Keynote Address by Minister Josephine Teo at SMEs Go Digital Day 2026

1. I am very pleased to join you for SMEs Go Digital Day.

2. Everyone who is here, or anyone who has worked with SMEs before, will know that it is important for business owners to stay competitive. It is also very hard to keep up.

3. Often, larger companies have advantages in manpower, expertise and resources. Smaller companies must manage with less.

4. Countries have similar issues – small states like Singapore are always learning to do more with less.

5. In recent times, AI has helped to expand our options. The same is true for our SMEs. Capabilities that were once available only to larger companies are now within reach of SMEs.

6. Many of you are individually beginning to use AI tools.

7. Within organisations, usage is also growing. From 2025 to 2026, adoption of AI-enabled solutions that are supported by government funding has increased by nearly 20%.

8. This is encouraging. But if we were to ask ourselves: what is our end goal? It is not just adoption. What matters to IMDA, MDDI and the National AI Council, which is chaired by Prime Minister Lawrence Wong, is whether SMEs can put AI to good use.

9. Through the National AI Impact Programme and the Digital Enterprise Blueprint, our intention is to support SMEs in making practical and meaningful use of AI.

10. We want the same benefits that SMEs want, which are to serve more customers, innovate more quickly, enter new markets and compete with larger players.

Access to the right AI tools and capabilities

11. The first step is to enable access to the right AI tools and capabilities.

12. The growing range of AI tools today creates tremendous opportunities. But this can also create confusion.

13. How does an SME identify tools that are fit for purpose? What purpose is worth using AI for, given the costs involved? Does this use of AI support human activities? These questions must guide our AI adoption if it is to be meaningful.

14. To better support SMEs in this process, IMDA has put together a list of 100 AI solutions, including those that are relevant across business functions. SMEs can find out more about the AI solutions on the SMEs Go Digital platform.

    • We hope this will help SMEs cut through a crowded AI marketplace to identify the right tools for their needs.

    • It’s a starting point to help SMEs understand what is available, but it doesn’t prevent them from looking beyond the list.

    • Given how quickly the AI landscape changes, we are mindful that a list is only as good as how regularly we refresh it. We are therefore committed to keeping it updated as new tools become proven and available.

15. Today, more than half of our digital solutions that are pre-approved for government funding support come with AI tools. The reason why we do this is to make it easier to introduce SMEs to these tools.

    • We are working with industry partners such as Google, Alibaba Cloud, and Microsoft, as well as solution vendors.

    • We have asked them to help expand the AI features and range of offerings available to meet SMEs’ business needs. We believe there is scope to do more.

16. Some SMEs have expressed interest in tried and tested solutions that have demonstrated traction and impact in global markets.

    • I am glad to share that Beyondsoft, in partnership with IMDA, will be launching the Tech Bridge Programme.

    • It will provide SMEs with structured support and complimentary 60-day access to market-proven AI solutions across sales management, business analytics and market intelligence, all of which are widely adopted in China.

17. We will continue these efforts to enhance access and to develop solutions for SMEs, so they can try them out and see if they work.

Ability to translate these tools into solutions for real business needs and workflows

18. The second step is to ensure that SMEs can translate AI tools into solutions for their business needs and workflows.

19. To use AI well, organisations need a good digital foundation. For example, the quality of AI outcomes often depends on the quality and accessibility of data.

20. For many SMEs, valuable business data resides across multiple systems and shared drives. This can make it harder for their tools to retrieve and use their business data. It would thus be difficult to harness AI at scale and to realise its full potential.

21. To address this classic problem of “data silos”, Singtel and IMDA have launched the StackEZ AI Data Enablement Programme.

    • The programme will provide 10,000 SMEs with complimentary six-month access to Space, an AI-powered platform that helps businesses organise and unlock their data.

    • For example, independent property practitioner Zack Goh manages his own documents alongside property viewings, client enquiries and follow-up transactions.

    • The Space platform provides ready-to-use folders that match the records he handles, helping him organise and retrieve documents without spending time building his own filing system.

22. Alongside technology, SMEs need people with the skills and confidence to redesign processes, manage change and scale what works. This is why these programmes provide onboarding, training and structured implementation support.

23. Our aim is not simply to give SMEs access to AI, but to build their capabilities to use it effectively over time and develop a sustainable competitive edge.

24. We also understand that SMEs can be at varying stages of digital maturity with different operational needs.

25. Over the past two years, businesses and our partners in trade associations and chambers have highlighted the need for greater flexibility in the solutions offered, so that SMEs can pick what fits their current needs rather than adopt an entire package.

26. We hear their concerns.

27. With the launch of the Package Builder on the SMEs Go Digital platform, SMEs will now have greater flexibility to tailor features and add-ons, and seek additional training support for pre-approved solutions.

    • By enabling greater customisation, SMEs can better align digital solutions with their operational requirements and maximise the value of their digital investments.

    • By bringing these solutions together, we hope to make it easier for SMEs to navigate a complex and fast-moving AI landscape, while making informed decisions about what is right for their business.

28. With a structured system in place and tools identified, the integration of AI into their everyday workflows is the next step. More help will also be available for this.

29. Through the Slack AI Launchpad Programme, Salesforce and IMDA will support 1,000 SMEs to adopt and deploy agentic AI in their businesses.

    • Agentic AI has the potential to take on routine tasks, support decision-making and help businesses execute workflows more efficiently.

    • It can benefit SMEs with manpower and time constraints.

    • Participating SMEs will receive up to 60 days of complimentary use of Slack Business. More importantly, they will also get onboarding support to design and implement at least one AI-enabled workflow that addresses a real business need.

Turning adoption into sustained business impact

30. As you already know, finding and using the right AI tools is only the beginning.

31. Value comes from SMEs having a strong foundation, capabilities, processes and people to adopt AI for tangible business impact, and from making it part of their core operations.

32. This year, we launched the inaugural SME AI Impact Awards to recognise SMEs that are already using AI effectively.

33. We received 290 nominations across 21 sectors, from retail to healthcare and professional services.

34. Many of these SMEs have moved beyond experimentation and have embedded AI into their day-to-day operations and business processes. These are businesses that have started as AI natives or are fast becoming AI adoptive parents – and effective ones at that.

35. Their experiences offer valuable lessons for other SMEs seeking to do likewise.

36. The companies we recognise today show what is possible when we apply AI with a clear purpose and business outcome in mind.

37. They are proof that AI can help smaller businesses compete more effectively, and they are an inspiration to others.

Closing

38. As we celebrate the progress of this year's winners, I hope their stories will encourage more businesses to take the next step in their AI journey.

39. Congratulations, and thank you all once again for being here.