Speech by MOS Koh Poh Koon at the LaunchPad @ One-North Phase 2 Housewarming Party

SPEECH BY DR KOH POH KOON, MINISTER OF STATE, MINISTRY OF TRADE AND INDUSTRY & MINISTRY OF NATIONAL DEVELOPMENT, AT THE LAUNCHPAD @ ONE-NORTH PHASE 2 HOUSEWARMING PARTY ON WEDNESDAY, 22 MARCH 2017,1500 HRS, JTC LAUNCHPAD @ ONE-NORTH 

"Supporting the startup ecosystem - Startup SG" 

​Distinguished Guests

Ladies and Gentlemen

INTRODUCTION

1.          Good afternoon.  I am delighted to join you today at LaunchPad @ one-north’s Phase 2 Housewarming Party. This occasion marks the completion of Blocks 75, 77 and 81 in phase 2 of the LaunchPad’s development, and welcomes new friends and neighbours to the growing startup community here.

EXPANSION OF THE LAUNCHPAD NETWORK

2.          LaunchPad @ one-north was conceptualised as a hub to bring together members of the local startup community.  Its strategic location in the heart of the one-north business park and research cluster offers startups close access to the multi-disciplinary R&D and business environment here, as well as the talent pool and resources from neighbouring Institutes of Higher Learning (IHLs) such as the National University of Singapore, Singapore Polytechnic and INSEAD and ESSEC Business Schools.  At the same time, the broader one-north research and business community can benefit from new ideas and innovations from the promising startups based in the LaunchPad.

3.          The first phase of LaunchPad @ one-north was officially opened by PM Lee Hsien Loong in 2015, with three blocks – Blocks 71, 73 and 79 – offering a range of facilities such as incubation and startup spaces. These facilities support our entrepreneurs at various stages of starting up, as well as offer natural gathering places for networking and the cross-fertilisation of ideas.  

4.          Over the past two years, LaunchPad @ one-north has developed into the nexus of a vibrant and global startup community, bringing together entrepreneurs, accelerators, incubators and venture capitalists.  LaunchPad @ one-north is currently home to more than 800 startups and almost 50 incubators.  Notably, the size of the working population here has more than tripled from 1,200 in 2015 to 4,300 today.  We are also seeing a more diverse range of startups calling LaunchPad @ one-north home, from different fields such as engineering, biomedical services, fintech and urban solutions.  Additionally, LaunchPad @ one-north is attracting increased interest from international incubators and corporations who see the value of being plugged into the community here to tap on the new technologies developed by the startups, which can be commercialised regionally and globally. 

5.          The completion of Blocks 75, 77 and 81 in December 2016 has increased the LaunchPad’s space availability by providing another 12,000 sqm of plug-and-play spaces to support the thriving startup ecosystem.  New tenants which have moved in include The Trendlines Group, an Israel-based medtech and agritech incubator, which opened its first Asia-based incubator, Trendlines Medical Singapore, in Block 77 last month, and autonomous vehicle startup nuTonomy, which inject greater diversity and dynamism to the LaunchPad community.  With even more space being made available over the next few years, LaunchPad @ one-north will have the potential to house up to 1,000 startups and 60 incubators.

6.          The LaunchPad network is also set to expand across Singapore, with the next one scheduled for completion in the Jurong Innovation District (JID) later this year.  When completed, LaunchPad @ JID will provide even more space to cluster advanced manufacturing and engineering startups, to promote greater collaborations and foster synergistic growth.

LAUNCH OF STARTUP SG LOGO

7.          Apart from catering for physical infrastructure, the Government is further strengthening our support for the startup ecosystem to help it take off in a much larger way.  I spoke about some of these areas during MTI’s Committee of Supply (COS) debate in Parliament earlier this month.

8.          Firstly, on branding, “Startup SG” will be the umbrella branding for all startup support schemes, to provide a coherent brand identity for our startup ecosystem built around the Singapore brand.  We want Startup SG to resonate among Singaporeans and the rest of the world, and mark Singapore as the place to be when developing innovative ideas and scaling them up.  

9.          I am pleased to unveil the Startup SG logo today.  The colours red and white were chosen for the logo because they are our national colours.  The geographic pin with the letters “SG” in the middle signifies our aspiration for Singapore to become a destination in which startups will anchor themselves, while the inclusion of the “arrow” is emblematic of upward drive.

 STARTUP SG EQUITY AND STARTUP SG FOUNDER

10.      Secondly, we have enhanced our funding support for deep-tech startups, which typically have longer commercialisation runways. Under Startup SG Equity, the investment cap for Government’s co-investment support for promising deep-tech startups will be doubled from $2m to $4m. The level of support for startups from all sectors will also be increased from 50% to 70%.  Altogether, the Government has allocated about $200m under Startup SG Equity to co-invest in startups.

11.      To support first-time entrepreneurs who are just starting out, the Startup SG Founder scheme has a budget of about $20 million.  It replaces the existing ACE Startups Grant (for first-time entrepreneurs) and iJam Tier 1 grant (for startups in the interactive digital media sector) and will support more entrepreneurs with innovative ideas to start their businesses with mentorship support and a startup capital grant.  Successful applicants will be teamed with mentors under a new Accredited Mentor Partners (AMPs) approach.  These AMPs will include incubators and accelerators which will provide advice, networking and learning opportunities for the first-time entrepreneurs.  They will also help entrepreneurs obtain pre-seed funding.  I am pleased to announce that SPRING will be launching its call-for-collaboration from today for interested parties to come on board as AMPs.  Interested parties may refer to the Startup SG website, www.startupsg.net, for more information.

12.      The changes to the Startup SG Founder and Startup SG Equity schemes will take effect on 1 May 2017. 

CONCLUSION

13.      This is an exciting time for the Singapore startup scene.  The startup ecosystem here has grown in depth and diversity over the past decade as a result of the efforts of many stakeholders from the IHLs and private sector, with support from the Government.  There is also increasing international interest in Singapore as a global startup destination.  I look forward to the Singapore startup scene growing further, as we work hand-in-hand to catalyse a more dynamic and vibrant ecosystem.  

14.      Let’s get connected, to build a stronger Startup SG.  

15.      Thank you.

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