Improving lives through technology

FROM a robot that makes flatbread to an app that lets people see how they would look with different hairstyles, this year's winners at the Singapore Infocomm Technology Federation (SiTF) Awards come from a diverse range of backgrounds.

Rishi Israni, co-founder of the business behind the roti-making robot, was previously the chief technology officer of mobile security firm TenCube, while his fellow founder Pranoti Nagarkar built her expertise studying mechanical engineering. The product they created, Rotimatic, won Gold in the "Best Innovative Infocomm Product (Consumer)" category.

Meanwhile, Woo Sze Ming founded Gamurai, the developer of the virtual hairstyling app VEON@Hair Experience, after graduating from university. The solution received the Silver award for "Best Innovative Research and Development".

"The entries in 2015 were better, more competitive and covered a broader number of solutions. In the public sector, the standard of innovation and the elegant application of technology to derive solutions were highly impressive. We also had a good mix of startups and SMEs in the consumer space," says Lim Swee Cheang, senior adviser, Institute of Systems Science at the National University of Singapore, and one of the judges at this year's awards. "This is a good sign and shows the maturity of our infocomm industry and sophistication of deployment."

WIDE RANGE OF WINNERS

The SiTF is an industry association that comprises corporate members ranging from local startups to established multinational corporations. The body advocates for the information, communications and media (ICM) industry and helps to accelerate the adoption of ICM technology.

The SiTF Awards were established in 2009 to recognise made-in Singapore ICM innovations. Winners come from the private and public sectors as well as the tertiary institutions, secondary and primary schools.

According to the federation, award recipients have been successful in developing solutions that were not only "innovative in the creative sense but also in their practical use in improving the lives of Singaporeans in both consumer and enterprise segments".

Over 30 innovative products, solutions and applications across 10 categories received their trophies at this year's Gala Dinner presentation, which was held at the Raffles Convention Centre on Oct 1. The winners were drawn from 92 finalists who had been short-listed from over 300 nominations.

Other big winners on the night included Pocket Trips by LDR - a powerful Web-based authoring platform that can enable anyone, anywhere in the world without programming knowledge to create and publish their own location-based mobile apps on mobile devices. The product was the Gold award recipient for "Best Innovative Infocomm Product (Enterprise)".

Meanwhile, there were two Gold winners for the "Best Innovative Use of Infocomm Technology (Public Sector)" - The Immigration and Checkpoint Authority's Flexi Immigration Clearance System, which toggles between automated and manned counters to speed up immigration clearance, as well as the State Courts' Integrated Criminal Case Filing and Management System.

Among the schools, Temasek Polytechnic's Mozter Automated Mosquito Detection System clinched the Gold award for "Best Innovative ICM Student Project (Tertiary)"; Dunman High School's iKit - For your eyes only was the Gold winner for "Best Innovative ICM Student Project (Secondary)"; and Wellington Primary School's Financial Literacy Game also received Gold for "Innovative ICM Student Project (Primary)".

"The awards have certainly given the winners local recognition and enhanced their visibility to further excel in the global arena. The awards also provide the winners with a platform and a unique opportunity to be profiled. They can inspire the next generation of entrepreneurs," says Shirley Wong, SiTF's chairman.

SUPPORTING AN INDUSTRY'S GROWTH

Over the years, the SiTF Awards have expanded their scope beyond honouring innovative ICM applications and solutions that are developed locally, to include recognising companies that have taken efforts to innovate their business through the adoption of technology.

The judges presiding over the competition are distinguished individuals, including prominent members of the ICM industry, venture capitalists, investors and academia. Nominees who participate in the SiTF Awards will receive feedback on their projects from the judging panel.

The awards also help to identify nominations for other important competitions such as the National Infocomm Awards (NIA), which is the national level award for infocomm innovation in Singapore, the Asia Pacific ICT Alliance (APICTA) Awards, and the biennial World Summit Awards (WSA).

This year's awards were also an opportunity for the federation to celebrate the industry's success in conjunction with Singapore's 50th year of nation building.

To highlight the growth and progress of the industry SiTF has produced a commemorative book with photos, entitled Singapore Tech, A Living Chronicle. Ten copies of the book, signed by Yaacob Ibrahim, Minister for Communications and Information, were sold at an auction during the Gala Dinner.