Singapore – Doubling down on its mission to drive technological progress, the Singapore government has announced additional investments into its technology and innovation engines following the presentation of Singapore’s 2025 budget.
The budget includes a $3 billion investment to the National Productivity Fund designed to secure high-quality tech investments, alongside a $1 billion investment to power R&D infrastructure.
Another $150m budget has been allocated to the Enterprise Compute initiative, supporting businesses in integrating AI by providing access to cloud computing, AI tools, and expert consultancy. By connecting with top cloud service providers, eligible enterprises will gain access to AI tools and expert insights needed to drive innovation and optimise their transformation efforts.
In his speech, Prime Minister and Minister for Finance Lawrence Wong emphasised technology and innovation among the three crucial areas in keeping the country’s economy forward, alongside enterprise ecosystem, and infrastructure investments.
To explore the broader impact of this government move, UpTech Media gathered expert perspectives from industry leaders on how it can drive future innovation and growth.
Koren Wines, Managing Director, Xero Asia
With economic pressures mounting, small businesses cannot afford inefficiencies. While the application of AI and unified data technologies, particularly in data-intensive tasks such as financial management, can help SMEs unlock new levels of productivity, many businesses lack the technical knowledge and skills to fully harness these tools.
In addition to leveraging financial schemes, such as the National Productivity Fund, to build new digital capabilities, success will hinge on the ability of SMEs to make the most of the consultancy services provided through the government’s new Enterprise Compute Initiative. This program grants them access to expert guidance that can guide their efforts, helping businesses integrate AI tools effectively, ensuring technology investments are maximised.
Technology adoption, however, is often just the first step to long-term digital-led growth. Closing the digital skills gap, through initiatives such as the refreshed SkillsFuture scheme, will be equally important for SMEs to make the most of technology. The most successful businesses will be those that strengthen the digital capabilities of their workforce, enhancing future readiness and driving sustainable growth in the digital economy.
Jornt Moerland, SVP, Asia Pacific, Mendix
Budget 2025 envisions a bright future for Singapore’s enterprises by spurring tech innovation and aligning high-quality investments with industry needs.
Amid a turbulent global economy, enterprises face rising operational and tech costs. Although exciting technologies like agentic AI are on the horizon, enterprises will continue to struggle in harnessing their full potential due to complexity and siloed implementations that limit their accessibility and adoption.
The injection of 150 million dollars into the Enterprise Compute Initiative will deeply benefit the enterprise ecosystem by lowering the barriers to entry for AI tools, optimising their tech resources and providing tailored technological solutions to address their unique business needs. These will support local enterprises in integrating novel technologies, such as AI-assisted development, into their existing processes and systems and in the long run enable them to cultivate an agile, change-ready, and adaptable tech stack.
Such initiatives present an opportunity to write a new chapter for Singapore’s enterprises, enabling them to not only future proof their businesses but also grow on a global scale using the latest cutting-edge technologies.
Dan Bognar, Vice President & Managing Director, JAPAC, HubSpot
The Budget’s enhanced support for SME digitalisation arrives at a critical moment when businesses must accelerate their digital transformation. The new Enterprise Compute Initiative, combining financial support with expert guidance, addresses the crucial need for practical AI adoption support among Singapore businesses.
In today’s fast-paced digital economy, time is of the essence. The average Singapore business switches between more than 50 applications when managing customer interactions – this slows teams down, fractures customer experiences and fragments the insights businesses have access to. This ongoing challenge is holding companies back from achieving total value from their technology and reaping the benefits of AI.
SMEs need solutions that deliver immediate impact. I’m pleased to see the refreshed National Productivity Fund can help SMEs adopt digital tools that are easy to implement, fast to integrate, and unified across teams, enabling transformative results from enhanced customer engagement to significant productivity gains.
The Budget’s comprehensive approach to digitalisation positions Singapore’s SMEs to compete in the global digital economy. By combining government support with the right technology choices, businesses can accelerate their digital transformation journey and quickly realise tangible benefits that drive sustainable growth.
Yogesh Sangle, Global Head of Instarem
It’s encouraging to see the 2025 Singapore Budget deliver targeted relief to SMEs through corporate tax rebates, and co-funded wage increases, providing critical support amid rising business costs. This provides businesses vital breathing room in a challenging economic climate. I am especially heartened to see direct assistance for unprofitable businesses, allowing them to focus on growth despite apparent challenges.
The $3 billion top-up to the National Productivity Fund is another strong step towards enhancing Singapore’s competitiveness. Supporting high-quality investments will help drive technology and innovation, and we’re hopeful that SMEs will have access to resources that enable them to scale, digitise, and stay competitive. Grants for AI adoption and automation could further accelerate SME productivity, complementing this investment.
