Oracle offers up to 10,000 training slots to tap AI boom

Tech giant will also open a second data centre in Singapore in July, says CEO

- Irene Tham

Up to 10,000 students and professionals in Singapore will receive free training in artificial intelligence (AI) over the next three years as part of tech giant Oracle's new plans to bolster the nation's digital workforce.

The effort, which cements the firm's 36 years of investment in the island-state, is expected to contribute significantly to Singapore's vision to triple the nation's pool of AI practitioners to 15,000 over the next five years.

This much manpower is needed to tap new opportunities created by generative AI tools, as outlined in Singapore's refreshed AI strategy announced in December 2023.

In a rare and exclusive interview with The Straits Times, Oracle chief executive Safra Catz, 61, who is in Singapore to meet Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, customers and other local officials, said: "Education is one of the things we really care about." Pointing to the firm's tradition of investment in education, she said Oracle runs a public high school on its Redwood City, California, campus a first among tech giants, many of which have instead taken tech lessons and products into existing classrooms.

Students at the US$43 million (S$58 million) Design Tech High School, which opened its doors in 2018 on Oracle's campus, get mentorship from its staff, and internships at the firm. Students also take classes on topics like wearables and robotics.

In Singapore, Oracle has supported computing education in 14 institutes of higher learning over the last 15 years.