Tackling Sustainability as One Nation: How SMEs Can Lead and Thrive
As Singapore advances its Green Plan 2030, UOB FinLab is working with SMEs to turn sustainability into a pathway for growth, resilience, and long-term success.
UOB FinLab AI Ready Programme Recap
From Awareness to Action: Helping Businesses Harness the Power of AI
UOB FinLab officially launched the AI Ready Programme on 8 July 2025, bringing together over 80 SME leaders, ecosystem partners, and government agencies. In collaboration with AI Singapore, IMDA, and Microsoft, the programme is designed to help SMEs move from AI curiosity to confident adoption by offering solutions, expert advisory, and tailored clinics. The kick-off event showcased how adopting AI is an achievable reality for businesses of all sizes.
Programme Opening
Welcome Address by UOB FinLab
Shannon Lung, Head, UOB FinLab and Ecosystem
Shannon Lung, Head, UOB FinLab & Ecosystem, opened the session by sharing UOB FinLab’s mission. He emphasised that since its establishment in 2015, UOB FinLab has served as the strategic community enabler of UOB, dedicated to driving SME growth across ASEAN through Artificial Intelligence (AI), Digitalisation, and Sustainability.
This mission relects the organisation’s commitment to empowering small and medium-sized enterprises to thrive in an increasingly digital and environmentally conscious economy.
Opening Address by IMDA
Johnson Poh, Assistant Chief Executive, Sectoral Transformation Group, IMDA, addressed the digitalisation imperative for Singapore’s SMEs. He highlighted IMDA’s GenAI x Digital Leaders initiative, businesses to partner with tech vendors to design, develop, and deploy GenAI Solutions, while receiving guidance on technology and AI governance best practices.
Johnson Poh, Assistant Chief Executive, Sectoral Transformation Group, IMDA
Eligible enterprises, those with in-house tech capabilities and meeting specific criteria, may also benefit from funding support to implement impactful GenAI use cases, ultimately driving digital transformation and business growth across sectors.
Getting Future-Ready with UOB
Paul Kan, Head, Business Banking Singapore, UOB
Paul Kan, Head, Business Banking Singapore, UOB, emphasised the bank’s commitment to supporting SMEs through financial tools and partnerships that enable innovation. He shared UOB’s perspective on preparing businesses for a digital-first economy.
Programme Highlights
Eelen Lim, Programme Director, UOB FinLab & Ecosystem
Laurence Liew, Director, AI Innovation, AI Singapore
UOB FinLab AI Ready Programme Overview
Eelen Lim, Programme Director, UOB FinLab & Ecosystem introduced the AI Ready Programme structure and support model, including masterclasses, 1-1 tech advisory and proof-of-concept development pathways for SMEs.
AI Ready for SME Leaders
Laurence Liew, Director, AI Innovation, AI Singapore, introduced SMEs to structured pathways for adopting AI and the proof-of-concept (POC) sprints brought together by UOB and AISG. He explained how the programme can help businesses solve real-world challenges by matching them with trained AI engineers and providing support for testing and validating deployable solutions.
He also highlighted the AI Readiness Index (AIRI), a practical tool to assess organisational, data, and infrastructure readiness. By leveraging AIRI and AI Singapore’s ecosystem support, SMEs can better understand their AI maturity and take targeted steps toward implementation.
Leading your industry with AI Transformation
Boon Sing, ASEAN Senior Partner, Solution Sales – Data & AI, Microsoft
Boon Sing, ASEAN Senior Partner, Solution Sales – Data & AI, Microsoft, shared transformative use cases across industries. His session spotlighted how Microsoft AI tools can improve operational efficiency, drive customer engagement, and uncover new revenue streams.
Panel Discussion
Getting AI-Ready: What It Really Takes For SMEs to Succeed?
From right to left: Moderator: Alvin Eng, Head, Enterprise AI, Innovation Group, UOB, Speakers: Sachin Hridayraj, Co-Founder, iNextLabs, Sun Zhibo, Chief Product Officer, Lumens, Shaik Umar, Assistant Director, IMDA, Don Ho, Director, Business Development, Nanyang Inc
Moderated by UOB’s Alvin Eng, this dynamic panel brought together voices from IMDA, SMEs, and AI Solution partners including Lumens, Nanyang Inc, and iNextLabs. Speakers discussed practical steps SMEs can take to embark on their AI journey, key pitfalls to avoid, and how to align internal teams for success. The panel also touched on the importance of education, data readiness, and trusted tech partnerships.
Alvin Eng, Head, Enterprise AI, Innovation Group, UOB
Moderated by UOB’s Alvin Eng, this dynamic panel brought together voices from IMDA, SMEs, and AI Solution partners including Lumens, Nanyang Inc, and iNextLabs.
Speakers discussed practical steps SMEs can take to embark on their AI journey, key pitfalls to avoid, and how to align internal teams for success. The panel also touched on the importance of education, data readiness, and trusted tech partnerships.
iNextLabs spotlighted high-impact GenAI use cases such as chatbots and AI agents, which drive productivity and customer experience. IMDA underscored the importance of people, processes, and partnerships, sharing how government-led initiatives like Digital Leaders Programme support capability building.
SMEs like Lumens and Nanyang Inc shared their AI transformation journeys, from in-house tech development to refining use cases through whiteboarding with tech partners. Lumens’ GenAI car rental assistant is set to triple efficiency and save over S$300K annually. On the other hand, Nanyang Inc is automating order processing with GenAI which was inline with their intention to have a fifth Project Manager. With these first steps, both Lumens and Nanyang Inc continued to seek for more areas in their business where AI can be implemented to maximise efficiency.
Don Ho, Director, Business Development, Nanyang Inc
Shaik Umar, Assistant Director, IMDA
Sun Zhibo, Chief Product Officer, Lumens
Sachin Hridayraj, Co-Founder, iNextLabs
The panel concluded that SMEs could start small with focused use cases and scale through the right partnerships, internal readiness, and continuous experimentation.
Closing Keynote
Janet Young, Managing Director and Group Head, Channels & Digitalisation, Strategic Communications & Brand, UOB
Janet Young, Managing Director and Group Head, Channels & Digitalisation, Strategic Communications & Brand, UOB, delivered the closing keynote. She spoke on the role of leadership in driving change, the bank’s broader innovation strategy, and the need for resilience and agility in a rapidly transforming business landscape.
Post-Session Networking & Clinics
Networking Lunch & 1:1 Advisory Clinics
AI Singapore & SME 1:1 advisory clinic session
The programme concluded with an engaging networking lunch and 1:1 advisory clinic where SMEs had the opportunity to connect directly with AI solution providers, UOB specialists, and ecosystem partners for tailored advice. A concurrent booth showcase allowed participants to explore AI use cases and tools in greater depth.
Together, this ecosystem-led model ensures that AI adoption is not only possible, but sustainable and impactful for every SME.
UOB FinLab AI Ready Programme Recap
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