SINGAPORE, 19 November 2025 — Singapore businesses are ramping up their AI investments and are already seeing encouraging results, according to new research from SAP. Organisations here say they are spending an average of S$18.9 million1 (US$14.5 million) this year on AI and report an average return on AI investment of 16% — a figure expected to rise to 29% within two years.
While this outlook is promising, the findings suggest that as AI continues to evolve, future gains will depend on strengthening workforce skills and improving access to quality data, which remain key barriers to scaling AI impact across the enterprise.
These insights were revealed in new research released in Singapore today. Commissioned by SAP and conducted by Oxford Economics, The SAP Value of AI Report surveyed 1,600 business leaders of various sizes, including 200 in Singapore, across eight countries (Australia, Brazil, China, Germany, India, Singapore, United Kingdom, and United States).
“Spurred by strong policy direction, high digital maturity and a globally connected economy, Singapore has moved decisively on AI ambition and investment,” said Eileen Chua, Managing Director, SAP Singapore. “Our research suggests that to sustain this momentum and seize the next wave of AI innovation, Singapore organisations will have to bridge their reported gaps in data readiness and workforce capability.”
AI Spend and Confidence Surges, but Some Constraints Remain
According to the report, Singapore firms are expected to increase their AI investments by an average of 38% over the next two years. 67% of respondents say they are satisfied with their current ROI on AI, and six in ten (63%) businesses say AI has already helped them address key challenges — such as improving decision-making and customer engagement.
One company looking to reap the benefits of AI adoption is Far East Organization, Singapore’s largest private property developer, which is leveraging SAP technology with exploration of using Business AI as part of its broader digital transformation agenda to advance its leasing operations. The company automated end-to-end lease management — from contract generation to analytics to improve data accuracy, reduce manual inputs, and provide real-time insights into portfolio performance.
These enhanced analytics now track trends in rental, occupancy rates, and lease durations, giving property managers actionable insights to respond faster to market changes while making better decisions that strengthen portfolio and operational management.
Ng Yee Pern, CTO, Far East Organization, said, “Embarking on this strategic transformation with SAP’s cutting-edge technologies, we’ve reduced repetitive manual work and improved the accuracy and speed of our decision-making. What previously took days can now be completed in minutes, giving our teams the time and insight to focus on customers and business growth. Building on this success, we continue to innovate with SAP Business AI.”
Despite these measurable gains demonstrated by many companies, 70% of Singapore business leaders remain uncertain whether AI is delivering its full potential, reflecting growing awareness that current success does not automatically translate into long-term advantage and highlighting significant opportunity for further growth and value creation.
Organisational readiness appears to be the main constraint. The study found that 76% of Singapore organisations have not yet provided comprehensive AI training for employees, even as 68% acknowledge that shadow AI — the use of unapproved or unregulated AI tools — is already in use internally.
Moreover, 58% of respondents lack confidence in their ability to integrate and share data across business functions — a foundational requirement for enterprise-scale AI. In fact, the challenge of data readiness for AI is particularly pronounced in legal (80%), finance (73%), human resources (66%), the CEO’s office (64%) and procurement (55%).
Agentic AI signals Singapore’s next opportunity
While many businesses are adopting AI automation and generative AI today, future investment in Singapore is expected to focus on AI agents. Agentic AI is based on intelligent, autonomous systems that can plan, act, reflect, and collaborate to solve business problems.
Today, only six per cent of businesses are fully prepared to deploy and scale AI agents, while the majority (52%) say they are partially prepared. In the next two years, Singaporean businesses expect return on investment from agentic AI of 8%, below the global average of 10%.
Yet, expectations are high. Seven in ten (70%) businesses rate AI agents as having moderate to high potential to transform operations within the organisation. And 72% agree AI agents can add significant value to their business by managing complex workflows across business units.
“Agentic AI represents the next frontier of business transformation,” said Chua. “It has the potential to multiply productivity and innovation, but its success depends on the same fundamentals — data quality, integration, and people readiness. The organisations that invest in these areas now will be best positioned to capture value as AI continues to evolve.”
