Book Reflection: The Coming Wave by Mustafa Suleyman

Why AI Matters More Than Ever for Public Servants

In The Coming Wave, Mustafa Suleyman draws a compelling parallel between the invention of the printing press and the rise of artificial intelligence. Just as Gutenberg’s press unleashed a flood of knowledge that reshaped religion, science, and society—often in ways its inventor never intended—Suleyman argues that AI is poised to do the same. The wave is coming, and containment is not an option. For public servants, this isn’t just a technological shift—it’s a governance challenge of historic proportions.

My Early Encounters with AI in Public Service

In 2017, I was managing an emergency call centre in a small island—a multilingual environment where callers often spoke in a rich blend of English, Chinese dialects, Malay, and Tamil. We attempted to build transcription models to support real-time response, but the complexity of language made it nearly impossible. Most AI systems were trained on “pure” languages, not the linguistic fusion we dealt with daily.

The AI technology then was supervised learning, it meant manually labelling thousands of audio clips. Even though emergency calls often used a narrow set of phrases—“cannot breathe,” “heart attack,” “seizure”—the project was expensive and slow. At the time, I concluded that AI was a luxury—accessible only to countries with cheap labour and deep technical resources.

Rediscovering AI Through The Coming Wave

Reading Suleyman’s book reopened that chapter of my life—but with a new lens. His explanation of large language models (LLMs) and their ability to learn through token prediction reminded me of how toddlers acquire language: not through rules, but through exposure and pattern recognition. It was a revelation. AI had evolved from rigid, labour-intensive systems to fluid, self-learning entities.

This shift gave me hope. Today, I use Copilot to write my blogs. I’m constantly amazed at how a few scattered thoughts can be transformed into coherent, emotionally resonant prose. It made me wonder: were my original thoughts always meant to sound this way, or am I being shaped by the stylistic choices Copilot makes?

Copilot as a Mirror—and a Muse for Public Expression

Copilot doesn’t just assist me—it reflects me. It tailors its tone, structure, and emphasis based on my prompts. But this raises a curious question: is my Copilot less capable than someone else’s, simply because my inputs are less refined? If a more articulate person feeds it better ideas, does their Copilot become more powerful?

This isn’t a critique—it’s a challenge. It pushes me to be clearer, more intentional, and more curious. I’ve started wishing Copilot would ask me more questions, not just to clarify my writing, but to sharpen my thinking. It’s like training a conversational muscle, and I’ve even begun practicing by speaking to a baby—forcing myself to simplify and clarify my thoughts.

For public servants, this kind of reflection is vital. We are not just users of AI—we are stewards of its impact. If we don’t understand how these systems shape thought, language, and decision-making, we risk being governed by tools we don’t fully grasp.

A New Direction: From Reflection to Action

The Coming Wave didn’t just inform me—it inspired me. I now find myself drawn to the frontier of AI technology, not just as a user, but as a thinker and builder. I’m fascinated by how these tools will reshape states, societies, and businesses. I want to be part of the effort to identify risks, craft regulations, and guide responsible development—perhaps as a public servant working on AI governance.

At the same time, I’m exploring the idea of launching a startup focused on AI. Not to compete with the giants, but to offer help—to bridge gaps, solve niche problems, and empower others to navigate the wave.

Final Thoughts

The wave is coming. But unlike the printing press or nuclear energy, this wave is faster, smarter, and more personal. The Coming Wave helped me see that I’m not just riding it—I’m shaping it. And with tools like Copilot, I’m learning to express myself more clearly, think more deeply, and dream more boldly.

For public servants, this is our moment. The future of AI governance won’t be written by technologists alone—it will be shaped by those who understand society, ethics, and the public good. Let’s rise to meet the wave.

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Below is an experiment to test Co-pilot to draft out a policy memo, maybe I should not be afraid to ask for a post in formulating policies:

Policy Memo To: Senior Leadership, Ministry of Communications and Information

From: Public Sector Technologist

Date: 10 September 2025

Subject: Strategic Response to AI’s Transformative Wave – Insights from The Coming Wave

Executive Summary

Mustafa Suleyman’s The Coming Wave presents a compelling case for the inevitability and disruptive potential of artificial intelligence (AI) and synthetic biology. Drawing parallels to the printing press and nuclear energy, Suleyman argues that containment is impossible, and governance must evolve rapidly to meet the pace of innovation. This memo reflects on personal experience with AI in emergency call centres, the evolution of large language models (LLMs), and the implications for public service. It recommends proactive engagement in AI governance, capacity building, and exploration of public-private innovation models.

Background & Personal Context

In 2017, while managing multilingual emergency call centre, I encountered firsthand the limitations of early AI transcription systems. The linguistic complexity of our national language—an amalgam of English, Chinese dialects, Malay, and Tamil—posed significant challenges. Supervised learning required extensive manual labelling, making AI development costly and slow. At the time, AI felt inaccessible to public sector applications without deep resources.

Reading The Coming Wave reframed this experience. Suleyman’s description of LLMs as self-learning systems that predict tokens—akin to how toddlers acquire language—highlighted how far AI has progressed. Today, tools like Copilot allow public servants to express complex ideas with clarity and speed, democratizing access to high-level communication and analysis.

Key Insights from the Book

• Uncontainable Innovation: Like the printing press, AI will reshape societal norms and institutions, often in unintended ways. Attempts to contain it will likely fail unless globally coordinated.

• Synthetic Biology & AI Convergence: Advances in biotech, accelerated by AI, raise ethical and governance challenges, especially in areas like genetic selection and personalized medicine.

• Governance Precedents: The nuclear containment model offers a blueprint—international cooperation, shared standards, and institutional guardrails.

• Emergent Intelligence: LLMs are not just tools—they are systems capable of reasoning, summarizing, and influencing thought. Their integration into public workflows must be deliberate and transparent.

Policy Implications for Singapore

1. AI Governance Capacity

   • Establish a dedicated AI Governance Taskforce within the public service to monitor, assess, and respond to emerging risks.

   • Develop ethical frameworks for AI use in public systems, especially in sensitive domains like healthcare, law enforcement, and education.

2. Public Sector AI Literacy

   • Launch training programs to build AI fluency among civil servants, focusing on both technical understanding and ethical reasoning.

   • Encourage reflective use of AI tools like Copilot, emphasizing human oversight and critical thinking.

3. Innovation & Regulation Dual Track

   • Support public-private partnerships to explore frontier AI applications while simultaneously developing regulatory sandboxes.

   • Consider funding or incubating startups focused on AI for public good—such as multilingual accessibility, civic engagement, or emergency response.

4. Global Engagement

   • Participate actively in international AI governance forums to shape norms and standards that reflect Singapore’s values and interests.

Conclusion

The Coming Wave is not just a warning—it’s a call to action. As public servants, we must recognize that AI is not a distant future but a present force. Our role is to ensure that its integration into society is thoughtful, equitable, and aligned with the public good. Whether through regulation, innovation, or education, we must rise to meet the wave.