Agnes AI Maker Sapiens Technology Lands on Forbes Asia 2026 Watch List

Sapiens Technology, the Singapore firm behind the Agnes AI platform, has earned a place on the 2026 Forbes Asia 100 to Watch list, filed under Enterprise Technology. Just 15 Singapore-based companies appear in this year's edition of the annual rundown.

The company builds foundation models that span text, image and video, aimed at developers, startups and product teams. As of October 2025 it reported a user base above two million, split roughly evenly between Southeast Asia and the rest of the world.

Forbes called out the startup's in-house training capability and the traction of products such as Agnes 2.5 Pro Alpha. Founder Bruce Yang framed the selection as backing for a wager made early on: that a business operating far from the usual AI centres could develop frontier-grade, all-modality models and convert that strength into wider access for builders.

Across the broader list, 100 privately held companies from 16 countries and territories were chosen on criteria covering innovation, industry impact, growth, how well a product fits its market and the strength of the business model. Only India fields more entries than Singapore, underscoring how much of the region's startup energy now sits outside its single largest market.

Why it matters for Singapore: A homegrown lab training its own models, rather than reselling someone else's, is precisely the kind of capability the city-state's AI ambitions rest on. Singapore has pitched itself to founders on dependable rules, deep talent pipelines and a gateway into Southeast Asia's fast-growing digital economy, and a Forbes listing hands that narrative a recognisable, externally validated example. It also tells local builders they need not relocate to Silicon Valley or Shenzhen to do frontier work.