Speech by MOS Alvin Tan at Where Ideas Set Sail: NTU Innovation Port Launch Ceremony

Professor Louis Phee, Vice President of Innovation and Entrepreneurship

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Introduction

1. Good afternoon. Senior Minister of State Low Yen Ling attended the launch of the NTU Innovation and Entrepreneurship (I&E) initiative last year. I’m thrilled to be here to launch NTU Innovation Port.

2. NTU Innovation Port will be the berth from which ideas set sail. It is a safe harbour for our budding entrepreneurs to build upon their ideas and test the waters. It will fan the flames of their adventurous, innovative spirit, as they venture to the unknown and chart new paths for their businesses. And as their paths cross, we hope the Port will be a place they can share resources, network and celebrate their successes together.

Accelerating Commercialisation

3. Entrepreneurship is a journey, one which must be thoughtfully but also bravely charted.

4. And we will keep doing more to support our young local entrepreneurs on their journey, to be the wind in their sails as they uncover new opportunities for deep tech to grow and eventually go to market. To do so, we have mapped out Singapore’s Research, Innovation and Enterprise (RIE) 2025 plan to continue growing our knowledge-based and innovation-driven economy.

5. Over the past year, I&E has guided >130 researchers and 25 deep tech teams towards the commercialisation of their innovations. I&E’s evidence-based learning programmes helped them accelerate commercialisation by gathering market insights and validating their ideas with potential customers.

a) For example ArcVance, a research team led by A/Prof Hou Han Wei from NTU’s School of Mechanical Aerospace and Engineering. Through I&E, ArcVance explored the market potential of their product, ExoArc, which is on exhibit today. It is a coin-sized disposable chip that can isolate blood plasma from a tube of blood in just 30 minutes through a single-step process. This would allow healthcare providers to greatly speed up screening for diseases, paving the way for more accurate biomarker diagnosis for cancers and diseases in future.

b) I&E’s technology commercialisation programme, “Discovery and Endeavour”, helps teams gather insights and align their development towards meeting market needs. Through the programme, ArcVance interviewed potential customers and learnt that ExoArc could also eliminate the concern of blood quality degradation when transporting blood samples for testing. This created new commercial opportunities for ExoArc to be used not only in hospitals and laboratories, but also in clinics for on-site blood testing.

Cultivating an Entrepreneurial Mindset

6. But the journey to launch an enterprise is not always smooth sailing. The tides may change and storms may come, but we can harness good winds to build momentum in our sails, and go further than we last journeyed.  Our spirit of adventure and entrepreneurship is vital and we must sometimes change course to stay afloat, and capture the opportunities that come our way.

a) For example, I&E provided seed-funding to Nanyang Business School alumnus Arnold Giovanni, to create a marketplace platform to connect underused warehouses with companies looking for storage facilities in Indonesia.

b) Along the way, Arnold observed that there were insufficient cold chain logistics providers in Indonesia to meet the strong demand for transportation and storage services, especially for temperature-sensitive perishable goods such as food and pharmaceuticals. Arnold seized the opportunity immediately – he pivoted and created Coldspace, supported by I&E’s dedicated mentorship which helped him evaluate market insights. Today, Coldspace provides smart warehousing solutions through data analytics, allowing customers to safely store and transport their products.

Networking Opportunities

7. And no journey is complete without the company of others, and part of the adventure is when people who have met on the road become valuable companions which we can rely on and work with. The I&E ecosystem has created networking opportunities for aspiring entrepreneurs to connect with like-minded innovators, industry partners and potential investors.

a) For example, through the I&E network, Associate Professor Nagaendran Kandiah, the Director of Dementia Research Centre at the LKC-NTU School of Medicine, met Mohammed Adnan Azam, a two-time participant in I&E’s “Discovery and Endeavour” programme. Both Prof Kandiah and Adnan had an interest in developing solutions in dementia care. This led to Prof Kandiah hiring Adnan, who had honed his skills in market validation, as an entrepreneurial lead to help commercialise his research. Their project, reCOGnAIze, is a clinically-designed game aimed at the early detection of brain diseases for high risk patients with vascular diseases such as hypertension and diabetes. This software, which can help doctors make informed decisions for early interventions, is on exhibit today.

b) The launch of the Innovation Port will create a vibrant space that is conducive for the organic exchange of ideas, increasing the networking opportunities for the I&E community.

8. I am glad that NTU is strengthening its culture of innovation and entrepreneurship. The Government will continue to nurture a thriving and globally connected ecosystem for startups, enterprises and young entrepreneurs through programmes such as EnterpriseSG’s flagship conference, the Singapore Week of Innovation and Technology (SWITCH). This year’s edition will be held from 28 to 30 October. Our port city will open its doors to investors, startup founders, and innovation players from all over the world for ideas to converge and paths to cross, to foster cross-border collaborations.

Conclusion

9. Last but not least, you never journey alone. We will continue to create opportunities such as through I&E for you to build meaningful connections and expand your horizons. So keep an open mind, and new paths will open up before you. Congratulations again to the NTU Innovation Port, and to the beginning of a new voyage for many of our bold and innovative as your ideas set sail from here.