At a dinner on Thursday organised by the Action Community for Entrepreneurship Singapore (ACE.SG) to celebrate Singapore’s rise in the global ranking, Manpower Minister and Second Minister for Trade and Industry Tan See Leng said there are now 31 unicorns headquartered here, more than half of which were set up in the past two years.
Highlighting how startups offer disruptive business models and are key to driving economic growth, Dr Tan said they also contribute to Singapore’s “national vision and priorities”.
“Agri-tech startups like Sustenir Group, which uses hydroponics and AI-powered systems to monitor variables like temperature and CO2 levels, support Singapore’s 30 by 30 goal, which is to grow the local agri-food sector’s capability and capacity to sustainably produce 30 per cent of our nutritional needs by 2030,” he said.
ACE.SG, the trade association representing startups in Singapore, recognised the achievements of a number of local startups at the launch of its awards, and signed a memorandum of understanding with the Government Technology Agency during the event.
Under the two-year partnership, they will identify and capitalise on opportunities to raise awareness of ACE.SG programmes as well as GoBusiness – a one-stop platform developed by the Government to provide local businesses with access to government resources and services.
The collaboration also aims to involve startups in GoBusiness’ industry research, user testing, and feedback sessions.
Singapore is currently home to approximately 4,000 tech startups and 200 incubators, and has consistently ranked among the top 10 countries in the Global Innovation Index. It is also among the world’s top 15 countries for ease of source funding, according to Startup Genome.
