Infineon to set up global AI hub in Singapore
Infineon Technologies has unveiled plans to set up a global artificial intelligence (AI) development hub in Singapore, where it will launch 25 AI projects by 2023. It also plans to partner local organisations to offer AI courses and certifications.
The move is part of the German chipmaker's digital transformation efforts and will see more than 1,000 of its employees "upskilled" across the AI value chain in Singapore. The company has been operating in the city-state for half a century, where its history began as Siemens, assembling discrete transistors and diodes, and passive components, according to a statement released Tuesday.
Infineon said it planned to work with the local semiconductor, electronics, and innovation communities to develop AI applications, pointing to partners such as startups, institutes of higher learning, research institutes, and government-owned investment firm, SGInnovate. The chipmaker said these companies could tap its datasets to build their products and services.
In addition, Infineon would be joining hands with NUS-ISS and AI Singapore (AISG) to offer AI courses and certification. The Institute of Systems Science at National University of Singapore (NUS-ISS) was established in 1981 to provide graduate education, executive education programmes, consultancy, and research services, while AISG is a national AI initiative launched by the National Research Foundation (NRF) to develop local AI capabilities.
Infineon said it had set aside at least SG$27 million ($20.17 million) to drive its AI strategy here, encompassing infrastructure, employee reskilling, AI projects, and industry partnerships.
Its Asia-Pacific president and managing director Chua Chee Seong said: "Singapore is the first in Infineon worldwide to embark on a comprehensive AI journey for all our business and manufacturing operations, embedding AI into every job function. To help our employees on this digital transformation, we will be helping our staff develop a digital mindset and driving training programs while creating exciting opportunities and AI solutions with our ecosystem."
Infineon CEO Reinhard Ploss added that a key component in Singapore's smart nation strategy was to develop "impactful" AI offerings, which was in line with the chipmaker's ambition to develop its AI innovation hub here.
The company said it had invested some SG$700 million ($522.99 million) in the country over the last decade, which served as a key node in Infineon's global distribution network and one of its major microelectronics research and development centres in Asia.
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