To avoid the proverbial mistake of preparing for the last war, the Defence Science and Technology Agency (DSTA) needs to change the way it works, said the agency's chief executive Mervyn Tan.
This includes how the agency delivers capabilities for the Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) and increasing collaboration with start-ups.
While a more deliberate, sequential development process will still be relevant for multimillion-dollar defence projects that serve Singapore for decades, software must be continuously improved, Mr Tan said.
DSTA is also looking at more tie-ups with academia and the private sector and, crucially, there is a need to invest in its talent and train DSTA engineers to also have digital skills, he added.
In his first interview since taking the helm at the agency in May, Mr Tan told reporters on Saturday that one of his priorities is positioning DSTA to reap the benefits of digital technology developments - such as artificial intelligence (AI), data analytics, 5G connectivity, and autonomous systems - and to infuse them in Singapore's war-fighting capabilities.
He said the "waterfall" model, where development is done in sequential phases, still makes sense when it comes to an armoured fighting vehicle or the next fighter aircraft that must last for 30 years. But when developing digital technologies, "we need to have this idea of 'fast is good'".
"It may not have to be perfect. The time to a minimum viable product is important to us now," said Mr Tan, a former air force chief.
Take the army's latest Hunter Armoured Fighting Vehicle, for example. "You want to have a 'waterfall' approach to make sure that you deliver a reliable and robust system.
"But the guts - the command, control and communications systems, the combat management system that is in there - you would expect that during its life cycle of 30 years, it would change many times."
DSTA is collaborating with local firm Rock Nano on a naval tactics game called Admiral's Battleground, to gamify training in the fundamentals of naval warfare without having to rely on instructors to set up tactical scenarios.
"For many of our young naval officers, I think they are familiar with multiplayer online games, so it will be interesting as now they can pit their skills against each other," he said. There is even a scoreboard to make it more competitive.
DSTA and Philadelphia-based Ghost Robotics, in an agreement announced last Thursday, will develop legged robots for defence and humanitarian missions.
Mr Tan said: "We're actually less interested in the design of the robot because there are so many robots in the commercial sector today. We're more interested in the AI - the brain, the logic - in the robot."
DSTA, established in 2000, is a statutory board under the Ministry of Defence tasked with providing tech and engineering solutions for Singapore's defence.
Due to the sensitive nature of its work, DSTA relies heavily on local talent. Its biggest battle, Mr Tan said, is a talent crunch.
The agency will be launching a two-year programme to groom its young engineers and developers in technical and professional competencies, as well as leadership skills.
"There is competition out there in the commercial world, but we also have our own value proposition," Mr Tan said, which is to develop capabilities to safeguard Singapore's security.
Another selling point is the chance to work on complex engineering challenges on platforms such as the F-15SG fighters and littoral mission vessels that are not available at other tech companies, he added.
Mr Tan believes that even mavericks will seek the purpose that DSTA offers.
"I'm less interested in the grades they get in school. I'm less interested in the degree's tier, whether first class or not.
"I'm more interested in those who can solve the kind of problems that we put up in BrainHack to show that he is that kind of talent that can think outside the box," he said, referring to an annual event consisting of workshops, camps and hackathons for students.
