Mr Kian Teik BEH

CEO, National Research Foundation

Mr Kian Teik BEH is a Sundstrand-EDB and Glaxo-EDB scholar who graduated from the University of California, Berkeley with an MSc in Electrical Engineering, as well as a BSc in Electrical & Computer Engineering from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

Mr Beh joined Singapore Economic Development Board (EDB) in February 1998 and has held roles of increasing responsibilities in EDB over 22 years. As the Executive Vice President of EDB, he oversaw EDB New Ventures, and worked closely with corporate entrepreneurs with the passion and drive to create early stage ventures in Singapore. He has over 20 years’ experience of promoting foreign direct investment and building industries in the manufacturing and internationally tradeable services sectors.

In 2010, Mr Beh was also the founding director of the Singapore Biomedical Sciences Industry Partnership Office, a unique inter-agency government organisation. In this role, he worked with senior Singapore scientists to partner industry to translate science to medicine, and with industry partners that undertook R&D projects requiring the capabilities of multiple Singapore agencies in basic sciences and clinical research.

Mr Beh became the Deputy Chief Executive Officer of the National Research Foundation in 1 July 2020. He was responsible for reviewing, developing and implementing the national RIE strategies and governance frameworks, to grow and sustain a vibrant RIE ecosystem in Singapore. He became the CEO of the National Research Foundation in 2022 and officially stepped down from the CARES Governing Board on 1 October 2024, starting a new position as the Chief Executive Officer (Designate) of A*STAR.

Past Members

Past Members