Huawei Launches New Virtual AI Academy in Singapore to Accelerate Training and Upskilling of ICT professionals

Huawei also announced its plans to strengthen joint solution innovation with local ecosystem partners as Singapore moves into Covid-19 economic recovery

[Singapore, June 23, 2020] Huawei called for closer collaboration with its local partners to boost joint solution innovation as Singapore moves into Covid-19 economic recovery at the inaugural online Huawei Ecosystem Summit 2020. The company also announced its new Virtual AI Academy with more than 140 free online courses to accelerate training and upskilling of Singapore ICT professionals and SME’s digitalisation, as Singapore doubles down on its push towards a digital future.

In his opening address at the inaugural online Summit today, Nicholas Ma, Chief Executive Officer of Huawei International, thanked its Singapore partners, who have helped Huawei Singapore Enterprise’s 2019 revenue increase by 20% year-on-year, with 68% increase in total certifications obtained by business partners. Themed Stay Together, Win Together, the Summit was attended by over 1,000 partners and customers.

Upskilling and training ICT professionals through the new Virtual AI Academy

At the Summit, Huawei announced it has digitalised its 5G-powered AI Lab launched in Singapore last year. Users will now be able to access the AI Lab’s applications easily via the cloud. Local small and medium-sized enterprises (SME) will be eligible to access and explore industry-focused digital transformation solutions that are supported by Huawei.

The AI Lab’s capabilities have been further enhanced through its integration with the Virtual AI Academy. Huawei will offer Singaporeans free online training opportunities with over 140 sets of courses in Artificial Intelligence (AI), 5G, cloud computing and big data that will boost reskilling and upskilling. These courses are designed to train and certify all levels of users, from amateurs to ICT professionals.

Since the start of Singapore’s Circuit Breaker measures in April, Huawei has partnered with local firms to enroll over 300 local ICT professionals at its Virtual AI Academy for upskill training as a trial run.

Following the official launch of the Academy, Huawei aims to certify 1,000 ICT engineers in Singapore by the end of 2021.

In addition to online courses, the Academy also offers trainees hands-on experience through its simulation labs in AI development. In the next quarter of 2020, Huawei plans to launch Cyber Range courses to equip SMEs and partners with necessary cybersecurity skills.

Prior to launching the Academy, Huawei has been working with Nanyang Polytechnic, Temasek Polytechnic, Singapore Polytechnic and the Singapore University of Social Sciences to help next-generation talents hone their digital skills.

“COVID-19 has illustrated the importance of digital readiness which underscores the need for business continuity. Singapore, with talent as its critical asset and competitive advantage, will continue to be a core driver of digital transformation in the intelligent era,” said Nicholas Ma. “As a member of Singapore's society, Huawei has a responsibility to deepen the long lasting collaboration with local ecosystem partners in these times of crisis. With our 5G-powered AI Lab and the new Virtual AI Academy, we will continue to double our efforts to facilitate upskilling ICT talents as well as work with SME’s on digitalization. We believe that these efforts will help the ecosystem, as well as open up new business opportunities and emerge stronger together.”

Investing in partnership development and joint solution innovation

The Summit also mapped Huawei’s vision and strategy in Singapore for working with its ecosystem partners as the nation recovers from Covid-19.

According to Huawei’s plan, it will invest SGD 5 million this year in Singapore to strengthen joint solution innovation with local partners and nurture the ecosystem.

Huawei will continue to focus on ICT technologies, expanding and strengthening of the connectivity and computing businesses by providing AI enablement across a variety of industries, with a focus on four core industries including Government, Finance, Transportation and ISP.

“Organisations will need to redesign their services to adapt to the new normal. Digital technology powered by 5G, Cloud and AI will be pivotal in this transformation.” said Aaron Wang, Managing Director of Huawei Singapore Enterprise Business Group, “Under Huawei’s AI strategy, we will focus on connectivity and computing in Singapore by building an open ecosystem with our partners as we believe it will empower digital transformation for numerous industries, and help our ecosystem partners boost immunity eventually.”

Despite mounting challenges in 2019, Huawei had established over 28,000 partnerships worldwide, with an annual growth rate of above 10 percent for the eighth consecutive year. Eighty-six percent of its Enterprise Business Group’s revenue was contributed by the cooperation of its partners.

Huawei also announced it will launch an Asia-Pacific Ascend Partner Program to grow Singapore’s development of AI industries. Consisting of three sub-programs, Independent Software Vendor AI Collaboration, Institute of Higher Learning (IHL) AI Talent Cultivation, and Government AI Industry Development, Huawei and its partners will support Asia Pacific countries with their strength in AI products and solutions, knowledge transfer, Go-to-Market support, and strategic resources.