Global technology firm Google has announced new investments to deepen local research and development (R&D) capabilities, help businesses innovate and build a future-ready workforce for the artificial intelligence (AI) economy in Singapore.

The firm said in a statement on Tuesday that building on the recent opening of the Google DeepMind research lab in Singapore, the firm is expanding its local R&D footprint by investing heavily in human capital — scaling specialized teams across software engineering, research science, and user experience (UX) design.

According to the firm, they will help build deep, local research capabilities that serve the region, and develop new technologies across Google’s products and platforms, exporting innovation from Singapore to the world.

Google is also partnering with local organizations to use AI to address critical health issues in Singapore.

The firm is partnering with AI Singapore (AISG) to support the development of Singapore’s National AI Infrastructure for health.

By providing access to MedGemma, this foundational health AI model reflects the health needs of Singapore’s population and enables the development of AI solutions that can speed up diagnoses and unlock more effective treatments for Singapore.

To advance preventative healthcare, Google is also collaborating with local health-tech startup AMILI on a precision nutrition program that will use AI to provide people with personalized lifestyle and nutrition guidance.

In addition, to continue developing representative language models for Southeast Asia, Google.org will provide an additional $1 million funding to AISG’s Project Aquarium, to improve the quality of Southeast Asian datasets and make them open source, empowering more developers to build culturally relevant solutions for the region.

To foster deeper technical collaboration with these organizations, Google is also unveiling the launch of a Google Cloud Singapore Engineering Center.

This hub will bring together a new team of software engineers and frontline support teams to work directly with Singapore-based enterprises, helping them solve high-stakes global challenges while supporting pioneers in frontier industries like robotics, and clean energy.

In addition, to provide aspiring entrepreneurs with tools to test and scale their ideas, Google will launch Startup School: Prompt to Prototype to help them transform ideas into functional AI prototypes using Gemini.

To fuel Singapore’s next wave of growth, Google is also launching ‘Majulah AI,’ its bold, renewed commitment to empower the nation for the AI economy.

This initiative is the next step in a journey that has already helped nearly 350,000 Singaporeans learn new digital skills since 2020, ensuring our efforts remain a continuous and evolving part of the nation’s fabric.

This comprehensive approach brings together a range of initiatives to empower every segment of the population — from youth to seniors, and professionals to entrepreneurs.

Google is delivering on this by integrating its range of initiatives under ‘Majulah AI’ – from high-touch training like Skills Ignition SG traineeship for jobseekers, to Google for Startups Accelerator: AI First and AI Cloud Takeoff for entrepreneurs and developers, and scaled programs like Gemini Academy for every Singaporean, including our seniors.

To broaden its reach, Google is expanding workforce support through the new Skills Ignition SG AI Challenge in partnership with the Infocomm Media Development Authority (IMDA) to equip 500 graduates and professionals with hands-on AI workflow skills.

This builds on the flagship Skills Ignition SG program that has empowered 28,000 Singaporeans through its on-the-job traineeship and online courses.

Simultaneously, Google is collaborating with the Ministry of Education to establish physical Google AI Living Labs across education institutions like ITE College East and Nanyang Polytechnic to empower 50,000 students and educators with AI skills by 2027.

Google is also launching an AI Center of Excellence for security in Singapore to research and tackle critical emerging threats.

This expanded team of research scientists, data scientists, and security engineers will work to identify and get ahead of risks in new areas like agentic AI, while advancing security and privacy for the mobile ecosystem.

To keep young users safer online, the firm has also started rolling out its age assurance solution in Singapore to provide users under 18 a safer, age-appropriate experience by default — like turning on SafeSearch and applying content restrictions on YouTube and Google Play.

“We are incredibly excited about the future Singapore is building and the global leadership it will bring,

“Realizing this vision requires collaboration between industry, government, and the community and we are committed to continuing this journey with the country,” said Google.

Opened its first Singapore office 19 years ago, Google started as a small office and has grown into a team of nearly 3,000, serving billions of people across the region.

“As we enter a new era of AI, Singapore is helping to lead the way with its world-class talent and a bold national vision for the future,” said Google.

Google Cloud launches new cloud region in Thailand with $1B investment