Singapore unveils Design 2035 Masterplan, committing more than S$40 million to drive sector growth  and city vibrancy for the next three years

The 10-year roadmap will launch Singapore’s inaugural Design Biennale and takes on Artificial Intelligence, climate change and Singapore’s super aged status. 

Singapore, 26 May 2026 – DesignSingapore Council launches Design  2035 Masterplan (Design 2035) today, a 10-year road map to support sector capabilities and foster a vibrant, future-ready city.

Titled Singapore: Limitless by Design, it reinforces design as a cultural and economic force. In 2023, the design sector contributed S$2.7 billion1 in real value added to Singapore’s GDP, while an economic footprint analysis estimates that it generated S$13.8 billion2 in gross value added across the wider economy. A public survey conducted during Design 2035’s outreach efforts last year also revealed 64% of Singaporeans see design as integral to the nation’s liveability and vibrancy.

Created in consultation with more than 6,000 members of the design community and the general public over the course of a year, Design 2035 has identified five areas where Singapore design will drive impact across the economy, society, and environment over the next decade: Purposeful Innovation, Responsible Resource Use, Caring Communities, A Culturally Distinct City and A Vibrant Design Industry.

To ensure tangible outcomes in these five areas and support sector growth, more than S$40 million will be invested over the first three years (2026-2028) in both new initiatives and refreshed programmes for design and business communities, culture seekers and everyday users of design.

New initiatives to grow long-term impact of design

Anchoring them is the launch of the inaugural Singapore Design Biennale in May 2027. Running over six weeks, it replaces the popular annual Singapore Design Week as a platform with greater scale and impact, reaching a larger international audience. With new and compelling commissions, more Design Districts, international collaborations and platforms to share Singapore design, the Singapore Design Biennale is set to position Singapore as a global cultural hub and attract new interest and investment from designers, firms, and tourists.

Other initiatives aimed at building a globally competitive design ecosystem include the Good Design Research and Development (GDRD) programme, which seeks to strengthen Singapore’s design-led innovation capacity by fostering closer collaboration between design and business communities over time. GDRD enables firms to compete through differentiated, design-led offerings, while supporting the development of new markets and applications for design. In addition, there is the Good Design Placement (GDP), which accelerates the progression of mid-career designers into strategic design roles within design-centric corporates.

Internationalisation is another key priority to elevate the profile of Singapore design and drive commercial outcomes. Designers can look forward to the International Design Awards Scheme (IDEAS), which aims to strengthen credibility and market confidence through globally recognised awards and publicity. Dsg will also support designers and design firms in their pursuit of market opportunities abroad through curated showcases and strategic engagements while continuing to bring Singapore design to major international platforms such as the Milan Design Week and the Venice Architecture Biennale.

(See Annex A for more details)

“Design 2035 was developed through a design-led and deeply collaborative process, with strong engagement across the design eco-system to co-create a shared vision for the future. As the industry and broader economy continue to evolve rapidly, this 10-year roadmap will be realised through iterative three-year action plans to drive wider adoption of design across the economy, deepen community participation in design, and strengthen the value and recognition of Singapore design both internationally and at home,” says Eugene Chin, Director of Partners, Covering Director of Strategy and Product Innovation, DesignSingapore Council.

Opportunities for design to support global trends and national priorities

Design 2035 further highlights the global trends and national priorities for the sector to address.

With national plans such as Singapore’s National AI Strategy and Smart Nation Singapore in place, local designers could be increasingly central in ensuring Singapore remains a trustworthy technology hub by shaping technologies that are inclusive and accessible while safeguarding human values, public trust, and vulnerable groups.

One such technology is Hypersketch by local design studio STUCK. This sketch-first generative design tool puts creative exploration at the centre of the experience for users instead of simply generating images while lowering technical barriers to visualising ideas.

As the climate crisis continues to be a pressing global issue, local designers could work on the opportunities presented by the Singapore Green Plan 2030 and the green economy. Design helps cities respond to changing climates and resource constraints while continuing to support vibrant urban life such as creating products and systems that encourage reuse, repair while extending the life of materials and reducing waste. At the same time, buildings can be refreshed while urban spaces and new developments can be designed with adaptability in mind.

