40,000 tech workers to be trained in AI to automate coding, build agentic systems by 2029

SINGAPORE – By 2029, the Government aims to have 40,000 tech professionals acquire AI skills to perform tasks such as automating code-writing and building agentic systems, said the Infocomm Media Development Authority (IMDA) on May 8.

They include software developers, cybersecurity workers and final-year students studying information technology-related courses at polytechnics, the Institute of Technical Education and universities.

This new initiative comes under the National AI Impact Programme, which also has ambitions to develop 100,000 AI-bilingual workers among non-tech professionals such as accountants, lawyers and nurses.

AI fluency programmes developed by IMDA and industry partners will be rolled out for the 40,000 professionals to keep their skills up to date amid rapid advances in artificial intelligence.

On May 8, the AIxTech programme, the first of these programmes, was launched. It was developed by IMDA in collaboration with AI Singapore, leading tech firms, AI Centres of Excellence, various government agencies, and institutes of higher learning.

Through this programme, learners will be taught how to use AI tools to automate coding and debugging tests, curate and manage data fed into large-language models to improve accuracy of outputs, and build agentic systems that can run complex tasks autonomously.

Participants will also be given access to a suite of AI coding tools such as Anthropic’s Claude, OpenAI’s Codex, Github Copilot and Google’s Gemini.

As such tools are increasingly used to generate code, resolve queries and draft system designs, companies will need to move up the value chain by providing accountability, trust, integration and security, said Mr Tan Kiat How, Senior Minister of State for Digital Development and Information.

“Companies that can deliver that, with AI augmenting their teams rather than replacing their value, will be in a stronger position,” he said at the Tech Leader Awards 2026 held on May 8 at Shangri-La Singapore.

The traditional value proposition built around manpower and billable hours will come under pressure as clients ask why they should pay for engineers when AI agents can do much of the work in a fraction of time, said Mr Tan.

He added that AI tools allow smaller companies and teams to take on work that was traditionally reserved for larger players.

Even “one-person companies” are becoming increasingly common, as solo entrepreneurs run several AI agents, automation tools and cloud services that can do the heavy lifting of completing marketing, development and finance work.

“Whether or not this becomes the dominant way of working, the trend is clear,” said Mr Tan.

“AI is not just changing what individual workers do. It is changing what an entire company looks like. It is reshaping the economics of how services are delivered, how value is created, and how companies compete.”

He added that tech companies that experiment quickly with AI-native delivery models and learn from those experiments will be far better placed than those that wait for the dust to settle before getting started.

The first phase of the AIxTech programme will include 18 hours of online modules that professionals and students can complete at their own pace. In the second phase, participants will receive $600 worth of credit to access AI coding tools, access to online resources and an engineering playbook, advanced modules and face-to-face sessions with seasoned AI practitioners to solve real-world business problems.

AIxTech will cost companies $180 per tech worker who is a Singapore citizen or permanent resident. Final-year students can sign up for free. Self-sponsored individuals may pay the course fee with their SkillsFuture Credit, or via the NTUC Union Training Assistance Programme.

More than 30 organisations in tech and non-tech sectors, including ST Engineering, NCS, OCBC Bank and Standard Chartered, have expressed interest in enrolling their employees for the programme.

Among the 222,000 tech professionals currently in Singapore, the fastest-growing roles are in AI, data analytics and cybersecurity, which barely registered as distinct professions 10 years ago, when there were around 173,000 tech professionals, Mr Tan said.

“If we transform our companies, reskill our professionals, attract top leaders and build new pathways together, we will create new competitive advantages for Singapore,” said Mr Tan.