IBM Singapore to open first Bluemix Studio in Asia at Blk 71

Last week, IBM announced that its Watson technology is making its way onto Bluemix, IBM's cloud-based platform for building and running apps of all types including web, mobile and analytics. 

"Bluemix users can now build a new generation of cognitive apps that enhance, scale and accelerate human expertise by embedding Watson services and content through APIs," noted Janet Ang, MD, IBM Singapore. "Watson services on Bluemix make direct developer participation in the era of cognitive systems available to everyone who shares the goal of a new partnership between people and computers." 

Ang announced that the first Bluemix Studio will soon open in Singapore at Blk 71, the heart of the local startup community, and it will be the first such studio in Asia. "Bluemix Studio is a venue where developers and startups can collaborate with Bluemix consultants to rapidly innovate and build applications on a robust, enterprise-grade cloud platform, and even take advantage of the Watson services. Since the launch of Bluemix in end-July 2014, there have been many registrations to try out Bluemix, as well as many partners who have come on board," she shared. 

Gemalto, the digital security company, is building apps on Bluemix in the area of mobile and security, she said.

Lim Chuan Poh, Chairman, Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*Star), said during his speech as guest of honour at the Developer and Entrepreneur Day during the IBM XCite event that startup growth is a meaningful indication of the state of research and innovation in Singapore.

"The number of active startups in Singapore has increased significantly by almost 60% to 39,000 from 2005 to 2012. Hitech startups increased by a similar pace from 2,000 to more than 3,200 in the same period," he noted. 

Providing a conducive environment for startups to thrive is important, he added. "Block 71 at the One North area is a good example of the infrastructure that the government has put in place to help startups grow. What started out as an experiment to let out office space to budding technopreneurs 
has evolved to become a well-equipped startup incubation centre and ecosystem offering ready access to talent, government support and even potential investors. It now houses 250 startups with a combined talent pool of 1,000," he said.

Ang shared that IBM's 2014 Business Tech Trends report has identified three common characteristics of successful enterprises:

Partnering is in their DNA. While 40% of companies still have moderate to major skills gaps, pacesetters (early adopters of technology) are busy plugging their skills gaps by partnering with external developers. However, they’re not just using tried-and-true professional developers – nearly 80% of pacesetters are also turning to citizen developers to leverage data and APIs to develop crowdsourced solutions.

Analytics is their fuel. The hallmark of an analytically fueled organisation is having a culture that’s inclined to act on analytical results and insights. Nearly 70% of pacesetters say analytics are integral to how their organisations make decisions.

"Leaders are combining mobile, social, cloud and analytics technologies to break away from the pack. While each of these technologies are transformative on their own, the total is greater than the sum of its parts and leading enterprises are adopting all four," said Ang.

Ang added that pacesetters are 1.7 times as likely to use startups for help on project execution and twice as likely to use academia for help on product development. In addition, 89% of pacesetters have mature big data & analytics capabilities, while 50% of pacestters use social business and mobile on the cloud.