Field notes from building national AI programmes: what worked, what didn’t, and what it means for your organisation.https://aifirstnation.org/en-SGMon, 07 Sep 2026 13:18:29 GMThttps://aifirstnation.org/insights/inside-aiap-the-apprenticeship-that-built-singapores-ai-engineering-team/https://aifirstnation.org/insights/inside-aiap-the-apprenticeship-that-built-singapores-ai-engineering-team/While updating the aifirstnation.org website I rewatched the short film Google Cloud made about AI Singapore in 2023, and decided to write the AIAP story down properly: the model, why it changed from 2+7 to 3+6 months, the new AIAP for Industry, and what it has produced.Wed, 26 Aug 2026 02:00:00 GMThttps://aifirstnation.org/insights/an-open-standard-is-only-a-standard-if-people-can-run-it/https://aifirstnation.org/insights/an-open-standard-is-only-a-standard-if-people-can-run-it/An open standard that nobody can run is not a standard. It is a document. I have spent a long time learning the difference, and airihub.io, which I am launching today, is what I have learned put into practice. Start with the framework.Thu, 16 Jul 2026 01:49:03 GMThttps://aifirstnation.org/insights/why-ai-training-doesnt-stick/https://aifirstnation.org/insights/why-ai-training-doesnt-stick/Most AI training treats a hospital director the same as a factory supervisor. That’s why it doesn’t stick. I’ve watched this play out for years, across more than a thousand organisations. A company decides its people need to be “AI ready.” It buys a course, or builds one.Wed, 08 Jul 2026 18:52:31 GMThttps://aifirstnation.org/insights/walk-the-talk-building-aiready-sg/https://aifirstnation.org/insights/walk-the-talk-building-aiready-sg/Prefer to watch or listen? Here is the narrated version of this essay, in my own voice. One person, after hours, no grants, and what it says about what AI can now do.Thu, 02 Jul 2026 13:15:09 GMThttps://aifirstnation.org/insights/skills-not-staff-why-i-am-retiring-my-avengers-slide/https://aifirstnation.org/insights/skills-not-staff-why-i-am-retiring-my-avengers-slide/For the past two years, one slide has appeared in almost every keynote I have delivered. It shows the Three Stages of AI Empowerment.Wed, 10 Jun 2026 18:11:50 GMThttps://aifirstnation.org/insights/generative-ai-won-the-headlines-classical-ai-still-runs-the-world/https://aifirstnation.org/insights/generative-ai-won-the-headlines-classical-ai-still-runs-the-world/I recently went back through nearly every project our engineers have built since 2018 (181 projects across 100E, AIAP, SIP, AIAP for Industry and LADP, excluding our internal projects and special customer projects) and mapped each one by the AI technique it used.Sun, 31 May 2026 18:49:58 GMThttps://aifirstnation.org/insights/what-successful-ai-singapores-ai-apprenticeship-programme-aiap-candidates-actually-look-like/https://aifirstnation.org/insights/what-successful-ai-singapores-ai-apprenticeship-programme-aiap-candidates-actually-look-like/A four-cohort analysis of 285 applicants to the AI Singapore’s AI Apprenticeship Programme (AIAP) produced a clear picture of who gets in and what distinguishes them from those who don’t.Sat, 30 May 2026 21:50:22 GMThttps://aifirstnation.org/insights/what-we-have-learned-about-putting-ai-to-work-in-government-in-classrooms-and-in-people/https://aifirstnation.org/insights/what-we-have-learned-about-putting-ai-to-work-in-government-in-classrooms-and-in-people/This week, I was part of a panel in a UK government AI learning journey on AI, and separately I was also asked to comment by a publication on the same subject. I sat down to write the responses and realised something. The answers weren’t really about Singapore.Wed, 29 Apr 2026 13:39:38 GMThttps://aifirstnation.org/insights/when-one-human-leads-eight-ai-agents-in-parallel/https://aifirstnation.org/insights/when-one-human-leads-eight-ai-agents-in-parallel/A Snapshot from the frontline of the Future of Work. Earlier this week, I captured a screenshot from a working session in TAAF, the agent framework I have been experimenting with.Mon, 27 Apr 2026 16:03:55 GMThttps://aifirstnation.org/insights/pmets-have-the-hardest-part-already-fresh-grads-harder-problem/https://aifirstnation.org/insights/pmets-have-the-hardest-part-already-fresh-grads-harder-problem/Three AI agents working in parallel. One is running a 72-hour autonomous validation loop across 9,750 lesson variants. Another is building out the aiready.sg website. A third is helping me improve TAAF, our agent framework, while