahoo Finance Singapore launches generative AI innovation sandboxes
The AI Trailblazers initiative aims to identify 100 generative AI use cases across government and industry in the next 100 days.
Up to 100 organisations in Singapore will be able to use two new innovation sandboxes to develop generative artificial intelligence (AI) solutions that address real-world challenges.
The sandboxes will provide seamless access to Google Cloud’s high-performance graphical processing units (GPUs), Vertex AI platform, pre-trained generative AI models, and low-code developer tools at no cost for a fixed duration of up to three months. With access to these generative AI toolsets, organisations can build and test their own solutions in a controlled and dedicated cloud-based environment.
Administered by Smart Nation and Digital Government Office (SNDGO) through the AI Government Cloud Cluster (AGCC), the first innovation sandbox is dedicated for use by government agencies in Singapore.
Meanwhile, the second innovation sandbox – which is administered by the Digital Industry Singapore (DISG) —is dedicated for use by Singapore-based companies.
AI Trailblazers
The innovation sandboxes are part of AI Trailblazers, a joint initiative by the Ministry of Communications and Information (MCI), DISG, SNDGO and Google Cloud launched earlier today.
Participants of the AI Trailblazers initiative will also be enrolled in a mandatory full-day workshop sponsored and conducted by DISG, SNDGO, and Google Cloud. They will receive hands-on training from Google Cloud engineers to identify use cases that can be addressed using generative AI and build at least one generative AI solution prototype using toolsets from the innovation sandbox.
DISG, SNDGO, and Google Cloud will run those workshops for up to eight cohorts of participating organisations from 24 July to 30 September 2023, with the goal of identifying and addressing 100 generative AI use cases across government and industry within the next 100 days.
Participating organisations and their AI teams will also have the opportunity to turn their prototype into a minimum viable product (MVP), and demonstrate their MVPs to a panel of technology experts from MCI, DISG, SNDGO, Google Cloud, as well as other potential government and commercial users in November and December 2023.
The panel will evaluate these MVPs based on design, usability, reliability, functionality, and propensity for real-world application. High potential MVPs will be shortlisted as “Capstone Projects'' and receive the opportunity to be showcased and recognised at the AI Trailblazers Awards ceremony organised by MCI, DISG, and SNDGO at the end of the year.
Organisations participating in the AI Trailblazers initiative include the Ministry of Manpower (MOM), the Infocomm Media Development Authority (IMDA), the Public Service Division (PSD), SNDGO, the Government Technology Agency (GovTech), American Express, Mastercard, PropertyGuru Group, and Tokopedia.
In the case of MOM, it hopes to use AI to provide workers with targeted career guidance, including job and training recommendations. "We want to do a better job of matching jobseekers to jobs. But we also know that it is not just a matter of putting them in touch with each other. It is about understanding the individuals and job requirements deeply. There is also an important gap in between, which is that even if the matches are not a 100 percent, even if it is mere 60 percent, what kinds of interventions can you encourage the individual to take to close the gap? And this is very difficult to do so. We have career coaches, but they have an immense workload to deal with. With this [AI] tool, I think that could dramatically change the level of advice they provide to their clients," says Minister of Communications and Information Josephine Teo at the launch of AI Trailblazers.
“The AI Trailblazers initiative will help Singapore-based companies experiment, uncover value, and create novel and meaningful generative AI solutions to deliver better products and services. We look forward to this partnership with Google Cloud, and the impactful applications created from this initiative,” says Jacqueline Poh, managing director of the Singapore Economic Development Board (EDB).
Karan Bajwa, vice president for Asia Pacific at Google Cloud, adds: “To drive broader awareness and adoption of generative AI — at a scale that transforms an economy and delivers high-impact outcomes for citizens — requires a highly programmatic and intentional approach. AI Trailblazers is one of a series of initiatives that [Google Cloud is] progressively rolling out in partnership with the Singapore government. Our overall goal is to bring organisations of all sizes—public sector, enterprises, and startups—on an accelerated journey to create bold, responsible, and impactful AI solutions for Singapore and Singaporeans, and AI solutions from Singapore for the world.”
AI Trailblazers builds on the strategic collaboration between MCI and Google Cloud, and the launch of the AI Government Cloud Cluster (AGCC) by SNDGO and Google Cloud in May 2023.
(Updated at 11pm on 24 July, 2023, to include MOM's use case and Minister Teo's quote)
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