In a small office at the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA), employees from the shipping department sit hunched over their desks, examining page after page of statutory certificates.
For four months each year, the team would process and verify over 12,000 certificates – mostly manually. These documents are essential to keep vessels registered under the Singapore Registry of Ships, yet ship owners tend to submit them for renewal only as the annual deadline nears.
Foo Chi Jao was surprised to learn of such tiresome work processes when he joined MPA in 2020. Singapore may be one of the world’s most advanced ports but surprisingly, the global shipping industry remained heavily reliant on paper.
“I did not realise that the maritime industry was not very technologically advanced. I thought these processes would have been fully automated years ago,” says the 29-year-old.
As an assistant senior data analyst in the statistics and data systems department, these tedious and repetitive processes presented him with a perfect opportunity for transformation. The result would become one of the Singapore Government’s first public-facing artificial intelligence (AI) solutions that utilises large language models (LLMs).
Previous attempts to automate the process using conventional document-scanning tools saw a decline in performance over time – their accuracy would plummet whenever documents deviated from standard templates which changed throughout the years.
Chi Jao co-led his team to take a different approach, building an AI solution that leveraged LLMs. By combining these capabilities, the system could understand their content in context, making it more adaptable to variations in formats and layouts.
The tool, named DocuMind, has managed to achieve 99 per cent accuracy in extracting and validating document data. It is projected to save MPA employees about 270 work days annually.
It will also enable companies to submit and receive their application results in minutes instead of up to three days. This faster turnaround time helps shipping companies better plan the renewal process, along with their other business dealings.
Chi Jao finds deep satisfaction in knowing his work makes a difference. This was especially when a colleague from the shipping department praised the tool’s accuracy, saying it would cut a significant portion of her time spent manually verifying documents.
“Being a tech person in a space that is not technologically developed offers a lot of untapped potential for innovation.”
– Foo Chi Jao, recipient of the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore Mid-Term Scholarship
As a leading maritime hub, MPA is spearheading the use of digital technologies to enhance efficiency, safety and sustainability across the entire global maritime supply chain.
Success hinges on developing and attracting tech talents like Chi Jao to lead this transformation. He was awarded the MPA Mid-Term Scholarship in 2017 while studying information systems at Singapore Management University.
Chi Jao leads initiatives that bring advanced technology into maritime operations. Identifying areas where digital solutions can make the biggest impact, he works with his team to develop and implement these innovations across the organisation.
“Data science is about taking all the information around us and turning it into useful insights,” he says. “I leverage coding and statistical methodologies to identify patterns and develop solutions to complex problems.”
While the maritime industry might not seem an obvious choice for tech talents, Chi Jao found that MPA offered unique opportunities to drive meaningful change. “Being a tech person in a space that is not technologically developed offers a lot of untapped potential for innovation,” he says.
The maritime sector’s early stage of digitalisation – combined with its importance in the global economy – means that even straightforward technological solutions can create dramatic improvements in efficiency.
He adds that tech talents can have a “multiplier effect” by making an outsized impact in these industries, compared to making incremental improvements in more technologically advanced ones.
While the potential for impact attracted Chi Jao to the maritime sector, what keeps him excited is MPA’s strong support for technological innovation.
“Technology is not seen as a cost centre. Management inherently understands its importance,” he says.
This supportive environment enables him to bring innovative projects to life.
Chi Jao’s work extends well beyond local shores. He has represented the country in international maritime forums, where Singapore’s digital solutions help advance the entire sector.
“I’ve had the privilege of travelling to London and Stockholm to collaborate with ports worldwide on developing global data standards – a critical step toward streamlining operations and enhancing communication across the sector,” he shares.
He has also worked on a partnership with the International Maritime Organization, an agency of the United Nations, to implement solutions to help small and medium-sized ports in developing countries embrace digitalisation.
Looking ahead, Chi Jao plans to harness his experience with DocuMind to tackle even bigger challenges in maritime digitalisation. His team is already exploring ways to automate port clearance processes, which currently require managing 16 different types of certificates, often handwritten and in different languages.
He believes that there are plenty of unique opportunities in the sector for tech talents. Digitalisation also includes areas such as digital twin and autonomous shipping systems. These technologies enable capabilities like real-time tracking, remote operations and predictive maintenance to help optimise operations and cut costs.
“There are innumerable projects to work on,” he says.
