SGInnovate’s very existence and what we do every day is our way of trying to change mindsets – to encourage people to have the curiosity, courage and confidence to build something that matters to people around the world.
First of all, we would like to thank SzeKi Sim, Head of Community & Brand at SGInnovate, for agreeing to respond to our questions.
1) Let us start with a brief introduction of the SGInnovate and its journey since 2016.
At SGInnovate we believe that the world’s biggest problems can be addressed by Deep Tech and our mission is to work with entrepreneurial scientists to build Deep Tech startups from Singapore, for the world.
Some of our key programmes and initiatives include:
- Venture Building: We provide business-building advice and work closely with the teams on areas such as fundraising, sales, strategy, branding and talent.
Venture Investing: We focus on companies with proven technology and market traction, with the objective to speed up their internationalisation through collaboration with our overseas portfolio companies. - Deep Tech Workshops: Through offering workshops in areas such as Artificial Intelligence and Cybersecurity, we aim to build up the Deep Tech capabilities of talent in Singapore.
- Comet: Highly sought-after Deep Tech talents will have dedicated 1-1 meetings with high-potential Deep Tech companies to explore potential job or collaboration opportunities.
- Summation Programme: An apprenticeship programme that places top talents into high-potential Deep Tech projects in the fields of Artificial Intelligence, Cybersecurity, IoT, Robotics, and Quantum Computing.
- Community Events: Through Deep Tech community events, we bring together great minds across the ecosystem to discuss, share and inspire ideas of innovation.
- Deep Tech Summit: Bringing together leading minds in Deep Tech to exchange ideas, collaborate and build a strong and sustainable future
2) In his recent interview, your founding CEO, Steve Leonard, mentioned that SGInnovate invested $40 million in about 70 Singaporean and foreign “deep-tech” startups who managed to raise $450 million of funding from the market. Please elaborate about SGInnovate’s unique approach and what distinguishes you from other Government-backed venture firms?
At SGInnovate, we build and scale Deep Tech startups into high potential companies with global impact. Our Deep Tech Nexus Strategy is focussed on adding tangible value to the Deep Tech startup ecosystem in two key areas – development of Human Capital and deployment of Investment Capital. With the support of our partners and co-investors, we back entrepreneurial scientists through equity-based investments, access to talent and business-building advice.
Our efforts are prioritised around emerging technologies such as Artificial Intelligence, Autonomous Tech, MedTech and Quantum Tech, which represent impactful and scalable answers to global challenges.
3) What is your outlook for entrepreneurship in Singapore? Are you optimistic?
Definitely positive. Broadly speaking, today, Singapore houses over 100 incubators, accelerators and venture builders, and over 150 VCs, who have helped develop a robust base of startups here. Venture funding activity and amounts increased to 353 deals (in US$10.5 billion) in 2018, from 160 deals (in US$0.8 billion) in 2012. As of 2017, the number of tech startups has grown to 4,000, employing about 22,000 persons.
Specific to Deep Tech startups and ecosystem growth, since SGInnovate’s inception in 2016, we have invested more than S$40 million in more than 70 Deep Tech startups. These startups have gone on to raise more than S$450 million from the investing community. Our Deep Tech community have also grown to more than 32,000 individuals currently, with an average of around 200 events hosted a year.
4) Please tell our readers about your future plans. What’s next for the SGInnovate?
Many of our partners include many of the organisations that have come out to voice their commitment in Deep Tech. While Deep Tech is gaining ground, much more still needs to be done to attract more investments into startups and talents looking at these transformative innovations. In the new year, we are excited that the ecosystem is coming to rally even stronger around Deep Tech together and for SGInnovate, we are proud to be part of the push to accelerate Deep Tech developments.
5) What would be your advice for “deep-tech” entrepreneurs who seek to start or scale up their businesses?
SGInnovate’s very existence and what we do every day is our way of trying to change mindsets – to encourage people to have the curiosity, courage and confidence to build something that matters to people around the world.
6) Our last question is about your upcoming visit to Estonia in May 2020. What are your expectations for this visit?
Estonia and Singapore share many similarities – such as in our journeys in building digital capabilities, as well as encouraging the entrepreneurship culture and supporting startups to build impactful solutions for global markets. We hope to be able to learn more about Estonia’s future plans, and understand if there are opportunities for the nations to collaborate in the areas of driving innovation for stakeholders of the global Deep Tech community.
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Head of Community & Brand
