About

The Centre for AI & Data Governance (CAIDG) is an interdisciplinary research centre housed in the Singapore Management University (SMU) Yong Pung How School of Law. We sit in the heart of the civic and business district of Singapore—South East Asia’s leading financial and technology hub and a global digital leader. 

CAIDG was established in 2019 with a landmark grant from the Singapore National Research Foundation under the administration of the Infocomm and Media Development Authority to:    

• Research contemporary challenges in AI and big data; 
• Foster conversations between industry, government, academia and civil society; 
• Develop policy around the social, institutional, and commercial applications of AI; and 
• Explore ethical intersections between human and algorithmic decision-making. 

Five years on, CAIDG has grown to be a node in a vibrant national, regional, and global research community at the intersection of law, emerging technology, and society. Our first five years have demonstrated the importance of dedicated technology and data governance research to policy formation in Singapore and beyond, as well as to the responsible development and deployment of novel technology by industry. They have also demonstrated the importance of AI to “emerging technology” broadly and the importance of context – what we might call the “socio-technical stack” – in AI deployment. 

Currently, our research priorities are structured around three interlocking streams, each of which houses projects which often have a cross-sectoral and transdisciplinary aspect: 

• Data Governance 
• Emerging Technology Regulation 
• Digital Law 

Further information about each of these streams, and the initiatives and projects under them, can be found on this website. 

We work closely with the broader Faculty of the SMU Yong Pung How School of Law, drawing on their domain expertise across the full spectrum of law, regulation, and ethics, and demonstrating the Yong Pung How School of Law’s signature integration of technology into its core research and teaching activities. We work closely with our sister centre, the Centre for Computational Law, as well as the Centre for Commercial Law in Asia and the Singapore Dispute Resolution Academy. We also work closely with colleagues at other SMU Schools, aligned research centres at universities in our global network, Singapore Government bodies, NGOs, international organisations, and civil society as well as private sector partners, including our Industry Alliance.