Innovation at the Heart of our Economy

Data is a precious asset with the potential to inspire innovation that can transform our startup and business landscape. As our Digital Economy becomes more seamless and connected, there is a need for a structured, transparent and flexible ecosystem for data-sharing and collaboration.

In Singapore, the Data Innovation Programme Office (DIPO) helps to facilitate this through industry-led Data Collaboratives. These collaboratives offer a stable, well-regulated sandbox to support innovation in the industry.

Data Collaboratives Programme (DCP)

IMDA, PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) and DEX, a Singapore-based startup, participated in the first Data Collaborative pilot in April 2018. The shared aim was to build a decentralised, well-regulated and audited platform that data owners can trust.

Based off this six-month pilot, IMDA has since set up the Data Collaboratives Programme in consultation with Personal Data Protection Commission (PDPC). The programme includes a Trusted Data Sharing Framework and Data Regulatory Sandbox to help businesses share data in a safe, meaningful way.

If your business is looking to make use of the regulatory sandbox, key considerations include:

• Innovativeness of ideas: You should be able to demonstrate how you intend to use data to derive new value or creation of new products, which would not be possible under the current regulation
• Benefits to the public: You should be looking to innovate and create products that will bring positive impact to consumers
• Ready and concrete use case: Your plans should have sufficient interest from relevant stakeholders and have clear outcomes
• Risks assessment and mitigation: Risks and impacts should be assessed and mitigated, with effort to safeguard the interests of the individual