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Graced by Acting Minister Mr Jeffrey Siow; founders and investors discuss building deep tech ventures at the dialogue “Deep Tech Through Different Lenses.”

SINGAPORE, 16 February 2026 – Singapore Valley Awards (SVA) announced its 2026 awardees, recognising undergraduates who demonstrated entrepreneurial spirit and a strong ability to translate ideas toward real-world application through deep tech business case challenges spanning energy transition, advanced manufacturing, AI and healthcare resilience.

This year, SVA identified eight awardees whose submissions demonstrated strong entrepreneurial thinking and a readiness to engage with real-world commercialisation considerations. Winners receive cash prizes and the opportunity for a fully sponsored internship in China, supporting students who are keen to venture beyond Singapore and learn from one of Asia’s most dynamic innovation markets. Internship matching is currently in progress, with students interviewing with partner companies and placements to be confirmed subsequently.

As Singapore grows its deep tech ecosystem, the gap is increasingly not ideas, but execution, translating technology into scalable business models across markets, regulation and capital constraints. This edition of SVA 2026 reflects this shift by testing students on understanding of game-changing technology, go-to-market design, financing logic and cross-border scalability rather than pitch storytelling alone.

“The Economic Strategy Review has recommended to strengthen the entrepreneurial culture in Singapore. We want to support our people to dream big, take risks, and boldly pursue emerging opportunities. Platforms like the SVA provide opportunities for our students to experience entrepreneurship under the mentorship of industry partners, and I hope more of our industry partners can similarly step forward to nurture the next generation of entrepreneurs who can take innovations beyond the lab and into the real world.” said Mr Jeffrey Siow, Acting Minister for Transport and Senior Minister of State for Finance, Singapore.

“Singapore has consistently invested in and attracted top research talent globally. What we need to build, especially in deep tech, is the ability to carry an idea through the realities of adoption, regulation, capital, and scale,” said Theodora Lai, Principal of Tembusu Partners. “SVA helps develop that entrepreneurial mindset early, while deepening exposure to economies like China, where innovation and market adoption move at remarkable speed, so students learn how to think critically, develop and leverage technologies to solve the world’s most pressing issues.”

What students were assessed on

SVA 2026 applicants chose one of three commercialisation prompts and were assessed on how they would turn emerging technologies into viable, scalable ventures across Asia-Pacific:

• Biotech commercialisation: Students developed a go-to-market strategy for a new antimicrobial compound, including use case prioritisation, differentiation, and partnership strategy.
• Clean energy platform model: Students designed a Renewable Energy-as-a-Service business plan combining solar power generation, AI-based energy management, and blockchain-enabled energy trading, addressing financing barriers, regulatory considerations, and ESG or carbon-market participation.
• Advanced manufacturing scale-up: Students proposed AI-enabled smart manufacturing hubs to support decentralised production, integrating automation, IoT, and renewable energy while demonstrating scalability across markets.

Deep Tech Through Different Lenses

The Singapore Valley Awards Ceremony 2026 also presented  a dialogue titled “Deep Tech Through Different Lenses: Founders and Investors” and was graced by Guest of Honour Jeffrey Siow, Acting Minister for Transport and Senior Minister of State for Finance.

The dialogue brought together founders, investors, and students to discuss what it takes to build deep tech companies, including product-market fit, execution timelines and commercial risk.

Speakers included:

• Pang Sheng Dong, Chairman of SVA; Founder of 2345.com, Kaopu Cloud, and Jiangsu Xinchao Technology
• Dr. Yang Yi Yan, Founder of Trisafe; Principal Scientist at A*STAR
• Dr. Jingkang (Jake) Yang, Co-founder and CTO of Synvo AI

Pang Sheng Dong, Chairman of SVA and Founder of 2345.com, Kaopu Cloud, and Jiangsu Xinchao Technology, said: “Technology doesn’t win on novelty alone. Founders have to prove that the technology can be deployed reliably in the real world, that there is a clear buyer and a problem worth paying to solve, and that the path to scale makes sense across regulation, timelines and cost. Investors and customers are looking for teams that can reduce execution risk, not just increase technical ambition. The China internship exposure gives students a direct view of what it takes to build and scale in one of the world’s most competitive innovation markets.”

Partners and internship pathway

Partner companies for SVA 2026 include 01bite, AI Squared Robotics, Classin, Trip.com Group, and V-Capital. Internship matching is currently in progress, with students being interviewed with partner companies and placements to be confirmed subsequently.

Together, the awards and internship pathway reflect a broader shift in Singapore’s talent pool, where the next generation of founders are being developed not just to generate ideas, but to pressure-test them against real market constraints such as adoption, regulation, financing and scale. By giving undergraduates exposure to industry partners and cross-border learning opportunities, SVA aims to help build a deeper bench of execution-ready talent for Singapore’s growing deep tech ecosystem.

For more information on the Singapore Valley Awards, the 2026 programme and updates on internship placements, visit singaporevalleyawards.com. 

About Singapore Valley Awards

The Singapore Valley Awards (SVA) is an annual entrepreneurship award founded by Pang Shengdong, alongside Alibaba founders Eddie Wu, James Sheng, and other prominent entrepreneurs. SVA offers undergraduates cash prizes and a fully sponsored internship in China. Founded in 2017 and supported by Tembusu Partners, SVA aims to foster innovation and entrepreneurial learning through real-world exposure, empowering Singapore’s next generation of changemakers.

Media Contact:

Jasmin Zainal
Senior PR Consultant
Alpha Story
jasmin@alphastory.co 

SVA Contact:

S-Valley Ltd c/o Tembusu Partners Pte Ltd

sva@tembusupartners.com