Singapore tech group launches $150m VC fund, incubator

ST Engineering Ventures will focus on technology companies that are complementary to the company’s existing operations, especially in growth areas such as robotics, autonomous systems, data analytics and cybersecurity. It will set up scouting offices in Singapore, Israel and the US to cover Asia Pacific, Europe, the Middle East and the Americas.

The company has described the incubator, known as Innosparks, as a first-of-its-kind engineering lab in Singapore that will offer access to established business networks and distribution channels. Focus research areas include electronics, software, materials, chemicals and mechanical design. The plan is to create an environment where engineers can brainstorm freely outside of business and operational constraints to develop ideas into prototypes and products.

“With the increasingly dynamic and competitive technological and business landscape, we see a need to adopt open innovation, moving beyond traditional R&D approaches to seek new technologies and ideas outside the group that complement our internal capabilities,” Vincent Chong, president and CEO of ST said in a statement. “We are not looking for one-hit wonders but breakthrough innovations that will either strengthen our current portfolio of businesses or generate new lines of businesses.”

Founded in 1967, ST specializes in developing integrated engineering systems for a number of advanced industrial segments, including military and aerospace equipment, commercial and naval shipbuilding, and specialized engineering such as unmanned robotic land vehicles. Revenue improved 5.5% during the 2016 financial year to S$6.7 billion ($4.9 billion) while net profit declined 8.4% to S$484.5 million, with the company attributing the fall to a one-off impairment expense for a road construction business in China. It has about 22,000 employees worldwide.

Corporate venture capital is seen as playing a small but important role in Southeast Asia’s start-up ecosystem due to parent companies’ ability to collaborate with entrepreneurs and commit capital without a fixed time frame.

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• Topics
• Southeast Asia
• Industrials
• Growth
• Singapore
• Venture
• seed