NIE, Amazon Web Services set up AI-focused innovation hub for edtech research
The two organisations have signed a three-year memorandum of understanding
[SINGAPORE] The National Institute of Education (NIE) and Amazon Web Services (AWS) will open a new Technology for Education Centre for applied innovation and research in education technology.
This is under a three-year memorandum of understanding signed on Thursday (May 29), which includes other artificial intelligence (AI) initiatives for NIE researchers, staff and students.
The partnership will help to “shape the future through ethical and inclusive use of technology”, NIE director Professor Liu Woon Chia said at a media briefing.
“We must teach our teachers differently so they can ensure students learn differently, paving the way for an education that is future-ready.”
To be located in a new annex building in NIE’s campus, the centre will open at around the same time as Nanyang Crescent MRT station, which will serve the Nanyang Technological University Smart Campus.
It will provide an environment for the development and application of edtech, with features such as dedicated prototyping zones.
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Prof Liu described the centre as “an experimental space” where students, faculty and AWS specialists can collaborate to build prototypes and create solutions.
Strengthening AI skills
Besides the new centre, the partnership includes initiatives to strengthen educators’ skills in cloud technologies, joint research projects and student-driven service-learning initiatives that address community challenges with generative AI (GenAI).
Workshops, hackathons and forums will also explore ethical issues related to AI in education, such as data privacy and bias.
Asked how many students will benefit, Prof Liu said every student teacher at NIE will have an opportunity.
“Not all students may be involved in the creation of prototypes, but we are confident that many will want to be involved,” she said.
The partnership is aligned with AWS’ AI Spring Singapore programme, which aims to equip 5,000 individuals with AI skills from 2024 to 2026.
Elsie Tan, AWS country manager, public sector (Singapore), said: “We are helping to equip the education sector for the digital age by combining NIE’s pedagogical leadership with AWS’ cloud capabilities.”
In May 2024, AWS said it would invest S$12 billion in Singapore’s cloud infrastructure by 2028, supporting more than 12,000 jobs and making an expected S$23.7 billion contribution to the gross domestic product.
While AWS is NIE’s first such industry partner, it will not be the only one, said Prof Liu.
“Right now, AWS is a front runner in terms of technology expertise. At NIE, we know the pedagogy and our students, so this collaboration will allow us to accelerate the tech-enabled education that we envision,” she said.
AWS Summit Singapore 2025
Separately at the AWS Summit on Thursday, three companies announced projects that use AWS to implement generative AI solutions.
Global gaming company Razer will launch GenAI-powered tools for game developers, including a quality assurance tool for game testing.
Local restaurant chain SaladStop! has developed a GenAI assistant that provides personalised nutrition advice and meal recommendations.
This is expected to boost operational efficiency by 20 per cent, improve customer retention through a more convenient and customised ordering system, and potentially double online order volume.
Adrien Desbaillets, chief executive officer of SaladStop!, said: “This is the future of food – personalised nutrition made easy and accessible for everyone.”
Meanwhile, insurance technology firm bolttech has integrated speech-to-speech AI capabilities into its existing AWS-powered call centre.
Initially piloted in Korean, the system now supports real-time responses across multiple languages and automates routine tasks such as basic claims processing. This allows human agents to address more complex issues.
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