Singapore’s research agency partnered with Microsoft to build a whole-of-government system that will ease sharing of data between agencies, as part of the government’s Smart Nation drive.
A*STAR’s Institute for Infocomm Research signed a deal with the firm recently to build a common framework for how agencies will structure their businesses and set up technologies to deliver public services.
This is in preparation for the development of a common Smart Nation Platform which all agencies will use to share data collected through sensors. Currently, agencies have their own IT systems, making it difficult to share data across agencies without first processing the data.
The Smart Nation Platform will also secure the data, and make sure it’s anonymized before sharing. Agencies will use this data to provide better services, such as support for the elderly, less road congestion based on real-time data, and personalized services based on location, age and needs.
In addition, Microsoft and A*STAR will develop technologies to analyse the data collected by sensors. They will build systems to analyze videos, manage transport and monitor renewable energy consumption.
This story was first published on FutureGov on February 3, 2015.