Enhanced AWS AI Spring initiatives to boost Singapore’s ‘bilingual’ AI talent

By James Yau

The flagship programme by AWS is partnering with public education institutes to expand its workforce pillar.

AWS Country Manager, Public Sector Singapore, Elsie Tan, unveiled the MoUs and collaborations with public education institutes during the plenary opening address of Public Sector Day. Image: AWS

Singapore's tertiary students looking to gain artificial intelligence (AI) skills would receive additional industry support from Amazon Web Services (AWS), including specialised training programmes and resources.

Building on the tech giant’s flagship AI Spring programme, AWS signed memorandums of understanding (MoU) with four public education institutes, including Nanyang Polytechnic (NYP), Republic Polytechnic (RP), Temasek Polytechnic (TP) and the Singapore Management University (SMU).

The MoUs were signed at the AWS Public Sector Day Singapore on Tuesday, which was co-organised with GovInsider.

“Building a digital ready workforce isn't just about today. It's about nurturing tomorrow's talent.

“[With] AWS AI Spring, we continue to deepen our partnerships with the IHLs (institutes of higher learning) to enable the bilingual AI talent to thrive in this digital economy,” said AWS’ Country Manager, Public Sector Singapore, Elsie Tan, during the plenary opening address at the event.

The AI Spring programme was first announced in 2024, a highlighting AWS’ commitment to support Singapore’s Smart Nation and National AI Strategy 2.0 roadmaps.

The programme aimed to accelerate AI and generative AI (GenAI) adoption in Singapore across six strategic pillars - Public Sector, Workforce, Enterprise, Startups, Communities, and Research and Development.

Specifically, the Workforce pillar encompassed a series of AI skilling and professional certification programmes.

Currently, AWS is collaborating with IHLs and the National Institute of Education (NIE) to promote AI education, targeting to train 5,000 individuals each year.

As Singapore’s AI vision progresses, Tan urged public sector delegates to make the most of the moment for organisation-wide transformation.

“All of these initiatives demonstrate how AWS is cognisant, working tomorrow on securing our AI future, forming public services and building tomorrow's digital talent.

"Now today, I challenge you all to think big. How are you all going to transform your corner of the public sector and ride that press of that wave?” she added.

MoUs with the polytechnics

RP would work with AWS to integrate Kiro into the former’s academic curriculum.

Kiro is an agentic AI development software designed to make it easy for developers to ship real engineering work.

This partnership builds on RP’s existing foundation in problem-based learning and provides a vital bridge to connect students directly with businesses for final projects and internships to ensure they gain valuable hands-on experience.

“RP’s problem-based learning approach has always centred on equipping students with the skills to tackle authentic, industry-relevant challenges,” said RP’s Senior Director (Industry Services), Soh Lai Seng, to GovInsider.

“Students who are doing their final year projects will tap on Kiro to solve industry problem statements, while our adult learners will learn to develop AI Agents to improve business productivity,” he added.

From left: AWS Managing Director, ASEAN, Jeff Johnson; AWS Country Manager, Public Sector Singapore, Elsie Tan; Minister of State Jasmin Lau; RP Senior Director (Industry Services), Soh Lai Seng; and RP Director (School of InfoComm), Wong Wai Ling. Image: AWS

From left: AWS Managing Director, ASEAN, Jeff Johnson; AWS Country Manager, Public Sector Singapore, Elsie Tan; Minister of State Jasmin Lau; NYP Deputy Principal/Sustainability & Technology, Phua Chee Teck; and NYP Director, School of Information Technology, Tan Soon Keow. Image: AWS

AWS and NYP would also jointly establish the AWS x NYP AI Nexus Lab, creating a comprehensive pathway for Singapore's small and medium businesses (SMBs) to implement AI solutions.

The partnership entails a three-stage adoption process: through AI and design thinking workshops, NYP works with SMBs to formulate use cases.

Students from NYP's School of Information Technology would work closely with these SMBs to develop proof-of-concepts (POCs) that could be scaled up via AWS AI Springboard and AWS’s Partner Network.

“At Nanyang Polytechnic, we prepare learners to be AI- and industry-ready, while supporting SMEs in their digital transformation. Our partnership with AWS empowers learners to co-create real-world solutions with business owners, helping them build technical skills, confidence, and real-world impact,” said NYP’s Director, School of Information Technology, Tan Soon Keow to GovInsider.

For a start, NYP is working with the Singapore Chinese Chamber of Commerce & Industry’s network of SMBs on some practical applications.