I use it in production.Mon, 13 Apr 2026 15:13:08 GMThttps://aifirstnation.org/insights/yes-but-what-do-you-do/https://aifirstnation.org/insights/yes-but-what-do-you-do/I recently came across a YouTube interview of John Dykes, the well-known sports broadcaster. He shared a story of his encounter with the late Mr. Lee Kuan Yew.Tue, 02 Dec 2025 14:12:16 GMThttps://aifirstnation.org/insights/the-ai-confusion-is-real-our-execution-is-not/https://aifirstnation.org/insights/the-ai-confusion-is-real-our-execution-is-not/You hear the statistics. High failure rates. Implementation costs averaging $1.9 million. A workforce largely unprepared for the shift. When you examine global averages, these observations hold water. The confusion is palpable. The costs are substantial.Wed, 26 Nov 2025 21:37:24 GMThttps://aifirstnation.org/insights/how-were-future-proofing-aiap/https://aifirstnation.org/insights/how-were-future-proofing-aiap/Seven years ago, when we launched the AI Apprenticeship Programme (AIAP), people questioned our approach. Real-world projects over academic theory? Skills over degrees? Training passionate self-learners instead of computer science graduates?Sat, 31 May 2025 18:01:29 GMThttps://aifirstnation.org/insights/ask-llx-ai-transformation-mentor-for-success/https://aifirstnation.org/insights/ask-llx-ai-transformation-mentor-for-success/In my journey developing AI capabilities for Singapore through AI Singapore’s numerous programs, one thing has become abundantly clear: organizations and individuals need personalized guidance to navigate their AI journey effectively.Mon, 28 Apr 2025 16:20:15 GMThttps://aifirstnation.org/insights/ai-first-nation-bridging-prof-wang-gungwus-insights-with-singapores-ai-ecosystem/https://aifirstnation.org/insights/ai-first-nation-bridging-prof-wang-gungwus-insights-with-singapores-ai-ecosystem/When I started with AI Singapore in 2017, my mission was simple – to help 100 companies build AI solutions through our 100 Experiments (100E) programme.Tue, 08 Apr 2025 05:35:01 GMThttps://aifirstnation.org/insights/ai-coding-agents-revolutionsing-software-development/https://aifirstnation.org/insights/ai-coding-agents-revolutionsing-software-development/Over the past few months since launching my book “AI-First Nation,” I’ve been reflecting on how rapidly the development landscape is transforming with the rise of AI coding assistants.Sun, 02 Mar 2025 17:08:34 GMThttps://aifirstnation.org/insights/finding-ai-use-cases-for-smes/https://aifirstnation.org/insights/finding-ai-use-cases-for-smes/When SMEs approach me about adopting AI, they typically ask: “What AI use cases can I use in my business?” While it seems like a straightforward question, finding the right AI application is not a one-size-fits-all exercise.Mon, 24 Feb 2025 17:19:40 GMThttps://aifirstnation.org/insights/pairi-personal-ai-readiness-guide/https://aifirstnation.org/insights/pairi-personal-ai-readiness-guide/When my team and I developed the AI Readiness Index (AIRI) in 2019, it helped organizations understand their AI maturity and what steps they needed to take to become AI-ready.Mon, 24 Feb 2025 07:14:43 GMThttps://aifirstnation.org/insights/deepseek-r1-5-6m-is-like-your-5-plate-of-hokkien-mee/https://aifirstnation.org/insights/deepseek-r1-5-6m-is-like-your-5-plate-of-hokkien-mee/When DeepSeek announced they trained their V3 language model for just $5.6M, many were impressed including me. From an engineer’s perspective after reading the paper, it’s a “of course why not”, but to investors and many riding on the AI hypewagon, they were “caught off guard”.Tue, 04 Feb 2025 05:36:24 GMThttps://aifirstnation.org/insights/singapores-journey-from-local-innovation-to-global-impact-with-the-ai-apprenticeship-programme-aiap/https://aifirstnation.org/insights/singapores-journey-from-local-innovation-to-global-impact-with-the-ai-apprenticeship-programme-aiap/When AI Singapore started in 2017, we faced what seemed like an impossible challenge. We needed AI Engineers to work on AI projects, but we could not hire enough AI engineers.Tue, 28 Jan 2025 22:50:19 GMThttps://aifirstnation.org/insights/supercomputers-to-llms/https://aifirstnation.org/insights/supercomputers-to-llms/Big data, data science, machine learning, and now “open source” Large Language Models are all the rage and have tons of hype, for better and, in some ways, for worse.Tue, 28 Jan 2025 06:19:53 GMThttps://aifirstnation.org/insights/the-rise-of-ai-agents-a-glimpse-into-2025-and-beyond/https://aifirstnation.org/insights/the-rise-of-ai-agents-a-glimpse-into-2025-and-beyond/The