Google expands AI investment in Singapore with deeper research footprint

Google has announced a significant expansion of its artificial intelligence investment in Singapore, reinforcing the city-state’s role as a regional hub for advanced research, enterprise innovation, and workforce development. The announcement was made at the second Google for Singapore event, attended by Singapore’s Minister for Digital Development and Information, Josephine Teo, and is aligned with the country’s national AI strategy.

Singapore has served as Google’s Asia Pacific headquarters since 2007 and now hosts nearly 3,000 employees. Over the years, the company has invested more than US$5 billion in technical infrastructure, including four data centres and cloud regions, alongside a growing research presence. This includes the establishment of the Google DeepMind Research Lab to advance artificial intelligence research across Asia Pacific.

The latest investment builds on this foundation by expanding Google’s research and development footprint in Singapore. The company is scaling specialised teams across software engineering, user experience design, and research science, with a strategic focus on strengthening its cloud engineering capabilities. These teams will work both on regional priorities and in collaboration with global Google teams to develop technologies that can be deployed across the company’s platforms and products.

Google said the expansion complements Singapore’s Research, Innovation and Enterprise Plan 2030, which aims to deepen national research capabilities and drive innovation with real-world impact. By anchoring more advanced research work locally, the company aims to reinforce Singapore’s position as a global research hub while contributing to the development of exportable technologies built in the region.

Using AI to address societal needs and enterprise growth

Alongside its R&D expansion, Google introduced a series of initiatives designed to support an inclusive and responsible AI economy in Singapore. These initiatives span societal problem-solving, enterprise innovation, workforce development, and digital security.

In healthcare, Google is partnering with local organisations to apply AI to preventative care and national health infrastructure. The company has expanded its collaboration with AI Singapore to support the development of Singapore’s national AI infrastructure for health. This includes access to MedGemma, Google’s open medical understanding model, which will be fine-tuned to reflect Singapore’s healthcare context. The goal is to enable the development of AI-assisted applications tailored to local population needs.

Preventative health is another focus area. Google is working with local health-tech startup AMILI on a precision nutrition programme that provides personalised lifestyle and nutrition guidance. The initiative combines AMILI’s Asian-focused gut microbiome data with Google’s cloud and AI technologies, including Gemini, to tailor recommendations based on individual microbiome profiles, metabolic health, and personal goals. Further collaborations with healthcare clusters and agencies are being explored to scale the programme nationally.

Beyond healthcare, Google’s philanthropic arm has committed US$1 million to support Project Aquarium, an open data platform for Southeast Asian languages. The funding is intended to improve the quality and availability of regional language datasets and make them open source, enabling developers to build culturally relevant AI solutions for the region.

For enterprises, Google unveiled the Google Cloud Singapore Engineering Center, a new hub designed to foster deeper technical collaboration with organisations operating from Singapore. The centre brings together software engineers and frontline support teams to work directly with companies on complex global challenges, including those in emerging industries such as robotics and clean energy. The co-location of this centre with the DeepMind research lab is intended to accelerate the transition from research to deployable products.

Google also announced the launch of Startup School: Prompt to Prototype, its first such programme in Southeast Asia. The online training initiative is designed to help founders use tools such as Gemini and AI Studio to turn ideas into functional AI prototypes, even without extensive coding experience.

Building skills and strengthening digital security

A central pillar of Google’s announcement is workforce development. The company introduced Majulah AI, a renewed commitment to support Singapore’s next phase of growth by bringing together training and acceleration initiatives for jobseekers, entrepreneurs, developers, and the wider population. Existing programmes include Skills Ignition SG with the Infocomm Media Development Authority, startup accelerators focused on AI-first companies, and Gemini Academy, which is open to all Singaporeans, including seniors.

Majulah AI also introduces new initiatives aimed at youths, educators, and professionals. One of these is the Google AI Living Lab, developed in partnership with the Ministry of Education. These physical innovation labs provide students and educators with hands-on access to AI tools through workshops and industry collaborations. The first lab has been established at ITE College East, with plans to expand to Nanyang Polytechnic and other institutions. Google aims to reach 50,000 Singaporeans through these labs by 2027.

In parallel, Google is working with the Infocomm Media Development Authority on the Skills Ignition SG AI Challenge. This three-month accelerator programme targets 500 graduates and mid-career professionals, focusing on the practical application of AI in non-technical business roles. Participants will learn to design AI-powered workflows for functions such as accountancy, human resources, legal, and sales and marketing. The programme includes curriculum support, industry collaboration, and job-readiness training, with top participants invited to explore opportunities within Google.

On digital safety, Google outlined measures to strengthen a secure AI ecosystem in Singapore. The company is launching an AI Centre of Excellence for security in Singapore, focusing on research into emerging threats, including risks associated with agentic AI, as well as advancing privacy and content safety. Google has also begun rolling out age assurance solutions locally, providing safer, age-appropriate online experiences for users estimated to be under 18 across its platforms.

These efforts build on existing partnerships with government agencies, including enhanced fraud protection on Google Play Protect, which has blocked more than 2.9 million high-risk app installation attempts across over 670,000 devices in Singapore in the past two years. Google is also continuing its work with public partners to promote healthy digital habits, having trained more than 210,000 parents and children through its Be Internet Awesome programme since 2022.