“The more I know, the better choices I can make.” This observation by Mr Steve Leonard (pictured above), Executive Deputy Chairman of the Infocomm Development Authority of Singapore (IDA), illustrates one of the key value propositions behind big data and explains the strong push by Singapore to build up its capabilities in this area.

Mr Leonard was speaking at the MIT Technology Review’s inaugural EmTech conference in Singapore on 20-21 January. Supported by IDA as host partner, the event is a showcase for emerging technologies with the greatest potential to change lives. The conference covered topics such as big data, high density urbanisation, emerging technologies in healthcare, 3D printing and future manufacturing, as well as synthetic biology.

Discussing big data in his opening address, Mr Leonard said Singapore is focused on developing the capabilities to gather, move and interpret data in order to achieve an “order of magnitude” improvement in citizens’ lives.

He cited the examples of aging and healthcare – two areas which are of great importance to Singapore. With the use of wearables and other sensor technologies, individuals can receive constant and continuous data on their health, allowing them to make better lifestyle decisions. Sensor technologies can also be used to capture the health indicators of chronically-ill patients, allowing healthcare providers to monitor their condition remotely and provide timely care. “We need to think about this as a country, and find ways to take the strain off our healthcare infrastructure and provide superior care,” he said. “We can age well or age poorly depending on our choices, and the more I know, the better the choices I can make.”

IDA has already undertaken initiatives to develop Singapore’s data capabilities. Activities such as data.gov.sg’s Apps4SG competition encourage participants to use government datasets to develop innovative applications that improve the way people live, work and play. The winning application at the inaugural event that ended on 8 January 2014 came from a 19-year-old whose app assists students to make informed education choices in a user-friendly manner.

Another example of the Government’s crowdsourcing effort to address data-driven business challenges is the Data Innovation Challenge. This is an initiative by IDA to connect user enterprises and data providers with data specialists, ICT companies, research institutes, and institutes of higher learning (IHLs) to develop prototypes, proof-of-concepts and analytics solutions for data-driven commercial problems. More than 300 entries were received and six prototypes were shortlisted in the first challenge issued by DSM Engineering Plastics to develop a predictive sales forecasting model. The winner was a team from Singapore Management University’s Living Analytics Research Centre.

IDA is also strengthening data talent within its own organisation.  In January 2014, it welcomed its first Chief Data Scientist, Mr Prabir Sen, who will lead IDA’s new Data Sciences Group and guide IDA’s data-driven projects.

To enable Singapore to be a regional analytics hub, IDA has also collaborated with leading players in the ecosystem as well as local IHLs to provide academic programmes, to facilitate industry attachment programmes, and to develop and enhance analytics capabilities for local students and professionals.

“Unlike some other resources, data does not deplete as you use it.  Data becomes more valuable the more you share it and use it,” said Mr Leonard. “The knowledge created through intelligent analysis of data enables us to deal with priority issues such as healthcare. Data and analytics underpin our development towards being an increasingly Smart Nation.”