New and improved technologies for the beauty, healthcare and wearable tech industries.

As the largest and fast-growing organ of the human body, our skin is more than a mechanical barrier that protects our bodies from the rest of the world. It allows us to sense our environment, regulate our body temperature, and—with the help of technology—give us a window into our health.

Zooming into the emerging AI technologies for a post-COVID world.
The COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated digitialisation, particularly the adoption of artificial intelligence. Here are three Tech Offers riding the wave.

A blind woman is walking along a street, slowly approaching an obstacle ahead. As she gets closer, the device hanging from her neck emit a high-pulse click, which reflects off the object.

Trained in human echolocation, the returning echo activates a visual processing area in her brain, providing her with information such as the shape, material and distance, which she then uses to build a 3D image of the object in her mind. A wooden bench, she concludes, before she continues on her stroll.

From access to grants, state-of-the-art technology and co-innovation opportunities, the IoT Innovation Challenge 2018 co-organised by IPI, Enterprise Singapore and the Centre of Innovation for Electronics & IoT has helped four Singapore start-ups fast-track their goals. We speak to them to find out how the competition has transformed their businesses.
 

SpaceAge Labs
Deepak Pitta
Chief Executive Officer & Co-Founder

The key to securing long-term food security is investing in innovative technologies like alternative proteins, said experts at IPI’s AgriFood Innovation Webinar.

When countries around the world went into lockdown to stem the spread of COVID-19, it revealed vulnerabilities in many of the processes we take for granted in everyday life. The food system—dependent on a complex web of supply chains spanning the globe—was particularly hard hit, as consumers flocked to supermarkets to stock up and unharvested food crops languished in abandoned fields.

Manufacturing costs can be reduced by new intelligent systems. A first-of-its-kind software for such uses has been developed by LeanCost International and SMT Technology, which were matchmade by IPI.

The sight of Moses Tan hunched over a computer and typing away furiously was nothing new to his peers or family. As a consultant, his work involved advising manufacturing companies on workflow issues.

GIIAVA’s partnership with NUS, sparked off by IPI, aims to repurpose low-grade vegetable oil for higher value-added uses, which increases revenue yet benefits the environment.

Dr Yashodhan Bhawe stood in front of several large tanks, looking puzzled. He was expecting a straightforward scale-up for a new vegetable oil upgrading process, but things turned awry when “big masses of blobs” were produced instead.

Automation for Safety and Productivity in ManufacturingLearn more about three new robot technologies that can revolutionise our future industries

One of the first industries to embrace automation, manufacturing remains on the leading edge of adopting robot technology. Think, for example, of the automotive industry’s move from the assembly line to the heavy use of robotics in the last century. Manufacturing has pushed engineering innovations into the field, as robots increase efficiency, precision and safety, as well as decrease operating errors and costs.

From the Lab to the FarmLearn about three innovations that are changing the way we produce and consume our food.The world’s skyrocketing population, coupled with climatic disasters such as heat waves and droughts, pose significant challenges to our ever-diminishing food supply. The United Nations has predicted a 40% global water deficit by 2030 if we continue our ‘business-as-usual’ way of life.