From using recipe apps for cooking inspiration to making video calls overseas, 76-year-old Madam Ying is a poster child for embracing technology.
Keeping her up to date with the latest tech is her granddaughter, Ms Tan Xin Yen, 23, an information systems graduate.
Growing up, Ms Tan taught her grandmother to play the Game Boy and use the smartphone to search for her favourite shows. Watching her grandmother master these gadgets sparked Ms Tan’s passion for using technology to connect people and enhance lives.
This interest continued into her first year at the National University of Singapore (NUS) during the Covid-19 pandemic, where Ms Tan took part in a hackathon and worked with three teammates to develop a mobile app that connects volunteers to the elderly and disabled who needed help getting groceries delivered to their homes.
“This was when I learnt new programming languages like Python and first got introduced to web design,” says Ms Tan.
Around the same time, she saw how the Infocomm Media Development Authority (IMDA) started deploying digital ambassadors to help seniors improve their digital literacy and encourage hawkers to use tech.
“I want to use technology to create connections and serve society holistically.”
– Ms Tan Xin Yen, recipient of the Smart Nation Scholarship (Mid-Term)
This inspired her to apply for the mid-term Smart Nation Scholarship with IMDA in her second year at university.
“IMDA’s projects address real-world challenges local businesses face. It resonates with my mission to ensure that no one is left behind in our rapidly digitalising world.
“I want to use technology to create connections and improve lives so that it can serve society holistically,” says Ms Tan.
Through her scholarship, Ms Tan undertook two internships. The first was with IMDA’s innovation space Pixel in 2021, followed by the BizTech Group in 2022 where she worked on the 5G Innovation Programme
Ms Tan credits the two opportunities for exposing her to the latest tech innovations she would not otherwise have been able to access.
Her time at Pixel immersed her in the world of experimentation with start-ups while BizTech Group showed her how emerging technologies are developed for use by businesses.
“During my internship with BizTech Group, I had the chance to collaborate with industry leaders on their 5G technology project, which was something I never anticipated as an information systems student. These hands-on experiences showed me how the work ‘comes to life’,” says Ms Tan.
The internships also gave Ms Tan the opportunity to attend regional industry events such as the GSMA Mobile 360 Asia Pacific 2022 and join site visits to businesses to learn more about the implementation of 5G.
During these meetings, she saw how her BizTech team communicated with external stakeholders to understand their needs and provide customised support according to the projects they were working on.
These experiences made her realise that effective communication across different platforms and with various stakeholders was critical to the success of any project.
“Communication is key, as it is the bridge that connects technology with people’s needs, ensuring that innovations are understood and effectively implemented,” says Ms Tan.
For Ms Tan, the rapidly advancing digital landscape also presented her with a variety of new tech to learn and innovate.
As she discovered her interest in leveraging technology for societal transformation, Ms Tan decided to choose digital product and platform management as her specialisation at NUS.
“While my eagerness to work with emerging technologies has not changed, my ambitions have grown to focus on how these technologies can create connections and improve lives. The core of my interest remains but with a sharpened goal to ensure technology serves society holistically,” says Ms Tan.
Now that she has graduated with a Bachelor of Computing, Ms Tan will set off to Britain this September to pursue a year-long master’s degree in the management of information systems and digital innovation at the London School of Economics and Political Science.
Her grandmother will surely miss her while she is away. Thankfully, with the tech skills her granddaughter has taught her, she can easily initiate a video call and connect with Ms Tan anytime she wants.