Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Finance of Singapore, Lawrence Wong, recently announced the Singapore Budget 2024. The budget includes various allocations for social, living, and learning support, as well as industry investment in technology.

Here’s what technology leaders have to say about the budget.

Sam Liew, Chief Executive, Government Strategic Business Group, NCS

“We are heartened to see that this year’s Budget has reaffirmed the government’s continued commitment to investing in human capital and building an empowered and resilient tech workforce.

We have been partnering with the government and clients to harness technologies such as AI to transform workplaces and businesses. We see that more urgently than ever, our workforce needs to continuously reskill and upskill to stay relevant and competitive, as DPM Lawrence Wong pointed out in his budget statement. The initiatives and measures introduced in the Budget, such as additional investments into AI compute and the new SkillsFuture Level-Up Programme, will be critical in strengthening Singapore’s tech talent ecosystem.

S$1 billion investment into AI development with another S$3 billion set aside for R&D in the Research, Innovation and Enterprise 2025 (RIE2025) plan will further provide more opportunity and support to enable tech talents to harness technology to make a positive impact not just in Singapore, but also on a regional and global scale.

At the heart of technology is people. We will continue to work closely with the government and Institutes of Higher Learning to nurture a robust pool of local tech talent in Singapore. Focusing on our talents, both present and future, is key to advancing our community, as the name of this year’s Budget aptly suggests, “building our shared future together”.”

Dan Bognar, Vice President & Managing Director, JAPAC, HubSpot

“It is encouraging to see Budget 2024 committing more than S$1 billion over the next five years to accelerate Singapore’s Artificial Intelligence (AI) adoption and innovation. We have arrived at a fascinating intersection where technologies like AI have the potential to play a pivotal role in nation-building and in helping to catalyse economic resilience. The reality is that AI provides an opportunity to enhance the future-readiness of Singapore’s growing digital economy. With its ability to improve productivity, AI represents a long-term, sustainable solution for firms to deal with ongoing economic challenges such as rising costs and increased complexities as the business grows. This will be especially relevant for SMEs, where technology can empower them with the means to compete with larger industry counterparts.

As the adoption of AI tools grows, organisations will also require targeted guidance to streamline their technology platforms and data sources. As many business leaders can attest to, a fragmented set of technology platforms, often a result of adopting multiple point solutions alongside legacy platforms, leads to disconnected systems that impede data, productivity and workflows. These shortcomings will likely increase overall operating costs, compromise the customer experience, and negatively impact business outcomes. For instance, HubSpot research identifies disconnected systems as a major pain point for Singaporean businesses, negatively impacting marketing and sales outreach, thereby hampering customer acquisition and retention. With data being the fuel that powers AI, Singapore businesses must integrate, or better still, consolidate, their technology platforms to deliver connected data sets.

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Finance, Lawrence Wong, also aptly pointed out that technological advances mean that expertise will be in a constant state of flux. With outcomes dependent on the strength of a business’s human capital, we welcome the additional SkillsFuture initiatives aimed at supporting workforce and business transformation, as well as mid-career workers in skills upgrading efforts. Continuous learning has become essential in ensuring that Singapore’s workforce remains in step with technological changes. As the digital economy grows, enterprises who are well-equipped to understand AI’s potential, and able to move quickly to lay a robust foundation for its adoption, will stand to reap the most benefits. These programmes will enhance businesses ability to reinvest in their employees as they capitalise on this change.”

Mao Gen Foo, Head of Southeast Asia at Qualtrics

“It’s pleasing to see Singapore’s continued commitment to upskilling initiatives, as highlighted in this year’s Budget, along with a significant investment in local AI capabilities and skills.

The newly-announced SkillsFuture Level-Up initiative, aimed at supporting mid-career workers in acquiring new skills and competencies, is particularly encouraging. Programmes like this recognise the crucial role this demographic plays in our economy and the need for support in helping our nation’s workers adapt to evolving demands and technological advancements.

The increased focus and investment in AI capabilities, talent, and industry development  is also exciting and important for Singapore to strengthen its position as a business and innovation hub. Singapore boasts one of the highest global acceptance rates for AI in the workplace, which supported by the government’s ambitions to set up new AI centres of excellence and investments in upskilling programmes, will empower a new cohort of talent and create high demand for skilled professionals.

Moreover, to ensure Singapore can attract and retain the talent needed in the future, this investment and focus on skills must be complemented by ensuring workers are provided with employee experiences that enable them to do their best work and create high-performing, highly productive teams.

Organisations that embrace this people-centric approach and empower their teams to excel in a period of technological and societal change will be the true standouts, propelling the nation towards a prosperous and competitive future.”

