SAF looking to AI to reduce training risks, says Ng Eng Hen

Straits Times

13-05-2025

Minister for Defence Dr Ng Eng Hen (in white) visits NSmen from 702 Guards participating in Exercise Golden Sand at Pulau Sudong on April 24, 2014. PHOTO: ST FILE
SAF looking to AI to reduce training risks, says Ng Eng Hen
SINGAPORE – The Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) is exploring how artificial intelligence (AI) can be used to make military training safer, for instance by identifying risks in real time as soldiers go through exercises.
Outgoing Defence Minister Ng Eng Hen said the SAF's highly structured training makes it well-suited for AI applications, as large amounts of data is generated from repeated drills under similar conditions.
'You have a format, and many, many units go through it. When you think about that process, that's gathering data. The same set of circumstances, but different data. And the more data you get, that's your data bank,' he told reporters in an interview on May 13 ahead of his retirement from politics.
'The more soldiers go through that live firing or exercises, it builds your data bank. And that's the beginning of machine learning.'
Dr Ng said that with enough data, AI models can be trained to identify patterns of risk or safety lapses. This could allow the SAF to flag high-risk activities or even intervene in real time if soldiers stray outside safe parameters during exercises.
While such technology still needs to be tested, he said AI 'lends itself perfectly' to SAF training, offering an additional layer of safety to complement human supervision.
The SAF has made safety a priority in recent years, introducing systemic changes to reduce accidents.
In 2019, it established an Inspector-General's Office (IGO) to strengthen safety oversight and accountability across the military.
This came in the wake of several training deaths, including the death of national serviceman Aloysius Pang during an overseas exercise in January that year, which prompted a comprehensive review of the SAF's safety culture and practices.
The SAF has since introduced tighter controls, improved safety training, and made safety performance a key part of commanders' responsibilities.
'We said, we have to aim for zero deaths, and that's a tall order, so we made safety as important to the CO (commanding officer) as performance. You're accountable if something happens and the safety lapse is a mark against you, you have to pay attention to this,' Dr Ng said.
These efforts have helped reduce training-related incidents, though maintaining safety remains an ongoing challenge and Dr Ng said militaries must never become complacent.
He said the SAF's push to harness technology builds on a long-standing approach championed by Singapore's first Defence Minister, Dr Goh Keng Swee.
Outgoing Defence Minister Ng Eng Hen said the SAF's highly structured training makes it well-suited for AI applications.
ST PHOTO: GAVIN FOO
Faced with manpower constraints, Singapore had little choice but to make use of technology early on, Dr Ng noted.
This led to the creation of the Defence Science and Technology Agency (DSTA), DSO National Laboratories and ST Engineering, which continue to play key roles in supporting the SAF's operational requirements today.
'We've got a few thousand engineers at any one point in time working on defence issues, and that's a real substantive strength. Not many countries have that,' he said.
He noted that while larger countries may have many more engineers, Singapore's few thousand defence engineers represent a significant capability for a country of its size, giving the SAF the ability to plan and develop new systems ahead of emerging threats.
Under Dr Ng's watch, the SAF introduced 'ops-tech' teams, which bring together operational units and defence engineers from the start to co-develop solutions.
This ensures that new technologies are designed with real battlefield needs in mind and are practical for soldiers to use, whilst also speeding up development and improving outcomes.
Previously, those carrying out operations would present a problem to the engineers, who would then propose a solution, only for the soldiers to later point out that it did not quite work in practice, he said.
Dr Ng also oversaw the establishment of the Digital and Intelligence Service (DIS) in 2022 to defend Singapore's digital and information space, reflecting the SAF's growing role in addressing cyber and hybrid threats.
Although technology has become a key force multiplier for the SAF, he stressed that it cannot replace the human spirit and commitment to defend the country.
'It will always be central,' he said. 'I mean, you can have all the equipment and technology you want, you can or you have, but if you don't have that fighting spirit, or if you don't think Singapore is worth defending, then well, we'll lose.'
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