SINGAPORE AS A LIVING LAB
In the 2008 / 2009 UN Habitat’s State of the Worlds’ Cities Report, Singapore received praise in areas of pollution control, transport management and public housing, citing the city as an example of good governance and balanced development. Singapore also leads the way in being a test-bed for urban solutions in the region.
Stemming from this success, Singapore has set targets to develop urban solutions that are smart, safe and sustainable, particularly in the areas of built environment, clean energy, IT, public safety and urban mobility. Public agencies continue to partner with the private sector to co-develop innovative urban solutions. With these pro-business policies, strategic location, excellent global connectivity and talented workforce, Singapore is a fertile ground for companies and businesses to launch and scale up new and innovative urban solutions for Asia and beyond.
"At IBM Research, it is important to be able to test bed solutions in real-world settings, outside the walls of a traditional laboratory, and the collaboratory facility in Singapore allows us to do that," said Dr Jayant Kalagnanam, Research Director, Research Collaboratory, IBM Singapore. "Singapore hosts a rich ecosystem of leading research institutes and universities. Our work with the LTA around traffic analytics presents a great launch pad and we plan to transfer this research to build advanced systems and solutions that will help create smarter urban systems. This in turn will provide a reference to cities around the world on managing and optimising their scarce resources".