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Besides being the Centre Director for Hatch, Mok Shao Hong also holds the role of Deputy Director, Innovations, Partnerships at HTX . (Photo: HTX/Alywin Chew)
Mok Shao Hong still remembers this incident from 12 years ago like it was yesterday: what was supposed to be a joyous birthday celebration turned into tragedy when his grandmother collapsed after suffering a cardiac arrest.
Despite his best efforts to resuscitate her with CPR until the paramedics arrived, his grandmother eventually passed away at the hospital, but not without leaving behind a parting gift for her beloved grandson.
The gift? An epiphany.
“Seeing the paramedics do everything in their power to try and save my grandmother – that somehow struck a nerve and made me realise that I really wanted to use what I have to do something with an immediate impact on society,” recalled Shao Hong.
Not long after that incident, Shao Hong quit his job as an engineer who developed tech for the military to pursue this calling. But instead of becoming a first responder, he decided to put his engineering skills to good use by playing a supporting role for these unsung heroes of society – he joined the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA), where he worked on tech innovations that have greatly enhanced public safety and security operations conducted by the Home Team.
Despite his best efforts to resuscitate her with CPR until the paramedics arrived, his grandmother eventually passed away at the hospital, but not without leaving behind a parting gift for her beloved grandson.
The gift? An epiphany.
“Seeing the paramedics do everything in their power to try and save my grandmother – that somehow struck a nerve and made me realise that I really wanted to use what I have to do something with an immediate impact on society,” recalled Shao Hong.
Not long after that incident, Shao Hong quit his job as an engineer who developed tech for the military to pursue this calling. But instead of becoming a first responder, he decided to put his engineering skills to good use by playing a supporting role for these unsung heroes of society – he joined the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA), where he worked on tech innovations that have greatly enhanced public safety and security operations conducted by the Home Team.
Shao Hong (2nd from right) speaks to then Prime Minister Mr Lee Hsien Loong (in red) about HTX’s counter-drone tech during an event. (Photo: HTX/Mok Shao Hong)
A knack for tinkering
Though he was born to parents who were among the early mathematics graduates in the country, Shao Hong wasn’t particularly interested in the subject. Rather, he was much more interested in tinkering with things. As a child, he was bored with how dull his alarm clock looked and reconstructed it with a new dial using pages torn from comic books, and replaced the hands with toothpicks he glued together and painted.
During his late adolescent years, he indulged his curiosity in musical instruments by scouring e-commerce sites for materials that he turned into guitar parts with his trusty Dremel and hand tools. Among his most exotic material purchases was a piece of fossilised mammoth ivory from Siberia, which he shaped into guitar string saddles.
He was simply curious about how different materials affected the sonic properties of the guitar, an instrument he has been playing since his teenage years.
Though he was born to parents who were among the early mathematics graduates in the country, Shao Hong wasn’t particularly interested in the subject. Rather, he was much more interested in tinkering with things. As a child, he was bored with how dull his alarm clock looked and reconstructed it with a new dial using pages torn from comic books, and replaced the hands with toothpicks he glued together and painted.
During his late adolescent years, he indulged his curiosity in musical instruments by scouring e-commerce sites for materials that he turned into guitar parts with his trusty Dremel and hand tools. Among his most exotic material purchases was a piece of fossilised mammoth ivory from Siberia, which he shaped into guitar string saddles.
He was simply curious about how different materials affected the sonic properties of the guitar, an instrument he has been playing since his teenage years.
I rate myself as someone who is uncomfortable with the status quo. But I don’t seek to change things just for the sake of being disruptive. At the heart of it all is this burning desire to improve the environment I’m in and to contribute to purpose and impact.
Given his penchant for tinkering, he opted to study industrial design in university. He was even awarded a scholarship. But he ended up studying engineering after his father made known his objections.
“I was really passionate about design and was a big fan of French industrial designer Philippe Starck. I was just intrigued by how form and function created value. Engineering, on the other hand, just felt ‘too general’ for my liking,” he recalled.
“But my father thought otherwise. He said it was better to be a jack of all trades and a master of none instead of ‘a master of one and a slave to many.’ I don’t think I really understood what he said then. But I figured he would know better!”
A fulfilling endeavour
Following his grandmother’s death, the resulting career move to MHA paid off quickly as he got to work on the development of UI/UX prototypes for team dashboards and operator consoles in command centres, which improved situational awareness, as well as the efficacy and efficiency of emergency services.
“I was really passionate about design and was a big fan of French industrial designer Philippe Starck. I was just intrigued by how form and function created value. Engineering, on the other hand, just felt ‘too general’ for my liking,” he recalled.
