25 April 2015 - With the aim of bringing exciting technologies to the communities and igniting the imagination of the young and old, Tech Saturday attracted more than 2,000 visitors during the one-day carnival at the Suntec Singapore Convention & Exhibition Centre.
Singapore, 25 April 2015 | For Immediate Release
With the aim of bringing exciting technologies to the communities and igniting the imagination of the young and old, Tech Saturday attracted more than 2,000 visitors during the one-day carnival at the Suntec Singapore Convention & Exhibition Centre.
Visitors had the chance to view the largest organised indoor drone race and take part in activities such as building a tofu piano with Arduino. They were also treated to a suite of cool technologies brought together by various research institutes, institutes of higher learning, and Singapore tech companies.
These include gadget demos such as the Talking Map for the visually impaired by Nanyang Polytechnic and the Robotic Kayak and Stingray for deep sea research by Singapore-MIT Alliance for Research and Technology.
120 young builders aged between 10 and 14 also had the opportunity to put their coding and computational skills at the Tech Saturday Kids’ Hackathon. Their challenge was to programme a smart vehicle that avoids obstructions in either 2D animation or mOway robotics.
Separately, IDA and the IT Standards Committee are organising “Hackathon@SG” which seeks to be Singapore’s largest hackathon. Supported by the Ministry of Finance and SPRING Singapore, Hackathon@SG aims to bring together over 1,000 students, programmers, academia, designers and entrepreneurs to work on urban challenges facing Singapore and help ideate, code and co-create solutions for Singapore’s Smart Nation building efforts. It will take place in Q3 2015.
Minister for Communications and Information, Dr Yaacob Ibrahim was the Guest-of-Honour for the event. He said, "Tech Saturday is part of the Government's efforts in getting people excited about using and creating with technology. Technology needs to be inclusive and accessible to the young and old, to families and different communities. The Hackathon@SG will be another opportunity for people to get in touch with coding, exchange ideas in a competitive setting and be builders of technology."
IDA is also looking to invest more in the development of local tech capabilities extending efforts to not those skilled in this area, but also to fresh graduates and professionals looking for a mid-career change. For example, IDA and General Assembly are working to collaborate and pilot some programmes in these areas. GA, well known for their practical instruction in tech, business and design has recently set up presence in Singapore.
A new crowd-sourced demand-driven transportation concept – “Beeline” will focus on the spirit of experimentation and co-creation. Together with the Land Transport Authority of Singapore (LTA), IDA will be exploring how commuters can have more access to more direct, pre-booked private express bus services to work. Bus routes and trips are also envisioned to be flexible and can change according to evolving commuter needs. Feedback from commuters via the live website www.beeline.sg will be critical in determining the direction and viability of this concept.
- For more details, please visit www.smartnation.sg/techsat
- For event pictures, please visit www.flickr.com/photos/idasingapore/sets/72157652004250736
Related Resources
- Annex A: Factsheet on Tech Saturday Kids' Hackathon (58.88KB)
- Annex B: Factsheet on Hackathon@SG (53.92KB)
- Annex C: Factsheet on Beeline (60.49KB)
ISSUED BY THE INFOCOMM DEVELOPMENT AUTHORITY OF SINGAPORE
About Infocomm Development Authority of Singapore
The mission of the Infocomm Development Authority of Singapore (IDA) is to develop information technology and telecommunications within Singapore with a view to serve citizens of all ages and companies of all sizes. IDA does this by actively supporting the growth of innovative technology companies and start-ups in Singapore, working with leading global IT companies as well as developing excellent information technology and telecommunications infrastructure, policies and capabilities for Singapore. For more news and information, visit www.ida.gov.sg.
For media clarification, please contact:
Grace CHIANG (Ms)
Manager, Corporate and Marketing Communication
Infocomm Development Authority of Singapore
DID: (65) 6211 3863
Email: grace_chiang@imda.gov.sg
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