AI is about to get a body. How can we be ready?

Singapore has a chance to become a crucial player in robotics and related sectors. In my lab at the National University of Singapore (NUS), we work on creating machines that can feel. We fabricate soft electronic skins that can distinguish between a strawberry and a marble, react to touch faster than human nerves, and repair themselves when damaged.

Previously, my research felt like science fiction, but now people are eager to scale the technology. Earlier this year, a California-based humanoid robot company, Figure AI, secured $1 billion in investment at a valuation of $39 billion, accounting for more than a fifth of all Singapore startup funding in 2025. Meanwhile, China has released national standards for humanoid robots and embodied AI, aiming to have ten thousand such machines in commercial use by year-end.

A robot that interacts with humans and navigates our world requires more than just AI. It needs skins, sensors, joints, compact power sources, and the precise assembly of these components into a functional body. While large language models could revolutionize office work within a decade, the rise of advanced robots with human-like dexterity will likely have a broader impact on society and the economy.

To remain relevant in the AI and robotics era, Singapore should focus on applying AI rather than just deploying it. However, without proprietary technological and hardware expertise, we would merely be the world's most significant customer.

Our small size and limited resources pose significant challenges, but we can carve out a niche in technology and quality. The Netherlands, despite being a small nation, has become a leader in advanced chipmaking due to owning a step that no one else can bypass. Singapore already produces around ten percent of the world's chips, and manufacturing remains a significant portion of our economy.

The 2030 national Research, Innovation, and Enterprise (RIE) plan will invest S$800 million to translate semiconductor research into products, likely incorporated into the chips of robots and AI data centres. These investments should focus on developing chip packaging technologies and increasing the speed of optical links that move data between chips.

To become a critical node in robotics and adjacent industries, we must develop groundbreaking technologies with deep expertise and specialized equipment design, guarded by a large portfolio of trade secrets to prevent copycats. We should be aware of the rapid pace of technology development, driven further by AI, and be prepared to recalibrate and increase investment quickly.

If we successfully create deep-tech proprietary semiconductor companies in Singapore, we will create high-value jobs and contribute to the new AI economy. Companies like ASML, which invested over S$16 billion in high-volume manufacturing over two decades, generate significant profits per employee compared to traditional financial services firms.

To achieve this, Singapore must strengthen its education system and attract and retain top talent. We must also create a low-friction environment for deep-tech startups to emerge from university research. The National Graduate Research Innovation Programme, launched in 2025, has trained hundreds of PhD students and postdoctoral researchers to navigate investment term sheets effectively.

By harmonizing translation processes and know-how across all local universities' innovation units and research institutes, we can create a common framework for intellectual property licensing with transparent terms. This will reduce the friction often faced by deep-tech startups, accelerating our ecosystem growth through collaboration projects, advisory roles, or even co-founding deep-tech startups.