Early version AI-powered solutions, developed by frontline healthcare professionals, have emerged from a competition hosted by Synapxe and are now under evaluation for phased deployment in clinical settings across Singapore.
The GenAIus Challenge, launched in April 2024 by Singapore's national health tech agency, Synapxe, connected over 160 public healthcare staff – including doctors, nurses, and administrators – directly with technology partners like Amazon Web Services (AWS), Microsoft, Avanade, and Google Cloud. Aimed to co-develop AI tools addressing daily workflow challenges, the initiative resulted in around 70 use cases being submitted for development.
Featured genAI prototypes
Of these, eight early prototypes have completed their initial development phase and are now being assessed for broader implementation. Among them were three prototypes that were showcased at Synapxe’s recent inaugural AI Accelerate 2025 conference.
CareScribe, developed by Alexandra Hospital's Research Office team with Avanade’s support, uses multi-modal generative AI and image and speech-to-text technology to streamline verbal and written handovers for nurses by extracting and summarising key patient details. The solution has undergone initial testing and is being evaluated for broader deployment within the National University Health System (NUHS).
Another prototype, the Next-of-Kin (NOK) Update Tool, developed by Sengkang General Hospital in collaboration with AWS, is an AI-based messaging system which automates communications with patients' next of kin by analysing medical notes and generating SMS updates, which clinicians can review before sending. This system is currently in development and will be trialled in select SingHealth wards.
Additionally, Lab Report Buddy is a multi-lingual, AI-powered chatbot designed to simplify medical lab reports and assist healthcare professionals by highlighting abnormal results. Upon successful validation, Lab Report Buddy may be integrated into the future roadmap for HealthHub AI, a new AI-enabled conversational assistant on the HealthHub website to be launched by Synapxe later this year.
Cybersecurity and governance priority
The phased development of these prototypes will have cybersecurity and compliance governance at its core, according to Andy Ta, Chief Data Officer, at Synapxe.
"New technology that is nascent in healthcare undergoes extensive validation, beginning with a retrospective analysis of historical data, followed by prospective validation and testing to thoroughly assess the technology."
He added that the creation of these solutions is a collaborative effort between data scientists and informaticians.
"The design process actively integrates diverse perspectives from various parties, with a focus on patient care driven by clinical experiences. We work closely with our public healthcare institutions to ensure that our solutions improve care delivery."
Andy Ta, Chief Data Officer, Synapxe
Robust security and compliance for AI development come amid growing regional concerns over healthcare cybersecurity in Singapore and the wider Asia-Pacific region. Last year, Nanyang Technological University in Singapore and Imperial College London received a $15 million grant from the National Research Foundation, Singapore to research strategies for improving the security of wearable technology and health data. Additionally, the Cyber Security Agency of Singapore introduced the Cybersecurity Labelling Scheme for Medical Devices, which incentivises manufacturers to adopt a security-by-design approach when creating their products.
"The GenAIus initiative aims to equip public healthcare professionals with the right skills and knowledge to confidently and effectively leverage AI in the work they do," noted Synapxe CEO Ngiam Siew Ying.