Oral Answer to PQ on Foreign-founded start-ups in Singapore

NOTICE PAPER NO. 438 OF 2026 FOR THE SITTING ON OR AFTER 4 FEBRUARY 2026
QUESTION NO. 1289 FOR ORAL ANSWER

MP: Mr Low Wu Yang Andre

To ask the Minister for Manpower regarding the recent acquisition of Singapore-based AI start-up Manus (a) what percentage of the company's core workforce comprised Singapore citizens prior to the acquisition; (b) whether the acquisition terms include guarantees for local headcount retention or technology transfer; and (c) how the Ministry ensures that foreign-founded start-ups benefitting from Singapore's business environment facilitate skills transfer to local workers.

Answer:

The acquisition of Manus is a commercial agreement between the parties involved. MOM does not intervene in such acquisition agreements. The Government does not disclose details of the workforce demographics of individual companies in line with confidentiality obligations. All foreign companies operating in Singapore are expected to comply with Singapore’s manpower laws and fair hiring practices.

2. The Economic Development Board (EDB) works closely with foreign companies and start-ups to facilitate skills transfer, training, and capability development for the Singapore workforce, ensuring that Singaporeans benefit from the presence of such companies in our business environment. For example, EDB has rolled out initiatives such as such as the Enterprise Compute Initiative (ECI) to support skills transfer and capability development. ECI partners major cloud service providers such as Microsoft to help Singapore-based companies build dedicated local AI teams. These companies can also tap on reskilling and upskilling support from Workforce Singapore and SkillsFuture Singapore to equip our Singaporeans with the capabilities needed to take on new growth job roles.