AI Labs and Simulations Speed Up Material Discovery in Singapore

Singapore is investing S$150 million (US$117 million) in the MARVEL‑AI programme, an AI‑powered research laboratory initiative led by A*STAR. The funding aims to speed up material discovery and industrial development.

AI‑assisted laboratory systems can create 75 polymer samples in 24 hours, roughly 25 times faster than traditional methods, and can screen up to 470 metal alloys each day, more than 400 times the usual rate. These capabilities allow researchers to test many materials quickly.

Professor Loh Xian Jun, executive director of A*STAR’s Institute of Materials Research and Engineering, said AI could "shortcut the discovery time by maybe up to 10 times." He believes this speed‑up can help move promising materials toward commercial use faster.

Jacomo Corbo, CEO and co‑founder of industrial AI company PhysicsX, explained that AI‑driven simulations can increase the speed of the same calculations by a factor of 10,000, 100,000, and in some cases almost a billion times. Such acceleration dramatically shortens the engineering design process.

PhysicsX’s technology helped reduce the development time for a new semiconductor manufacturing machine by nearly 20%. Together with A*STAR, the two organisations have pledged a joint investment of S$40 million to develop AI‑powered industrial engineering technologies.

The combined effect of AI‑enhanced labs and ultra‑fast simulations is a much quicker path from scientific discovery to usable products in Singapore. This shows how strategic AI investment can transform material research and product development.

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