MEDIA RELEASE

Singapore, 21 July 2025 – PENSIEVE-AI, a new digital drawing application jointly developed by Singapore General Hospital (SGH) and the Government Technology Agency of Singapore (GovTech), can accurately identify seniors with early memory problems, also known as pre-dementia or Mild Cognitive Impairment.

In a nationwide study of nearly 1,800 seniors aged 65 and above, the app achieved an accuracy of 93 percent in detecting pre-dementia, which is as good as current gold standard of detailed cognitive testing.  It is also simple to use, with participants completing the digital drawing test in under 5 minutes.  The results were recently published in the scientific journal Nature Communications.

Pre-dementia is often missed because its early signs can look like normal ageing.  But unlike normal ageing, pre-dementia may show up as more frequent memory lapses, trouble finding the right words, or increasing difficulty managing daily tasks like paying bills or taking medicine.  Some seniors may also become more irritable, feel sad, or lose interest in activities they used to enjoy. 

"Early detection of pre-dementia is important. It helps seniors and their families to get help sooner, which can slow down symptoms and maintain a better quality of life.  But almost 90 percent of seniors with pre-dementia are not diagnosed because current tests are too complex, take too long, or cost too much.” said Associate Professor Liew Tau Ming, Lead Principal Investigator of PENSIEVE-AI and Senior Consultant at SGH’s Department of Psychiatry. “PENSIEVE-AI is filling this gap by giving a quick, simple, and accurate way to spot early memory problems.

”Right now, pre-dementia is mainly detected using detailed cognitive testing that takes 1 to 2 hours.  These tests must be done by trained medical staff and can be affected by seniors’ education and language background.     

With PENSIEVE-AI, seniors can do the test themselves with little or no help.  The test has four drawing tasks, done on a touch-screen tablet using a stylus pen. Tasks include drawing shapes and a clock, which check different areas of thinking and memory. The app’s artificial intelligence then analyses these drawings for early signs of pre-dementia.

Because the test is based on drawing, it works well for seniors of all backgrounds, regardless of their education and language.  This makes it useful for diverse communities in Singapore and elsewhere in Asia. 

As the research development has just completed recently, SGH is currently in discussion on how to make PENSIEVE-AI available to all older Singaporeans.  Concurrently, the research team is also working to improve PENSIEVE-AI further, so that it may even predict a person’s future risk of getting pre-dementia or dementia.  In the next phase, the study participants will be invited back to SGH to track changes in their memory over time. 

In Singapore, about 1 in 8 seniors has pre-dementia, and about 1 in 11 has dementia. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), globally, 57 million people had dementia in 2021, with nearly 10 million new dementia cases every year.

For media enquiries, please contact: 

Teo Kian Nguan (Mr)
Communications Department
Email: teo.kian.nguan@sgh.com.sg