For nearly four decades, leaders in government and business have relied on the concept of VUCA — Volatility, Uncertainty, Complexity, and Ambiguity — to navigate a turbulent world. VUCA 1.0 captured the disruptive forces of globalisation, financial crises, geopolitical realignments, and technological change. Its prescription for leadership was fundamentally pragmatic and grounded in the physical world. Resilience required disciplined resource allocation, diversified supply chains, institutional credibility, and prudent risk management.

Singapore has earned a reputation as a "living lab" for disruptive technologies, where innovation is balanced against public safety and trust. Singapore has earned a reputation as one of the world’s foremost “living labs” for disruptive technologies. From autonomous vehicles (AVs) to drones, robotics, and now artificial intelligence (AI), the city-state has taken a distinctive approach in testing how new technologies can be integrated into society. But with disruption comes risk. How does a government encourage innovation while protecting the public from safety failures, privacy breaches, cybersecurity attacks, or job losses?

Is your job safe from AI? Or is the real question, is your country ready? As artificial intelligence reshapes, Singapore faces a critical challenge. How do we equip citizens to thrive? And how must public policy evolve to redefine the social contract between government, businesses and workers? We're joined by Dr. Reuben Ng, assistant professor at Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy. His work focuses on trust, social resilience, and the narratives shaping technology. This podcast will unpack the future of work in the age of AI and what Singapore must do to stay ahead.

In the first episode of our newly launched podcast series, “Policy Unpacked”, we explore Singapore’s “small nation, big journey,” featuring Terence Ho, Adjunct Associate Professor in Practice at the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy and author of “How Singapore Beat the Odds.” The conversation explores why Singapore’s survival was uncertain at independence - small population, high unemployment, reliance on British bases - and how it built success through ideas and institutions rather than luck. Ho highlights the pivotal role of first-generation leaders like Lee Kuan Yew and Goh Keng Swee, long-term planning, strong inter-agency coordination, and empowering capable people - principals, commanders, and civil servants - through mechanisms like block budgeting.