logo
No one to be left behind in Singapore's AI push, says Tan Kiat How

No one to be left behind in Singapore's AI push, says Tan Kiat How

Business Times3 days ago
[SINGAPORE] The government is doing all it can to help companies, workers and citizens harness the potential of artificial intelligence (AI), said Senior Minister of State for Digital Development and Information Tan Kiat How at an event on Tuesday (Jul 22).
'We are putting in place the infrastructure, the investment ecosystem to help companies and workers make full use of this technology', he said in a speech at the DBS 'Live Fulfilled' employee carnival.
To help small businesses adopt AI, the government is running programmes such as SMEs Go Digital, which provides financial support for the adoption of advanced digital tools such as Gen AI, he said.
There are also efforts to ensure that companies stay safe from potential cyberattacks – whether they are large enterprises often facing online threats, or smaller businesses that are still vulnerable.
By supporting the integration of AI in companies' work processes, the government is also giving workers the opportunity to learn the right way to use AI tools, Tan noted.
In addition, ambassadors from the SG Digital Office are teaching the elderly digital skills such as Gen AI.
A NEWSLETTER FOR YOU
Friday, 8.30 am SGSME
Get updates on Singapore's SME community, along with profiles, news and tips.
Sign Up
Sign Up
Tan gave the example of a grandmother using Gen AI to find a simplified recipe for fish and chips, which she wanted to cook for her grandson. 'We are not leaving anyone behind (in the adoption of AI)', he said.
He believes that AI will not steal the jobs of human workers because there are many tasks it cannot perform.
In the tech sector, AI can generate code efficiently – but someone needs to define what the code should do and whether it is reliable.
Although the nature of jobs may change, 'in Singapore, especially when we don't have enough people, there will always be jobs', he said.
Companies may be anxious about using AI, so large institutions such as DBS can 'lead by example' through active adoption of the technology, he noted.
DBS introduces AI career coach
At the carnival, DBS launched iCoach – a Gen AI-powered virtual coach for its employees.
The program can be accessed by the bank's offices in Singapore, Indonesia, India, China, Hong Kong and Taiwan, a spokesperson from the bank said during a product demonstration.
iCoach's knowledge base was developed jointly with Marshall Goldsmith, a career coach with more than four decades of experience working with managers and executives.
The virtual coach provides employees with personalised, on-demand career guidance to help them navigate the workplace.
Available around the clock, it draws on DBS' roles, functions and internal mobility pathways to deliver relevant career advice.
Seventy per cent of coached employees made improvements in work performance, relationships and communication, and 80 per cent reported higher self-confidence, data from International Coaching Federation and Better Up Career Coaching indicated.
In response to The Business Times' query on whether iCoach will be used widely by DBS employees, the bank's spokesperson said the launch event was a key attempt at raising awareness of the tool.
Employees also have access to human resource software that may guide them to iCoach, she added.
Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

Intel to separate networking unit as new CEO Tan overhauls business
Intel to separate networking unit as new CEO Tan overhauls business

Business Times

time38 minutes ago

  • Business Times

Intel to separate networking unit as new CEO Tan overhauls business

[BENGALURU] Intel is planning to separate its networking and communications unit into a stand-alone company and has begun the process of identifying investors, the chipmaker said on Friday (Jul 25), as new CEO Tan Lip-Bu looks to streamline its operations. Tan's plan to rejuvenate the once-iconic chipmaker focuses on shedding non-core assets and reducing expenses by scaling back major investments and cutting workforce numbers. Reuters reported in May that Intel was considering divesting its network and edge businesses, previously called NEX in its financial reports. 'Like Altera, we will remain an anchor investor enabling us to benefit from future upside as we position the business for future growth,' the company said. In April, Intel agreed to sell a majority stake in its Altera programmable chip business to buyout firm Silver Lake at a valuation of about US$8.75 billion, or nearly half of what it had paid for the business in 2015. Tan has been given the challenge of revitalising the chipmaker after years of missteps and high-capital manufacturing strategies led to growing losses, all while the company grapples with establishing a foothold in the burgeoning artificial intelligence market. Intel's shares were down 9 per cent on Friday after the chipmaker warned of exiting chip manufacturing if it failed to secure a major customer. It also reported a surprise second-quarter adjusted loss and forecast a bigger-than-expected loss in the third quarter. In the latest first quarter, Intel made NEX a part of its data centre and PC group and does not report its results as a separate segment. The unit, which makes chips for telecom equipment, generated revenue of US$5.8 billion in 2024, securities filings show. That constituted about 11 per cent of the company's total sales. REUTERS

Meta names ChatGPT co-creator as chief scientist of Superintelligence Lab
Meta names ChatGPT co-creator as chief scientist of Superintelligence Lab

CNA

time2 hours ago

  • CNA

Meta names ChatGPT co-creator as chief scientist of Superintelligence Lab

NEW YORK :Meta Platforms has appointed Shengjia Zhao, co-creator of ChatGPT, as chief scientist of its Superintelligence Lab, CEO Mark Zuckerberg said on Friday, as the company accelerates its push into advanced AI. "In this role, Shengjia will set the research agenda and scientific direction for our new lab working directly with me and Alex," Zuckerberg wrote in a Threads post, referring to Meta's Chief AI Officer Alexandr Wang, who Zuckerberg hired from startup Scale AI when Meta took a big stake in it. Zhao, a former research scientist at OpenAI, co-created ChatGPT, GPT-4 and several of OpenAI's mini models, including 4.1 and o3. He is among several researchers who have moved from OpenAI to Meta in recent weeks, part of a broader talent arms race as Zuckerberg aggressively hires from rivals to close the gap in advanced AI. Meta has been offering some of Silicon Valley's most lucrative pay packages and striking startup deals to attract top researchers, a strategy that follows the underwhelming performance of its Llama 4 model. Meta launched the Superintelligence Lab recently to consolidate work on its Llama models and long‑term artificial general intelligence ambitions. Zhao is a co-founder of the lab, according to the Threads post, which operates separately from FAIR, Meta's established AI research division led by deep learning pioneer Yann LeCun. Zuckerberg has said Meta aims to build 'full general intelligence' and release its work as open source — a strategy that has drawn both praise and concern within the AI community.

Tesla gets multiple shareholder proposals related to investment in xAI
Tesla gets multiple shareholder proposals related to investment in xAI

CNA

time2 hours ago

  • CNA

Tesla gets multiple shareholder proposals related to investment in xAI

Tesla said on Friday it has received a number of shareholder proposals regarding the automaker investing in CEO Elon Musk's artificial intelligence startup xAI. Musk earlier in July ruled out a merger between Tesla and xAI but said he plans to hold a shareholder vote on investment in the startup by the automaker. Tesla, which will hold its annual shareholder meeting on November 6, said it will only include one proposal on each topic in its proxy statement, in accordance with SEC rules. Earlier this month, the board set July 31 as the deadline for the submission of shareholder proposals to be included in the proxy statement.

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store