Singapore, US expand AI partnership to focus on upskilling youth and women

Singapore and the US are widening their collaboration on artificial intelligence (AI) to focus on building up talent among youth and women. 

A new AI Talent Bridge initiative expands on the US-Singapore Women in Tech Partnership Program that the two countries introduced in 2022. The latest plan aims to bolster talent in emerging technology, including AI, with an emphasis on youth and women, according to a joint statement released by US Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo and Singapore's Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Trade and Industry Gan Kim Yong. 

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To be rolled out in the coming months, efforts here are part of the Partnership for Growth and Innovation pact that the two nations launched in October 2021 to identify bilateral trade opportunities, in particular across these four areas: digital economy and smart cities, supply chain, healthcare, and clean energy and environmental technology. 

The pact encompasses shared objectives to tap the benefits of AI and "harness its potential for good," the two government agencies said. "The US and Singapore have prioritized development and adoption of interoperable governance frameworks for the trusted, safe, secure, and responsible development, deployment, and evaluation of AI technologies," they said. 

Last October, Singapore's Infocomm Media Development Authority (IMDA) and the US National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) said both countries had synced up their respective AI frameworks to ease compliance and will continue to drive "safe, trustworthy, and responsible" AI developments. 

The mapping exercise between IMDA's AI Verify and NIST's AI Risk Management Framework aims to harmonize international AI governance frameworks, offer greater clarity on requirements, and reduce compliance costs. 

Moving forward, Singapore's Ministry of Communications and Information (MCI) will organize an AI dialog with industry and government representatives to discuss the two nations' investments, governance models, and workforce development in AI. 

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With the new AI Talent Bridge plan, the Ministry and the US Department of Commerce aim to continue their AI partnership to advance "an inclusive and forward-looking agenda" for economic growth and to boost AI competitiveness for both countries. 

"We believe the rise of AI, including generative AI (GenAI), brings with it new and developing opportunities, including the ability to enhance economic and social welfare and digital inclusion, to accelerate and advance socially beneficial research and scientific discovery, to support more competitive and environmentally sustainable economic growth, and to promote fair and competitive markets," MCI said. 

The ministry said almost 6,000 US organizations currently operate in Singapore, with bilateral trade supporting nearly 250,000 jobs across the US. 

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According to MCI, technology spending in Singapore tipped at SG$22 billion (USD$16.3 billion) last year, while US companies' existing and committed capital investments in AI over the next few years, alongside Singapore business partners, have exceeded SG$50 billion (USD$37 billion). Organizations from both nations also have pledged to boost the AI capabilities of more than 130,000 workers in Singapore.

Their joint efforts in AI governance further indicate a need to mitigate the challenges that come with the rapid adoption of AI. 

"Both sides recognize that the testing and evaluation of AI technologies should take into account trustworthiness considerations that can support the objectives of AI governance frameworks," MCI said. 

"We believe AI governance should take into consideration relevant international standards and internationally recognized principles and guidelines, including those on explainability, transparency, accountability, fairness, inclusivity, robustness, reproducibility, security, safety, data governance, human-AI configuration, inclusive growth, and societal and environmental well-being." 

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NIST and IMDA will continue to collaborate on the next generation of AI, including mapping their respective frameworks for GenAI, spanning testing, guidelines, and benchmarks,

Also, the US AI Safety Institute, which sits under NIST, and Singapore's Digital Trust Centre, which is funded by IMDA and National Research Foundation, will work jointly to advance the science of AI safety. This will provide a critical link in a global network of AI safety institutes and other government-supported scientific institutions, MCI said.