By James Konstantin Galvez ( February 13, 2026, 03:35 GMT | Insight) -- Singapore will roll out national artificial intelligence programs across manufacturing, connectivity, finance and healthcare, Prime Minister Lawrence Wong said, alongside a new National AI Council to coordinate policy and deployment. The strategy prioritises rapid, responsible adoption rather than building frontier-scale models. Regulatory sandboxes, expanded tax incentives and enterprise support schemes aim to accelerate corporate transformation. Workforce measures include targeted upskilling and AI literacy initiatives, as Singapore positions AI as a core industrial policy tool to sustain competitiveness and productivity growth.Singapore will launch a set of national artificial intelligence programs and establish a new governance structure to accelerate AI deployment across key sectors, Prime Minister Lawrence Wong said, framing the technology as a strategic economic lever rather than a standalone digital initiative.The move signals a shift from pilot projects to coordinated, system-wide execution, Wong said in his 2026 budget speech on Thursday.Singapore “will not seek to compete in building the largest frontier AI models,” Wong said, noting that such efforts are dominated by major economies with deep compute resources. Instead, the city-state will focus on deploying AI “effectively, responsibly and at speed,” leveraging regulatory coherence and cross-agency coordination.— National programs —Four national AI programs will anchor the transformation in advanced manufacturing, connectivity and logistics, finance and healthcare, Wong said.In manufacturing, Singapore aims to accelerate the development of AI-enabled smart factories to strengthen global competitiveness. In connectivity, AI tools are expected to automate airport and port operations and improve the efficiency of goods movement, reinforcing Singapore’s position as a regional hub.Each program will be tied to defined objectives and measurable outcomes, Wong said. Regulatory sandboxes will be expanded to allow controlled testing of AI applications, and sector-specific rules will be reviewed to reduce friction for deployment.A new National AI Council, which Wong said he will chair, will coordinate research and development, regulatory policy and investment promotion efforts.— Enterprise transformation —Beyond sector policy, the government is targeting company-level adoption. A new “Champions of AI” program will support companies undertaking comprehensive transformation, including data restructuring, workflow redesign and workforce retraining, Wong said.Leading domestic firms such as DBS and Grab are already moving toward enterprise-wide AI integration, he noted.For smaller companies, fiscal support will be expanded. The Enterprise Innovation Scheme will include AI-related expenditure as a qualifying activity for taxation assessment years 2027 and 2028, capped at S$50,000 ($39,600) annually. The Productivity Solutions Grant will broaden support for AI-enabled tools.Wong acknowledged that full-scale AI integration is complex and capital-intensive, particularly for small and medium-sized enterprises.— Ecosystem build-out —Singapore is also strengthening its AI ecosystem through clustering initiatives. Building on a pilot co-working initiative known as Lorong AI, the government will establish a larger AI park at one-north, the city-state's flagship AI hub, to convene startups, researchers and multinational firms, Wong said.More than 60 companies, including Google and Microsoft, have established AI centres of excellence in Singapore, contributing to local research and engineering capacity, he added.The cluster strategy mirrors Singapore’s approach in sectors such as semiconductors and biomedical sciences: anchor advanced capabilities, attract private investment and integrate research with commercialization.— Workforce transition —Wong directly addressed concerns that AI could displace routine cognitive and administrative work. The government will work closely with unions to manage transitions and avoid structural unemployment, he said.Initial professional upskilling efforts will focus on accountancy and legal services, where AI can automate tasks such as data consolidation and document review. This shift will allow professionals to move toward advisory and analytical functions that require judgment and trust, Wong said.Institutes of higher learning will strengthen AI literacy while maintaining an emphasis on foundational disciplinary skills. Technical competence and critical thinking remain essential in an AI-enabled workplace, he added.— Skills and access —The SkillsFuture platform will be redesigned to clarify AI training pathways, Wong said. Individuals who complete selected AI courses will receive six months of free access to premium AI tools to support hands-on learning.Consumer-facing systems such as ChatGPT and Gemini are accessible entry points, he noted, but effective use requires structured training and organizational integration.— Deployment edge —Singapore’s competitive advantage lies not in frontier-scale model development, but in trusted governance, regulatory alignment and rapid deployment, Wong said.By combining industrial policy, fiscal incentives, regulatory adjustments and labour-market safeguards under a unified AI strategy, Singapore is positioning AI as a structural competitiveness tool.Whether the approach delivers sustained productivity gains will depend on execution — particularly in manufacturing and logistics, where measurable improvements can be tracked. AI will be treated as a national transformation priority, not an incremental digital upgrade, Wong said....