Expanding the SkillsFuture Level-Up Programme to part-time learners is another welcome move. As AI and digital tools reshape industries, small and medium businesses face the challenge of upskilling their workforce while managing day-to-day operations – so these training opportunities are crucial to long-term success.
Overall, this Budget lays a solid foundation for SME growth, and we look forward to seeing continued initiatives that empower businesses to innovate, thrive, and contribute to Singapore’s economy.
Suvig Sharma, Area Vice President (ASEAN), Confluent
Singapore has stood strong amidst an evolving global landscape with geopolitical uncertainties, as our economy expanded 4.4% in 2024. Given that industries across Singapore’s workforce have been driving the charge, it is heartening to witness PM Lawrence Wong’s focus on local technology and upskilling investments to strengthen resilience and drive sustainable growth.
With Singapore’s plans to triple its AI talent pool, it is critical to help businesses adopt best practices to maximise innovation, support workers to harness greater value & streamline workflows, while ensuring responsible use. PM Wong’s $150 million budget for the Enterprise Compute Initiative, which supports businesses to harness AI effectively around processes and systems, underscores the need to stay ahead of disruptive technologies.
One of the key processes for AI is data management – the effectiveness of AI is deeply dependent on having clean and up-to-date data – similar to building better health by choosing fresh, wholesome foods marked with Singapore’s Healthier Choice symbol. High-quality data is what drives accurate insights and better business decisions. With data volumes growing daily and demand for real-time responses increasing, data streaming platforms will play a crucial role in powering AI applications with trustworthy, fresh data to deliver relevant results without hallucinations.
To fully leverage these emerging technologies, companies need a skilled workforce. The new SkillsFuture Workforce Development Grant will be of tremendous help, helping businesses train their employees while adapting their workforce structures to new demands. As roles like data streaming engineers become more essential, companies will need support to prepare their workforce to respond to these evolving fields.
This effectively impacts real-life cases such as banks and other organisations, where they tap on real-time streams of accurate data to bolster smarter decision-making, like detecting fraud and allowing teams to access and use data independently and securely. For example, Trust Bank now fully utilises governed real-time data, enabling flexibility and autonomy across various teams. We also collaborated with IMDA to support government agencies in delivering more responsive and effective citizen experiences.
Eklavya Bhave, Head of Asia-Pacific, Coursera
Singapore has long set the standard for skilling excellence, and Budget 2025 reinforces this with a strong focus on workforce development via strategic investments in skills and training. The new SkillsFuture Workforce Development Grant and redesigned SkillsFuture Enterprise Credit will streamline funding access and encourage businesses to invest in employee upskilling.
As employers increasingly seek talent with digital and GenAI skills, the transition to an e-wallet model will help companies further accelerate digital transformation and nurture talent from within. While younger adults in Singapore outperform the OECD average in skills, older generations, particularly those aged 55-65, face challenges in keeping pace. SkillsFuture programmes and support schemes, supplemented by flexible learning solutions from providers like Coursera, are essential to bridging the gap, supporting job redesign activities while future-proofing talent across all age groups.
Nearly 20% of Singapore’s population is already learning on Coursera, with many using SkillsFuture credits to gain practical skills in data science, business, and digital literacy. With a 240% surge in GenAI enrollments in 2024 – one enrollment every 14 minutes – Singapore leads Southeast Asia in GenAI learning and ranks among the top 15 globally on Coursera. This is especially pertinent with Singapore’s plans to triple its AI talent pool over the next few years, strengthening the nation’s pivotal position as an AI innovation hub. At Coursera, we’re excited to continue championing an equitable future of work, helping more Singaporeans gain essential skills while strengthening the country’s leadership in innovation.
Niko Walraven, Area Vice President APAC, Neat
Singapore’s Budget 2025 has been designed to bolster the country’s technological infrastructure and foster lifelong learning and innovation. Programmes like the Enterprise Compute Initiative and a strengthened National Productivity Fund can be powerful catalysts to truly accelerate Singapore’s continued efforts in driving a strong culture of innovation.
With robust R&D investments and large-scale infrastructure projects in the pipeline, innovation thrives when individuals and businesses are empowered to freely collaborate and exchange ideas. Therefore, it’s essential for businesses to stay ahead by making strategic technology investments that not only streamline operations but also drive productivity, creativity, and collaboration.
I think the Budget presents a clear mandate to cultivate a workforce that is not only skilled but also deeply interconnected.