year is coming to a close, and what a year it has been for AI. But as we stand on the cusp of 2025, it’s clear that the true revolution is just beginning. AI agents are poised to reshape not just technology, but how we live, work, and learn.Mon, 23 Dec 2024 19:28:47 GMThttps://aifirstnation.org/insights/from-singapore-to-the-world-how-airi-is-shaping-global-ai-readiness/https://aifirstnation.org/insights/from-singapore-to-the-world-how-airi-is-shaping-global-ai-readiness/Introduction to AI Readiness Index When we conceived and developed the AI Readiness Index (AIRI) at AI Singapore in 2019, it was born out of necessity.Mon, 09 Dec 2024 06:38:05 GMThttps://aifirstnation.org/insights/behind-the-scenes-building-the-ai-first-nation-aifn-knowledge-assistant-llx/https://aifirstnation.org/insights/behind-the-scenes-building-the-ai-first-nation-aifn-knowledge-assistant-llx/The evolution of the AIFN chatbot, now named LLX: Laurence Liew eXtended, a virtual twin and eXtension of myself.Tue, 03 Dec 2024 01:48:20 GMThttps://aifirstnation.org/insights/ai-first-nation-insights-singapore-ai-talent-pipeline/https://aifirstnation.org/insights/ai-first-nation-insights-singapore-ai-talent-pipeline/Welcome to the first edition of AIFN Insights — inside the secrets of AI Singapore’s AI talent pipeline, and why I am excited to have you join me on this journey.Tue, 26 Nov 2024 18:48:43 GMThttps://aifirstnation.org/insights/ai-first-nation-podcast-book-review/https://aifirstnation.org/insights/ai-first-nation-podcast-book-review/With all the hype around Google’s NotebookLM podcast capability, I thought why not give it a try and created an AI-First Nation podcast. So, I uploaded the PDF copy of the book to NotebookLM, and within 10mins or so, the podcast was generated.Sat, 12 Oct 2024 17:42:25 GMThttps://aifirstnation.org/insights/sgp-4-0-singapore-in-the-ai-era/https://aifirstnation.org/insights/sgp-4-0-singapore-in-the-ai-era/August 1, 2019 The article below first appeared in COMMENTARY VOLUME 27, 2018 SGP 4.0: AN AGENDA. Full PDF volume can be found here: https://worldscientific.com/doi/abs/10.1142/9789811281075_0004#Tue, 08 Oct 2024 15:45:29 GMThttps://aifirstnation.org/insights/beyond-rag-how-geminis-large-context-window-enabled-my-ai-first-nation-book-and-chatbot/https://aifirstnation.org/insights/beyond-rag-how-geminis-large-context-window-enabled-my-ai-first-nation-book-and-chatbot/When the idea for “AI-First Nation” book took root, I knew I wanted it to be more than just another book about AI. I wanted it to be a living testament to the transformative power of AI, a book that was not just about AI but also written with AI.Tue, 06 Aug 2024 18:59:08 GMThttps://aifirstnation.org/insights/building-ai-first-nation-llx-chatbot-afternoon/https://aifirstnation.org/insights/building-ai-first-nation-llx-chatbot-afternoon/The rise of large language models (LLMs) has revolutionized the way we interact with information. One particularly useful application of LLMs is a chatbot, whether for customers (external) or internal corporate use.Sat, 03 Aug 2024 07:59:56 GMThttps://aifirstnation.org/insights/ai-guide-for-smes/https://aifirstnation.org/insights/ai-guide-for-smes/The age of AI is here. The promise of streamlined operations, data-driven insights, and enhanced customer experiences has captured the imagination of businesses across the globe.Wed, 31 Jul 2024 17:06:00 GMThttps://aifirstnation.org/insights/llm-powered-treatment-plans-a-new-era-in-dental-care/https://aifirstnation.org/insights/llm-powered-treatment-plans-a-new-era-in-dental-care/How Q&M Dental Group and AI Singapore built an LLM-powered treatment-plan assistant — and what it shows about AI adoption in healthcare practice.Mon, 22 Jul 2024 22:40:22 GMThttps://aifirstnation.org/insights/ai4sme-questions-you-need-to-ask-your-ai-solution-provider/https://aifirstnation.org/insights/ai4sme-questions-you-need-to-ask-your-ai-solution-provider/AI4SME is one of the initiatives AI Singapore is championing for our Small-Medium-Enterprises (SMEs) to accelerate their adoption of AI. One of the latest initiatives launched is the Microsoft Copilot for SMEs programme in collaboration with Enterprise Singapore and Microsoft.Mon, 08 Jul 2024 19:23:46 GMThttps://aifirstnation.org/insights/walk-the-talk-introducing-the-ai-first-nation-chatbot/https://aifirstnation.org/insights/walk-the-talk-introducing-the-ai-first-nation-chatbot/When I wrote “AI-First Nation: A Blueprint for