How Grab and RSM’s New Programmes Help Singapore SMEs Adopt AI and Improve Cybersecurity

Singapore is expanding its Digital Enterprise Blueprint (DEB) with two programmes designed to address the practical barriers SMEs face when adopting new technology. Grab’s initiative focuses on AI literacy and implementation for consumer-facing businesses, while RSM Stone Forest IT’s Cyber2SME programme focuses on cybersecurity awareness and incident readiness. Together, the partnerships are expected to support 12,000 SMEs and contribute to the DEB’s goal of helping 50,000 SMEs by 2029.

What the two programmes offer

Grab AI Programme for SMEs

The Grab AI Programme for SMEs targets 10,000 Singapore businesses in the food and beverage, e-commerce and retail sectors. It is designed for companies that may understand the importance of AI but need clearer guidance on how to apply it to everyday operations.

The programme includes:

• Free online AI-learning videos delivered through GrabAcademy
• Complimentary masterclasses and webinars focused on practical AI applications
• A structured two-day AI course co-developed with the Singapore University of Technology and Design
• Practical adoption support intended to help businesses move from general awareness to usable AI applications

The emphasis is on reducing uncertainty: SMEs can start with training and examples before deciding which use cases are relevant to their own operations. The published programme descriptions identify F&B, e-commerce and retail SMEs as the target audience; they do not establish one universal revenue or employee threshold for every component. Businesses should confirm current intake requirements directly through the relevant programme channel.

RSM Cyber2SME

RSM Stone Forest IT’s Cyber2SME programme provides complimentary, hands-on cybersecurity activities for Singapore SMEs. The core offer is a phishing simulation for up to 2,000 SMEs, allowing participating businesses to test how employees respond to simulated phishing attempts and identify potential weaknesses.

Participating businesses can receive a phishing-performance report and, according to the programme information, a one-on-one advisory session with an RSM cybersecurity specialist. The reported advisory format includes a 30-minute online consultation.

RSM also plans cybersecurity-awareness webinars and incident-response tabletop exercises for up to 1,000 SMEs. The sessions cover cyber risks, AI and data threats, and how an organisation should respond to an incident.

These activities are different from simply buying security software. A simulation tests human and organisational readiness, while a tabletop exercise helps a company rehearse decisions, responsibilities and communications before a real incident occurs.

Who can participate?

The public descriptions provide broad targeting rather than a single eligibility formula covering every activity:

• Grab: Singapore SMEs in F&B, e-commerce and retail.
• RSM: Singapore SMEs seeking practical cybersecurity and cyber-resilience support.

The available announcements do not specify one common employee-count, revenue or sector test for all programme components. Places, registration routes and any additional conditions may also differ between the Grab and RSM initiatives. SMEs should check the latest programme information with Grab, RSM or IMDA before applying. RSM’s programme page identifies registration through IMDA’s SMEs Go Digital platform.

How the initiatives support the DEB’s wider goal

The two partnerships address different parts of the same digital-transformation problem. Grab is intended to help businesses build confidence and capability around AI, while RSM addresses the security risks that can grow as companies become more digitally connected.

Their combined target of 12,000 SMEs is a specific contribution to the DEB’s longer-term objective of supporting 50,000 SMEs by 2029. The programmes therefore function less as a single technology upgrade and more as two practical entry points: one for experimenting with AI and one for strengthening the organisation’s ability to withstand cyber threats.

IMDA is also enhancing the SME digital-support ecosystem so its Digital Tech Hub can advise businesses on AI and help them apply ready-to-use solutions to their own needs.

The AI for Enterprise Impact Playbook: a readiness check before adoption

Businesses that already have some digital capability can use IMDA’s AI for Enterprise Impact Playbook to identify what should come next. The playbook was developed jointly by IMDA, SkillsFuture Singapore and Workforce Singapore as a navigation tool for enterprise and workforce support.

It assesses readiness across five dimensions:

1. Strategy and leadership
2. Talent and culture
3. Data and governance
4. Technology deployment and integration
5. Value creation

The purpose is to connect a company’s current position with relevant AI-transformation and workforce-support options. In practical terms, an SME can use the assessment to distinguish between a skills problem, a data-governance problem, a technology-integration problem or a lack of clarity about the business value it expects AI to create.

That makes the playbook a useful complement to Grab’s training. Grab provides sector-focused learning and adoption support, while the playbook helps a business step back and assess whether its wider organisation is ready for AI.

SME AI Impact Awards: recognition for measurable results

IMDA and the Singapore Business Federation also introduced the inaugural SME AI Impact Awards 2026 under the National AI Impact Programme. The awards are intended to recognise SMEs that have achieved measurable business outcomes through AI, rather than simply claiming to have deployed a tool.

Up to 30 SMEs can be recognised across two broad categories:

• Businesses that develop proprietary AI solutions
• Businesses that successfully deploy off-the-shelf AI solutions

Winners receive the SME AI Impact Award Trustmark, which is intended to strengthen business credibility and market reputation. The published 2026 schedule opened nominations from 1 June to 14 August.

A practical path for SMEs

Taken together, the new support has a clear progression:

1. Learn: use Grab’s videos, masterclasses, webinars or course to build practical AI literacy.
2. Test: identify relevant business use cases rather than adopting AI without a defined objective.
3. Secure: use RSM’s phishing simulation and cyber-resilience exercises to expose weaknesses in employee awareness and incident response.
4. Assess: use the AI for Enterprise Impact Playbook to evaluate organisational readiness and locate relevant support.
5. Demonstrate: track measurable business results that could support recognition through the SME AI Impact Awards.

The main caveat is that these are targeted programmes, not an automatic entitlement for every SME. Sector focus, places, registration routes and programme-specific conditions should be verified before applying. Their value lies in combining training, testing, advisory support and structured assessment—giving Singapore SMEs a more practical route from digital interest to accountable AI adoption and stronger cyber resilience.