Andy Ng, Vice President and Managing Director for Asia South and Pacific Region at Veritas Technologies

“The latest Singapore Budget 2024 recognises the crucial role of digital trust in the face of rapid technological adoption. To strengthen our competitive lead and navigate the current economic climate, prioritising initiatives that build public confidence in digital systems, data privacy, and cybersecurity is paramount. As organisations in Singapore witness faster adoption of emerging technologies to keep a competitive edge, investments in robust cybersecurity infrastructure, regulatory frameworks, and education programs are essential to build and maintain trust among citizens, businesses, and investors. The $3 billion RIE2025 plan emphasises the need for research and digital innovation. While this fuels advancement, it also intensifies the need for vigilance.

Organisations must adopt a 360-degree defense architecture to strengthen their cybersecurity posture and keep the data and applications safe and resilient across any environment – to comply enterprises need effective financial support. Collaborative efforts between the government, private sector, and academia are crucial to address emerging cybersecurity threats and ensure the integrity of Singapore’s digital ecosystem.

Furthermore, promoting digital literacy and empowering individuals with the knowledge and skills to navigate the digital landscape safely is equally key. Educational campaigns and awareness programs can help citizens recognise and mitigate online risks, thereby fostering a culture of responsible digital citizenship.”

Jessie Xia, Co-Chair, SGTech Digital Trust Chapter

“We are heartened to see Singapore’s commitment to advancing Artificial Intelligence and fully support the government’s move to establish a National Cybersecurity Command Centre to defend against cyber threats. We urge the government to explore trust-related technologies as a key growth and innovation driver, and to invest more to fortify Singapore’s trusted status as a global leader in cybersecurity and Digital Trust.”

Jasie Fon, Vice President of Asia at Ping Identity

“Ping Identity welcomes the launch of the National Cybersecurity Command Centre to strengthen Singapore’s cyber defence capabilities and resiliency. Aiming to better coordinate cyber defence operations and spur innovations, the centre will be crucial to enhancing the security posture of organisations in the digital economy. These programmes signal the critical nature of enterprises staying ahead of the curve amid advancing and AI-driven cyber attacks. 

We look forward to learning more about these programmes, collaborating with the government on solutions and contributing our expertise in identity fraud prevention and passwordless access to make digital identity management more seamless and secure across industries.”

Andrea Baronchelli, CEO and co-founder, Aspire

“The injection of S$2 billion into the Financial Sector Development Fund (FSDF) from the Singaporean government will enable firms to spur technology adoption as well as extend support for talent development and upskilling efforts to cultivate a digital-ready workforce.
Additionally, the announcement to invest more than $1 billion over the next five years to accelerate AI activities is a progressive move. AI holds significant potential to drive productivity gains and catalyse innovation that can have a transformative impact on the finance industry; empowering businesses to thrive in the digital-first economy.”

Hassan Ahmed, Country Director, Singapore, Coinbase

The injection of S$2 billion into the Financial Sector Development Fund (FSDF) reaffirms Singapore’s position as a digitally forward and progressive economy. With continued investment to fortify the nation’s financial sector, we hope to see further commitment to more well-defined legislative frameworks that balance access, innovation and protection around digital assets.

The Lion City remains a viable breeding ground for spurring growth for crypto as an asset class. Stronger partnerships between policymakers and crypto service providers and providing more education around the utility of digital assets will help increase the mainstream adoption of cryptocurrencies while safeguarding consumer interests and ensuring a responsible market.

Finally, as crypto adoption has grown, so has its utility – from an asset class to transforming the traditional financial system. We’re seeing crypto utility emerge across stablecoins, DeFi, and Web3 as crypto drives updates to the financial system and onchain looks more and more like the new online. We are also supportive of the $3 billion investment towards the Research, Innovation and Enterprise 2025 (RIE2025) plan driving Singapore’s Smart Nation ambitions and anchoring the nation’s position as a digital innovation hub. We hope continued partnerships between the government and regulated onshore industry players showcase a commitment that stretches to the broader fintech and Web3 ecosystem in Singapore.

Wai Kit Cheah, Senior Director of APAC Products and Practices, Lumen Technologies

“The government’s move to upgrade the National Broadband Network (NBN) as announced in Budget 2024 will be highly welcomed by local enterprises. With digitalisation long recognised as a competitive advantage for Singapore, these upgrades provide essential infrastructure for the adoption of technologies such as artificial intelligence and cloud.

For local enterprises to most effectively capitalise on digital growth opportunities, modernisation of IT applications and infrastructure at the organisational level will be essential. Adoption of new technologies like AI will leave many businesses struggling with the limitations posed by their legacy IT systems and infrastructure. Investing in their infrastructure needs, both internally and externally, will empower enterprises with the foundation to thrive in a steadily digital-first economy, driving resilient growth and stay competitive.”