Policy Makers and Organisation Leaders,” my goal was to share AI Singapore’s journey and provide practical insights for those looking to develop similar programmes we have in AI Singapore for their country or organisations.Tue, 02 Jul 2024 06:29:27 GMThttps://aifirstnation.org/insights/snapdragon-x-elite-aipcs-outperform-python-data-analysis/https://aifirstnation.org/insights/snapdragon-x-elite-aipcs-outperform-python-data-analysis/I thought what better way to share my passion for PC hardware and AI than to showcase a real-world use-case of using generative AI to help me analyse a new snapdragon elite-x laptop which I just received late last week.Mon, 01 Jul 2024 17:50:33 GMThttps://aifirstnation.org/insights/analysis-ai-singapore-as-a-driving-force-in-realizing-singapores-national-ai-strategy-2-0-ambitions/https://aifirstnation.org/insights/analysis-ai-singapore-as-a-driving-force-in-realizing-singapores-national-ai-strategy-2-0-ambitions/Singapore’s National AI Strategy 2.0 (NAIS 2.0) outlines a bold vision for the nation, emphasizing “AI for the Public Good” while addressing global concerns around technology’s ethical development.Sat, 09 Mar 2024 05:15:00 GMThttps://aifirstnation.org/insights/how-ai-singapore-is-leveraging-generative-ai-to-scale-aiap-and-our-team/https://aifirstnation.org/insights/how-ai-singapore-is-leveraging-generative-ai-to-scale-aiap-and-our-team/A global trend is emerging where large organisations attribute the rise of Generative AI as an excuse to slow down, halt or remove roles they think are susceptible to replacement by Generative AI.Mon, 28 Aug 2023 05:53:00 GMThttps://aifirstnation.org/insights/accelerating-ai-with-100e/https://aifirstnation.org/insights/accelerating-ai-with-100e/Navigating AI adoption can be daunting. To inspire action, we’ll showcase three real-world examples where strategic implementations delivered immense value.Mon, 21 Aug 2023 22:40:00 GMThttps://aifirstnation.org/insights/the-aiap-and-100e-experience/https://aifirstnation.org/insights/the-aiap-and-100e-experience/The AIAP programme itself, and how AIAP and 100E fit together: two months of deep skilling, a seven-month project phase on real industry problems, and how the teams are run.Fri, 18 Aug 2023 22:51:00 GMThttps://aifirstnation.org/insights/hello-are-you-an-ai-apprentice/https://aifirstnation.org/insights/hello-are-you-an-ai-apprentice/AI Singapore’s AI Apprenticeship Programme (AIAP) is a unique opportunity for passionate and highly motivated individuals to develop their skills in AI and machine learning and contribute to Singapore’s growing AI ecosystem.Wed, 16 Aug 2023 22:05:00 GMThttps://aifirstnation.org/insights/aiap-widens-singapores-ai-talent-pool-to-fuel-inclusive-innovation/https://aifirstnation.org/insights/aiap-widens-singapores-ai-talent-pool-to-fuel-inclusive-innovation/Singapore has grand ambitions of becoming a global AI innovation and talent hub. While AI engineers remain a critical part of the ecosystem, building world-class AI applications requires a diverse AI talent pool beyond coders and data scientists.Mon, 07 Aug 2023 22:57:00 GMThttps://aifirstnation.org/insights/aisg-open-source-ai-bricks/https://aifirstnation.org/insights/aisg-open-source-ai-bricks/AI Singapore released two free and open-source AI Bricks — reusable building blocks that let SMEs assemble AI solutions without building from scratch.Mon, 30 Aug 2021 00:19:00 GMThttps://aifirstnation.org/insights/plus-skilling-not-re-skilling-needs-to-be-the-new-norm/https://aifirstnation.org/insights/plus-skilling-not-re-skilling-needs-to-be-the-new-norm/AI Singapore runs a very successful apprenticeship programme – the AI Apprenticeship Programme (AIAP) – what I call PLUS-Skilling form of programme. Started in 2018, the AIAP is now into its 6th batch of apprentices.Thu, 12 Aug 2021 00:46:00 GMThttps://aifirstnation.org/insights/aiap-100e-blue-ocean-strategy/https://aifirstnation.org/insights/aiap-100e-blue-ocean-strategy/The management classic Blue Ocean Strategy book by Chan Kim & Renée Mauborgne describes the business environment with the terms ’red ocean’ and ‘blue ocean’.Wed, 05 May 2021 03:48:00 GMThttps://aifirstnation.org/insights/grow-your-own-timber-ai-engineering-teams/https://aifirstnation.org/insights/grow-your-own-timber-ai-engineering-teams/If you want to build your AI team, unless you have the deep pockets of Google or Facebook, you need to find more creative ways to Grow Your Own Timber and build up that AI/ML engineering talent.Fri, 29 Nov 2019 01:01:00 GMT