Google Partners With Singapore Universities to Build AI Research Capacity

Google and Google DeepMind are strengthening Singapore’s role as a regional hub for artificial intelligence research and talent development through new grants and partnerships. The initiative spans both scientific capacity building and human-centered research, positioning the city-state to support long-term innovation across Southeast Asia. As part of the effort, a $750,000 AI for Science Capacity Fund Grant will support Nanyang Technological University. Under the regional academic leadership of Professor Ho Teck Hua, the program is expected to build permanent research capabilities across Southeast Asia by establishing durable infrastructure, developing internal research leaders, and creating ethical AI frameworks intended to raise the region’s scientific capacity. Google.org and Google DeepMind are also providing $3 million to support INSEAD’s Thrive Lab in Singapore. The funding will advance global research into how people and organizations can flourish amid rapid technological change. The lab will examine how education systems, workplaces, and communities can help individuals build skills, find purpose, and maintain meaningful relationships in an evolving AI-driven environment. The investments are presented as part of a broader wave of scientific advancement in Singapore’s academic community, including work related to neurodegenerative disease insights, more efficient and linguistically inclusive AI models, and safer research infrastructure. Yossi Matias, vice president and head of Google Research, said Google aims to enable faculty, researchers, and students who are moving beyond experimentation toward leadership in the next era of scientific progress.