Dell invests $66 million in Singapore in Innovation Hub, the first of its kind outside US

Dell Technologies today announced the establishment of a Global Innovation Hub (GIH) in Singapore to boost R&D capabilities, with some US$23 million to be invested this year. Over the three-year period from 2019, a total of US$50 million ($66 million) will be invested.

In a release, Dell said these investments will go towards accelerating developments in digital experiences and other related R&D work, and this will be supported by the Digital Industry Singapore (DISG), a joint office of the Economic Development Board (EDB), Enterprise Singapore (ESG) and Info-communications Media Development Authority (IMDA).

Amit Midha, Dell’s President for Asia Pacific & Japan and Global Digital Cities said the GIH “supported by talented local professionals will allow us to further contribute to the country’s growth and develop innovative products and solutions in emerging technologies to serve the wider regional and global markets.” 

The GIH will create more than 160 job opportunities in emerging technologies in Singapore, and Dell revealed these hires will consist of “diverse R&D innovators comprising designers, developers and strategists”

The hiring process will be completed by this year, and all new hires for the GIH are based in Singapore and will drive R&D programmes for customers and partners worldwide. 

The GIH is a “first-of-its-kind innovation centre situated outside of the company’s global headquarters in the United States” Dell said, and will focus on advancing multiple growth areas for digital transformation including augmented/mixed reality, data analytics, cloud-native, cybersecurity and edge computing. It will also be home to a specialised team responsible for enhancing user experiences through innovation. 

In addition, the GIH houses existing R&D facilities in Singapore such as the Singapore Design Centre – responsible for global product design and development of key product categories such as monitors and client peripherals. 

It also includes a hardware prototyping lab dedicated to product design and innovation, and an Artificial Intelligence (AI) Experience Zone – which will be a catalyst for AI understanding and adoption. 

Speaking at the launch event on Feb 22 , Singapore Trade and Industry Minister Chan Chun Sing said Dell has “realised early on that he needed to evolve as technology changed, and it was necessary to adapt his businesses to the changing world around him as his main focus has grown beyond just a PC maker. It was critical for Dell to push the envelope and develop new innovations that would allow it to drive the digital transformation in the decades to come.” 

Chan believed that the GIH will also benefit Singapore, as it will help Singapore to grow as a global technology and innovation hub. Her noted it will catalyse and drive new innovations, as well as deepen collaborations between Dell and the local players, and to uplift the entire local technology ecosystem 

“In the longer term, this technological innovations can augment Singapore's technological capabilities and even the market overseas. For instance, these innovations can be exported to our existing wide network of free trade agreements, as well as the newer digital economic agreements that we have pioneered with like minded countries and trading partners to forge new rules in the digital domain.” Chan highlighted.