IDA unveils 3 initiatives to boost tech start-ups

Start-ups urged to tackle big problems.

IDA has unveiled three big initiatives to encourage technology start-ups “to tackle big problems” rather than small ones, “because solutions to small problems have limited applications and not many people will invest in them”.

Firstly, to stimulate a culture of creating and building, IDA has allocated up to S$10 million to develop physical lab spaces for individuals, companies and government agencies to collaborate. IDA Labs will spur the generation of new ideas and technologies, and serve as a platform to test out proof of concepts.

“We have put in equipment to lower the barriers of entry,” said Ms Lee Wan Sie, Deputy Director, IDA Labs, quipping, “We want to get young people excited about technology and not worry that they don’t have a garage in their HDB flat.”

Two labs will be launched over the next two months, with equipment such as 3D printers and laser cutters to help build prototypes, test bed new ideas, and expedite the development of new products and services. They will also have micro-processors such as Raspberry Pi and Arduino kits to further computational thinking.

At the IDALabs@HQ in Mapletree Business City, products from Singapore start-ups can be tested for feasibility of use in a government context, as a demonstration to potential users.

On the other hand, IDA Labs@NDC at the National Design Centre will offer a meeting point for technology and media professionals and designers to collaborate to create sensors, games, and data visualisation products and services. “It will be a place for industry players to work on integrated ICMD (Infocomm, Media and Design) solutions, promised Minister for Communications and Information Dr Yaacob Ibrahim at the Committee of Supply Debate on March 10.

Besides industry professionals, IDA Labs can also inspire young Singaporeans from primary school and beyond “to tinker, build, and fix with technology”, said Dr Yaacob.

In the second initiative, IDA aims to help promising Singapore-based start-ups develop their tech products and scale globally through the launch of the Accelerator programme. To be managed by IDA’s investment arm, Infocomm Investments Pte Ltd (IIPL), the aim of the Accelerator is to build 500 Singapore-based innovation-driven, high-growth tech product start-ups over the next five years.

After a competitive selection process, start-ups on the programme will typically get an investment of between S$25,000 to S$50,000 from the accelerator in exchange for a small stake in their company, with intensive mentoring and targeted advice from the accelerator’s network of entrepreneurs, domain specialists and investors.

To better position them to attract mainstream funding, the programme will culminate in a “Demo Day”, where they can pitch their business to investors and CxOs.

IDA’s third initiative, the Accreditation Programme, aims to give the young and promising Singapore-based tech companies that it nurtures access to the big time. Currently, these tech companies find it hard to bid for projects because they lack reference projects. Nor do Singapore companies buy much from these smaller players because of the perceived risks involved.

The Accreditation Programme seeks to mitigate the risks by helping the small Singapore-based tech companies establish credentials, thereby opening new avenues for their products to be showcased and purchased.

“We want to be less in the business of issuing grants but more in leveraging networks, opportunities, customers, et cetera,” explained Mr Leonard. “You can’t grow your customers on the basis of getting grants. You need to make sure the product has a good market fit.”

Under its Accreditation framework, companies will be evaluated in areas ranging from their product function, performance and security to their financial standing and ability to deliver. The accreditation process will provide an independent, third party evaluation that will open up opportunities for small Singapore tech companies that develop and own high-growth infocomm products in the enterprise market to showcase and sell their products.

Additionally, IDA is exploring new modes of procurement to expedite transactions between accredited companies and government buyers.

Mr Leonard said IDA will ask the Government Chief Information Office (GCIO) to bring those capabilities to the attention of decision makers in different agencies “to see how they can use those home-grown technologies, so that we can have the government as a user, a test case for the companies.

“The government has to be neutral but being neutral does not mean being passive,” he said. “We want to be active. We want to be on the pitch to encourage our startups.“