Digitalisation is essential to the growth of Singapore’s overall economy. In 2024, Singapore’s digital economy grew by SG$12 billion, expanding to a total of SG$128.1 billion.
This accounts for 18.6% of the nation’s gross domestic product (GDP), up from 18.0% in 2023 and 14.9% in 2019.
According to IMDA’s Singapore Digital Economy (SGDE) Report 2025, more than two-thirds of Singapore’s digital economy came from non-Information & Communications (I&C) sectors. This shows that Singapore’s digital growth is not just driven by tech companies, but by digitalisation across all industries.
Among these non-I&C sectors, Finance & Insurance remained the largest contributor, followed by Wholesale Trade, and Manufacturing, underscoring the critical need for all enterprises — regardless of industry — to embrace digitalisation to drive growth.
Digitalisation benefits all firms, with 95% of SMEs onboard
According to the report, enterprises are making digitalisation central to how they operate. In 2024, the digital adoption rate rose. 95.1% of SMEs have adopted at least one digital area out of the six measured.
SMEs are leading the charge in deepening digitalisation, and this is evident in several ways:
- Their digital adoption intensity saw the largest jump in years, with SMEs using an average of 2.3 digital areas of the six measured, up from 2.0 in 2023.
- The adoption of sector-specific digital solutions, as recommended in IMDA’s Industry Digital Plans (IDPs), also increased considerably. Almost all (97%) SMEs adopted at least one sector-specific solution, up from just 85% the year before.
Tech workforce expands, offering strong prospects beyond I&C sectors
Singapore’s tech workforce continued to expand from 208,300 in 2023 to 214,000 in 2024, with roles related to AI & Data and Cybersecurity among the fastest growing. This growth was primarily driven by non-I&C sectors, reflecting the deepening of digitalisation across the economy.
Tech jobs also continue to offer good wages and strong career prospects. In 2024, the median monthly wage for resident tech workers was S$7,950, much higher than the overall resident median monthly wage of SG$4,860.
The demand for specific tech skills has also shifted. Between 2019 and 2024, programming languages such as Python and SQL were among the more highly sought-after tech skills, and there was an increase in demand for skills associated with cloud platforms and scalable digital infrastructure they support. Conversely, tech skills associated with web development became relatively less prominent.
Zeroing in on AI, the number of tech job postings requiring AI skills has steadily increased between 2019 and 2024, in tandem with the rise in AI adoption in Singapore. This growth was driven by rise in demand across all sectors, including I&C, Finance & Insurance, Manufacturing, and Professional Services.
AI Fast Becoming Essential Tool for Enterprises and Workers
Enterprises are deepening AI adoption: among SMEs, AI adoption tripled in one year. 14.5% of SMEs adopted AI in 2024, up from 4.2% in 2023. Among non-SMEs, the AI adoption rate also jumped from 44% to 62.5%.
Those who adopt AI also gain tangibly. SMEs tapping AI-enabled solutions under the Productivity Solutions Grant (PSG) achieved an average cost savings of 52% in 2024. SMEs that adopted AI-powered cybersecurity solutions under PSG achieved even higher average cost savings of 71%, highlighting the strong returns from investing in AI-enhanced security measures.
Firms are implementing AI in various tasks and across business functions. According to an IMDA-commissioned pulse survey of enterprises, firms are applying AI tools to multiple business functions. SMEs are using AI in an average of 3 business functions. In contrast, non-SMEs are using AI in an average of 5 business functions. The most common functions using AI were the same for both SMEs and non-SMEs: IT, Customer Service, and Finance & Accounting.