“But my father thought otherwise. He said it was better to be a jack of all trades and a master of none instead of ‘a master of one and a slave to many.’ I don’t think I really understood what he said then. But I figured he would know better!”
A fulfilling endeavour
Following his grandmother’s death, the resulting career move to MHA paid off quickly as he got to work on the development of UI/UX prototypes for team dashboards and operator consoles in command centres, which improved situational awareness, as well as the efficacy and efficiency of emergency services.
Shao Hong (centre) with his team from Hatch. (Photo: HTX/Mok Shao Hong)
Five years after assuming this role, he went on to become part of the founding team for less-lethal interdiction technologies in the public security realm. This outfit eventually became part of the Vehicles and Weapons Systems (VWS) Centre of Expertise (CoE) in HTX.
In 2020, he was appointed to HTX’s Partnerships division as a Deputy Director, where he helped build the agency’s efforts to seed innovation in the private sector. He was later given another concurrent appointment - the Centre Director of Hatch, an innovation centre of HTX which works closely with start-ups around the world to advance dual-use technologies for public safety and security.
Though he was initially apprehensive about making the switch from a familiar engineering role, Shao Hong said he eventually came to realise that the new assignment was in fact very much aligned to his aspirations in life.
In fact, the latest Demo Day event held by Hatch on 26 February 2025 resulted in one of those surreal, reflective moments that reaffirmed his decision to make the switch.
In 2020, he was appointed to HTX’s Partnerships division as a Deputy Director, where he helped build the agency’s efforts to seed innovation in the private sector. He was later given another concurrent appointment - the Centre Director of Hatch, an innovation centre of HTX which works closely with start-ups around the world to advance dual-use technologies for public safety and security.
Though he was initially apprehensive about making the switch from a familiar engineering role, Shao Hong said he eventually came to realise that the new assignment was in fact very much aligned to his aspirations in life.
In fact, the latest Demo Day event held by Hatch on 26 February 2025 resulted in one of those surreal, reflective moments that reaffirmed his decision to make the switch.
A photo of the participants of the Hatch team with its 4th Dimension X cohort of startups and Home Team champions. (Photo: Mok Shao Hong)
“What I see here is a collective comprising the Home Team and start-ups from five countries who came together for one purpose – to develop innovations that would empower the Home Team and its mission in public safety and security. I feel very proud to have played a part in this,” he said, while showing off the photo of the latest cohort of participants on his mobile phone.
“I had to let that sink in for a bit – strangers and talent from across the world uniting to collaborate on technologies for our Home Team and Singapore. And to have seen the cohorts of teams grow since our launch in these two years – that’s an incredible achievement by the team.”
Amplifying impact
Looking ahead, Shao Hong said he hopes to see the seeds of innovation that Hatch plants become viable products that aid the operations of the Home Team.
He added that he would also like to see the start-ups and technologies that the Home Team have piloted and adopted eventually benefit public safety internationally.
“For Hatch to become a reference for the adoption of innovations into public safety and security operations; to make an impact not just in Singapore but in other parts of the world – that would be absolutely incredible,” he said.
“I had to let that sink in for a bit – strangers and talent from across the world uniting to collaborate on technologies for our Home Team and Singapore. And to have seen the cohorts of teams grow since our launch in these two years – that’s an incredible achievement by the team.”
Amplifying impact
Looking ahead, Shao Hong said he hopes to see the seeds of innovation that Hatch plants become viable products that aid the operations of the Home Team.
He added that he would also like to see the start-ups and technologies that the Home Team have piloted and adopted eventually benefit public safety internationally.
“For Hatch to become a reference for the adoption of innovations into public safety and security operations; to make an impact not just in Singapore but in other parts of the world – that would be absolutely incredible,” he said.
Shao Hong with his late grandmother. (Photo: Mok Shao Hong)
Though retirement is nowhere on the cards yet, Shao Hong already has aspirations for the future. True to form, he envisions dedicating himself to serving others and contributing to positive change around him.
While he doesn’t know how exactly he would go about making this happen, one thing he is sure about is that he wants to be actively involved in local communities around the region and do things that sustainably and viably uplift their economic and social conditions.
“Why do I want to help others? I think my motivation for this all started when those SCDF paramedics came to rescue my grandma that fateful day. I have always wanted to thank them but have never gotten the chance to,” he quipped.
“I’d first thank them for doing their best to save her. I’d also thank them for inspiring me to be a part of the Home Team. I’m so glad that I’m now on the same team doing good in society today.”
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