One example was AM Digiparts. Think of an online marketplace for motorcycle spare parts.

The data analytics solution digitises physical product information for motorcycle spare parts and displays them as online storefronts for easier management.

This solution has freed up a substantial number of operational man-hours and reduced human error. Furthermore, the valuable data collected over time enabled AI to provide support for both procurement and inventory management.

“We have already seen promising learner-led projects tackling challenges like scam awareness and automation, and I believe this partnership would continue to unlock our learners’ potential – empowering them to lead with innovation, shape an AI-ready workforce, and make a meaningful difference,” Tan added.

AI in design

Building on the partnership behind the FutureX multidisciplinary digital technologies & AI centre in 2024, TP and AWS would work together again to integrate AI and emerging technologies to enhance the curriculum of its School of Design.

TP has called this the first-of-its-kind partnership in a polytechnic curriculum that aims to co-develop a cluster of subjects in creative technology.

Students could now experiment and innovate using AWS cloud platforms, GenAI tools, and technology resources, moving beyond instruction-based teaching.

From left: Michelle Teo; AWS Business Development Manager (Education & Research), Brandon Ng; TP Deputy Director/Partnerships & Professional Development (School of Design), Rajandran Vaanathi; TP Director (School of IIT), Tang Ming Fai; AWS Country Manager, Public Sector Singapore, Elsie Tan; TP Director (School of Design), Elaine Ho; TP Manager, Communication Design (School of Design), Michelle Kam; AWS Head of Strategic Initiatives, Richard Goh; and AWS Public Sector Account Manager (Education), John Fan. Image: AWS

Speaking to GovInsider, TP’s Director of the School of Design, Elaine Ho, highlighted the impetus of the shift in today’s landscape.

"Curiosity, courage, and purpose are the core principles guiding how we prepare students for a rapidly changing world. Our collaboration with AWS is a major step in this direction.

“Embracing technology as an ally of design empowers our students to experiment boldly, adopt new ways of thinking, and design with a clear goal in mind.”

TP would begin pilot runs in 2026, with programmes curated to drive design-led innovation. These initiatives will encourage participants to experiment, solve problems, and collaborate across disciplines.

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AI for social good

AWS will also be providing cloud services and technical expertise for Singapore's first gamified wellness platform - a collaboration between SMU and Babes Pregnancy Crisis Support.

The project combines academic guidance, student contributions and cloud expertise to create a highly relevant and scalable digital platform. This platform is designed to provide young people with crucial information on family planning, mental wellness, and life skills.

SMU Provost, Professor Alan Chan said: “This initiative bridges education with social innovation and reflects our collective broader goals of strengthening youth wellbeing, promoting lifelong learning, and fostering a resilient, future-ready society. Our SMU-X pedagogy sharpens students’ critical thinking, problem-solving, and leadership skills, equipping them to thrive in the workforce and beyond.”

From left: AWS Public Sector Account Manager (Education), John Fan; SMU Senior Lecturer of Organisational Behavior & Human, Paul Lim; SMU Deputy Head SMU-X, Emmaline Lim; AWS Country Manager, Public Sector Singapore, Elsie Tan; Member of Parliament David Hoe; Temasek Foundation Associate Director (Programmes), Yeo Tiong Hui; Babes Pregnancy Crisis Support, Executive Director, Melisa Wong; and AWS Head of Strategic Initiatives, Richard Goh. Image: AWS

Launching in early 2026, the initiative aimed to engage youths and young adults in its first year, with the vision of expanding its impact through partnerships with community organisations, public agencies, and corporate sponsors.

“We are happy for this opportunity to collaborate with Babes Pregnancy Crisis Support Ltd on this meaningful wellness project. SMU-X is a highly appropriate platform to support this project with our unique experiential learning pedagogy.

“Our students have been delivering impactful solutions for our client partners all these years, and we look forward to a fruitful collaboration with Babes,” said SMU’s Senior Lecturer of Organisational Behaviour & Human Resources; and Director of Undergraduate Admissions at SMU’s Lee Kong Chian School of Business, Paul Lim.

Member of Parliament David Hoe was present at the event to offer his support for the collaboration as a patron of the project.

“Adulting is never an easy journey, and it is not one that our youth should have to face alone,” said Hoe to GovInsider.

“In the spirit of a ‘we-first’ society, this collaboration reflects how community, education and technology can come together - each contributing their strengths - to support our youth in navigating adulthood with confidence.”