IT infra hurdles hobble AI deployment in Singapore government

While AI adoption is a top priority in Singapore’s public sector, 83% of agencies need a complete or substantial overhaul of their IT infrastructure before they could deploy AI, according to research from Pure Storage.

This is based on a survey conducted across Singapore’s public sector, including government agencies, essential services, health, and education from February to April 2024. The study involved 40 business leaders, including key IT decision-makers and those with the authority to influence IT purchasing decisions.

Many of the respondents said that they lacked an understanding of the IT requirements needed for their AI projects.

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Findings show that 97% of Singapore’s respondents have already adopted AI or are running trials. 

The majority of organisations surveyed are already leveraging AI to drive innovation, productivity, and better citizen experiences – for use cases such as virtual assistants, personalized service delivery and AI operations.

IT infrastructure is a key challenge in AI deployment as 83% of respondents said they needed a substantial revamp of their IT infrastructure to support AI deployment, reflecting a significant gap in the sector’s AI preparedness. 

In addition, half of organisations have underestimated the impact of AI deployment on data storage – with 99% reporting at least a 50% increase in data storage demand. 

Besides data storage (73%), organisations also found that they had to upgrade computer infrastructure (60%) and networking infrastructure (60%) following AI implementation. 

“To sustain Singapore’s national AI strategy rollout, public agencies must ensure that they have set up their foundational infrastructure in a way that optimizes both AI-scale data demands and energy efficiency,” said Nathan Hall, Pure Storage VP  in Asia-Pacific & Japan.