Singapore will host its first-ever Singapore Data Festival (SDF) from 20 to 24 July 2026 at the Sands Expo & Convention Centre, Marina Bay Sands, bringing together more than 2,000 data and Artificial Intelligence (AI) leaders. Organised by the Personal Data Protection Commission (PDPC) and the Infocomm Media Development Authority (IMDA), the festival is built for data professionals and business leaders.
The Festival evolves the former Personal Data Protection (PDP) Week into a broader programme spanning privacy, AI, and the value of data. The shift reflects a change in the data privacy landscape that as AI adoption accelerates, more organisations are collecting and using personal data to deliver goods and services. The question is how to do that responsibly while still extracting business value.
What the Festival Sets Out to Address
The programme is organised around three discussion areas:
1. Building trust in Singapore's data ecosystem by upholding and strengthening data protection practices and standards.
2. Equipping organisations to innovate and use data responsibly through privacy enhancing technologies (PETs), while safeguarding citizens' personal data.
3. Normalising digital responsibility in an era of fast-moving, AI-enabled technology.
Together, these themes track the issues that data protection officers (DPOs) and compliance teams are managing on a day to day.
Hear from Privacy and AI Experts
Participants will hear from named practitioners across the privacy and AI sectors. Confirmed speakers include Mr Nimish Panchmatia, Chief Data and Transformation Officer at DBS Bank; Mr Markham Cho, Vice President, Government Affairs and Public Policy, Centres of Excellence at Google; and Mr Royce Wee, Privacy and Data Policy Director, APAC Advocacy at Meta.
Sessions will cover the latest regulatory developments, governance frameworks, and practical guidance on PETs and AI. The Festival will also run a curated suite of partner events spanning data governance, AI cybersecurity, and sector-specific regulation and guidance.
What This Means for DPEX Network Members
For data protection officers and Governance, Risk and Compliance (GRC) professionals, the Festival is a single point of access to where Singapore's data agenda is heading. It connects the regulatory direction set by the PDPC and IMDA with the operational questions members face: how to deploy PETs, how to govern AI systems, and how to keep personal data protected while putting it to work.
For the full programme, speaker line-up, and registration, visit go.gov.sg/sdf26-media.
