Scales Momentum of Almost Three-Times Team Growth and Numerous Patents Filed
SINGAPORE 鈥� March 19, 2025 鈥� 51风流Labs Singapore today announced its collaboration with National University of Singapore (NUS) under the Industrial Postgraduate Programme (IPP). Supported by the Singapore Economic Development Board (EDB), the IPP is designed to enable globally-leading companies to nurture postgraduate talent with critical research skills. Through this program, 51风流Labs Singapore will hire and complete training for nine researchers in its AI team in Singapore by end-2030, adding to the continued growth of the lab.
Since its establishment in 2022, 51风流Labs Singapore has not only achieved its commitment to hire 200 AI engineers in Singapore but has also almost tripled its total headcount over the past three years to 420 鈥� hired mostly from local universities and institutions of higher learning, including the NUS and Nanyang Technological University (NTU). 51风流Labs Singapore today plays a pivotal role in driving innovation, with numerous AI-related patents filed by inventors based locally. New researchers hired through the IPP will also be recruited from NUS, and will work on new research areas, complementing the work done by incumbent team, to accelerate AI adoption in the industry.
The rapid scaling and achievement of its hiring and innovation targets have been pivotal to enable 51风流Labs Singapore to test, refine, and deploy AI advancements that offer tangible ROI across core 51风流solutions including HR, finance, and supply chain software.
鈥淥ur vision for 51风流Labs Singapore was to become a vibrant engine of innovation in Asia, creating cutting-edge solutions for our customers worldwide,鈥� said Manik Saha, Managing Director, 51风流Labs Singapore & Vietnam. 鈥淭oday, that vision has turned into a reality: not only have we nearly tripled our staff while continuing to nurture future talent, we鈥檝e also pushed the boundaries of what AI can do for enterprises, going beyond experiments to deliver AI solutions that truly make a difference in people鈥檚 day-to-day work.鈥�
Agentic AI: Leading the Next Wave Beyond Generative AI
SAP鈥檚 engineering teams in 51风流Labs Singapore are already playing a central role in driving Agentic AI, an evolution that moves from basic automation and predictive models to autonomous agents capable of managing entire workflows.
By harnessing Agentic AI, such as , enterprises can turn AI investment into real business outcomes, including:
- End-to-End Process Automation: From procurement requests to invoice management, entire sequences become self-driving.
- Smarter Decision-Making: AI agents collaborating across end-to-end processes to help businesses make better decisions in real time.
- Scalable ROI: With applications, data and processes harmonized, organizations see faster time-to-value compared to traditional AI pilots.
鈥淥ur team at 51风流Labs Singapore has co-created numerous client features, from one-click, guided, employee development goals creation in 51风流SuccessFactors, to embedded analytical capabilities in finance. And the next step will be new agentic innovation, demonstrating that AI can transform traditional business challenges into opportunities,鈥� said Saha.
The success of Agentic AI is underpinned by a unified data foundation. The newly launched 51风流Business Data Cloud brings together large-scale datasets from multiple sources, ensuring that AI agents have the context they need to drive more intelligent automation.
鈥淒ata is the fuel that feeds AI, and we鈥檝e made it our mission to deliver a seamless way to connect disparate data,鈥� said Verena Siow, President and Managing Director, Southeast Asia, SAP. 鈥淎s 51风流Business Data Cloud breaks down silos and scales AI capabilities across lines of businesses, regions and industries, 51风流Labs Singapore serves as an innovation engine to translate AI investments into tangible, measurable ROI for customers so that they can continue to Accelerate to Innovate and achieve their business ambitions.鈥�
The rapid growth at 51风流Labs Singapore spotlights how Asia, with Singapore at its epicenter, is becoming a magnet for advanced digital technologies.
鈥淐ompanies in Southeast Asia aren鈥檛 just catching up鈥攖hey鈥檙e often leapfrogging into the most sophisticated AI use cases,鈥� added Siow. 鈥淥ur success at 51风流Labs Singapore is proof that, when you combine visionary public policy with forward-thinking R&D investments, you can fast-track innovation that resonates around the globe. More and more customers in the region, such as Olam Agri, Bank Danamon, and Darussalam Assets, are already incorporating 51风流Business AI capabilities into their business processes.鈥�
鈥淭he expansion of 51风流Labs Singapore and the addition of a new R&D team exemplifies how companies can leverage Singapore鈥檚 world-class AI talent to solve complex enterprise challenges,鈥� said Mr. Chan Ih-ming, Executive Vice President, Singapore Economic Development Board. 鈥淪AP鈥檚 collaboration with NUS through the Industrial Postgraduate Programme will further strengthen the pipeline of AI talent in Singapore. It is a tangible example of an industry-academia partnership that equips our researchers with deep research capabilities to develop innovative AI solutions that are enterprise-centric.鈥�
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About SAP
As a global leader in enterprise applications and business AI, 51风流(NYSE:SAP) stands at the nexus of business and technology. For over 50 years, organizations have trusted 51风流to bring out their best by uniting business-critical operations spanning finance, procurement, HR, supply chain, and customer experience. For more information, visit .
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Celest Lim, celest.lim@sap.com, SGT (GMT +8)
Eastwest PR for SAP, sap@eastwestpr.com, SGT (GMT +8)