Designers who have done so include the founders of fashion label GINLEE, which developed a proprietary machine and specialised techniques that significantly reduces production time, overproduction waste, and manufacturing costs as well as Designer of the Year for President*s Design Award 2023, Leonard Ng, whose ecologically based approach has resulted in green spaces like Bishan-Ang Mo Kio Park which are more resilient to floods caused by climate change.

In addition, there is growing attention to health, longevity, and social resilience as Singapore reaches super aged status in 2026. Design 2035 points to areas such as creating health products and community-led design to build more robust systems of care. Homegrown firms Omnilabs Research designed VR-assisted rehabilitation tools for stroke patients, while Equitech Collective developed an app for remote heart failure monitoring at home.

Bringing Design 2035 to life

The findings and opportunities presented in Design 2035 Masterplan will be shared with the public in a large-scale activation across 17 different train stations from Harbour Front to Punggol Coast MRT. Launching in November 2026, New Everyday Life by Design will feature projects, designers and experiences that highlight design as both mindset and impact in everyday lives through showcases, interactive installations pop-ups, trails and markets.

Dsg is also partnering Singapore’s regional health clusters – National Health Group, SingHealth and National University Health System – in upskilling healthcare professionals, cross-training and mentorship, bringing designers and healthcare professionals together to reimagine care delivery, patient experience and ageing outcomes.

“We’re approaching the future differently with Design 2035. It is a shared framework for action – there are clear areas of focus and action to strengthen the conditions for Singapore design to thrive with greater relevance and global impact. The future of Singapore design will ultimately be shaped by the choices we make as a community. We invite everyone to join us in realising Design 2035 and the role design can play. Let’s create this future together, with fresh possibilities for a more liveable and loveable Singapore,” says Dawn Lim, executive director of DesignSingapore Council.

The full Design 2035 Masterplan is available for download: dsg.sg/design2035

About the DesignSingapore Council :

The DesignSingapore Council (Dsg)’s vision is for Singapore to be a liveable, loveable, and limitless nation by design. As the national agency for design, our mission is to develop the design sector to be globally competitive, champion the use of design for innovation and growth in Singapore, and make life better in this UNESCO Creative City of Design. The Dsg is a subsidiary of the Singapore Economic Development Board.
designsingapore.org

Annex A: Dsg’s new initiatives to drive Adoption, Activation and Amplification of Singapore design

1. Singapore Design Biennale

Singapore Design Biennale, Dsg’s marquee event, seeks to reinforce Singapore’s position both locally and internationally as a design hub. With ambitious commissions and district activations across the city, it will build on the well-loved Singapore Design Week and feature an extended run of over a month, expanded reach through new Design Districts, more ambitious international and regional collaborations with Singapore designers, and support platforms for design and non-design firms to share their work, attracting new interest and investments from designers, firms, and tourists with an eye for culture.

2. Good Design Research and Development

The Good Design Research and Development (GDRD) programme catalyses design-led innovation from the business community and design community through co-funding support of eligible costs. For businesses, the programme supports an end-to-end design

innovation from insight generation to development and commercialisation, helping reduce innovation risk and translate ideas into tangible outcomes. For design firms, GDRD provides a platform to undertake research and development that deepens and expands their practice, generating new knowledge and design offerings that pushes the frontiers of their practice, while opening up new audiences and markets.

3. Good Design Placement

This programme supports the placement of midcareer designers into full-time strategic design roles within design mature organisations in key growth sectors, where they will work on commercially significant projects while undergoing structured on-the-job training. Through co-funding of salaries, the programme is expected to support designers through these industry placements and catalyse the creation of new strategic design roles within participating organisations.

4. International Design Awards Scheme

Dsg will establish the International Design Awards Scheme (IDEAS) to scale its support for Singapore designers and design firms in gaining global recognition through winning internationally reputable design awards, thereby strengthening Singapore’s positioning as a global hub for design excellence and elevating awareness and appreciation of the value of Singapore design. The scheme provides financial support to defray award-related costs, alongside supplementary publicity support to amplify the winners’ achievements and translate award recognition into sustained professional awareness and opportunities

For a full list of Dsg’s new and ongoing initiatives for design and business communities as well as the general public, visit dsg.sg/design2035