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# Singapore will fight AI with AI. Here's what that means.
- URL: https://www.techstories.co/singapore-will-fight-ai-with-ai-heres-what-that-means/
- Published: 2026-10-13T12:16:43.000Z
- Updated: 2026-10-18T04:33:17.000Z
- Description: Notes from SICW and GovWare, plus two ways firms can respond.
- Author: Paul Mah
- Tags: Cyber Security, Events, AI

Singapore today announced it will use AI to fight AI. Here's what I learned at the [Singapore International Cyber Week (SICW)](https://www.sicw.gov.sg/?ref=techstories.co) and [GovWare](https://www.govware.sg/?ref=techstories.co), including two ways businesses can help themselves.

### Digital attacks, physical consequences

What struck me most was an anecdote shared by Florian Schütz about how a cyberattack in the digital world caused real-world physical consequences.

The director of the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) Switzerland shared how a skyscraper in his country was once knocked out when ransomware disabled the IoT systems of its automation provider, which was based overseas.

The lines will only get fuzzier from here, whether through AI agents that circumvent digital walls, or widespread compromise through interconnected systems.

![](https://www.techstories.co/content/images/2026/10/source-ed5a067488fd1751.jpg)

****Photo Credit**: Paul Mah

### Fighting AI with AI

For its part, Singapore will prepare for AI-enabled cyber threats by acting earlier, doing so at larger scale, and moving faster, said Minister Shanmugam.

The steps he outlined in his morning keynote are nothing short of extraordinary. Singapore will hasten the adoption of AI-enabled cyber capabilities, mostly use the best AI models available rather than training its own, and invest in AI harness engineering for cybersecurity. I'll share more on this another day.

So what can organisations do to better protect themselves? Two things I came across on the show floor stood out.

![](https://www.techstories.co/content/images/2026/10/source-f4a2368f795256ec.jpg)

****Photo Credit**: Paul Mah

### AI segmentation

At ViewQwest, I learned about the importance of AI segmentation in a world careening towards AI.

Today, AI blind spots typically revolve around two areas: how users are using AI, and the rapid lateral movement of AI-enabled attackers.

In essence, AI segmentation means putting proper controls in place to gain visibility into the cloud-based AI services being used, protecting local LLM infrastructure, and controlling each agent's access based on its identity.

And according to Zero Networks' Adam Hofeler, every deployment of his firm's segmentation solution found "unpleasant surprises."

![](https://www.techstories.co/content/images/2026/10/source-37cd70f59a8eeccd.jpg)

![](https://www.techstories.co/content/images/2026/10/source-f7e4fc4e183159ef.jpg)

****Photo Credit**: Paul Mah

### Automated DPO

One thing you've probably never thought about is the mandatory requirement for Singapore firms to nominate a Data Protection Officer (DPO).

This falls under the Personal Data Protection Act (PDPA), which also stipulates creating PDPA-aligned policies, accountability over personal data, incident and breach management, and more.

Consider the irony: a firm that reports a breach, as the law requires, could be fined if it's shown to have been negligent in its compliance.

I had a great chat with an old friend, Shane Chiang, who told me he built an AI-powered "DPO workspace" solution to help SMEs here stay on top of exactly these obligations.

The week also brought a bunch of serendipitous meetings with Douglas Mun, Jason Yeo, Hui Ting Ong, Ian Monteiro, and Andrew Chia.

If a ransomware attack on the other side of the world can knock out a building, the question for every organisation is simple: do you know where your AI blind spots are?

![](https://www.techstories.co/content/images/2026/10/source-dc8b706265fbe309.jpg)

![](https://www.techstories.co/content/images/2026/10/source-d818fa66167645f4.jpg)

![](https://www.techstories.co/content/images/2026/10/source-6a5b97ae7da5f0f8.jpg)

****Photo Credit**: Paul Mah