SINGAPORE, June 12, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- On June 10th, the Singapore Tourism Board (STB) and Mafengwo jointly hosted the "#AnywayIt'sFun Inspiration Renewal Journey" event in Beijing. Centered around the themes of "contrast, novelty, and social connection," the event showcased the diverse charm of Singapore travel through an immersive Nanyang-style experience, a friendly roundtable discussion, and stories shared by travel influencers. Mafengwo unveiled its latest AI-powered cultural and creative product, powered by its self-developed AI model for travel industry, offering tourists a glimpse into the future of "smart travel."
In recent years, Chinese travelers have increasingly sought deeper, more personalized travel experiences rather than chasing popular attractions. According to user data from Mafengwo's "AI Travel Assistant for Singapore", travelers' preferences to Singapore are becoming more nuanced and segmented. Families with children care about "queue times at attractions" and "stroller rentals," young travelers seek out "trendy cafés" and "Peranakan culture check-ins," while seniors prioritize "barrier-free facilities."
"To meet these needs, Singapore has introduced five themed travel profiles," explained Mr. Andrew Phua, STB's Chief Representative and Executive Director of Greater China, during the roundtable. "Health-conscious travelers can explore Sentosa's rainforest ecosystem through immersive guided tours. Food lovers may try the uniquely flavored coffee pork ribs. Urban explorers can marvel at prehistoric wonders at the new Jurassic World: The Exhibition at Gardens by the Bay. Experience-seekers can feel the pulse of Formula 1 and enjoy live performances at the Singapore Grand Prix. Meanwhile, senior travelers may enjoy the tranquility and joy of traditional embroidery workshops. By combining AI technology with tourism products, we can provid endless possibilities aligned with the "Just for Fun" spirit. "
"AI travel assistants—whether in the form of digital itineraries or creative cultural products—are more than tools. They are triggers for travel inspiration," said Chen Gang, CEO of Mafengwo. He elaborated on how AI is reshaping travel in the era of hyper-independent travel and introduced "AI XiaoXinxin," an AI assistant in plush doll form. It could seamlessly answer Singapore-related travel questions from both the host and guests, while also acting as a fun companion for photos and emotional support on trips.
The AI Travel Itinerary tool ("AI Roadbook") offers exhaustive pre-trip planning support. Chen Gang demonstrated when prompted with "a 5-day in-depth cultural trip with parents," the system generated a thoughtfully balanced itinerary including Chinese heritage tours in Chinatown, local coffee culture, traditional crafts, and old-school cafés. Each section comes with budget allocations from economical to premium tiers. Especially for senior travelers, it introduces features like Singapore's "Green Man+" system and Silver Zones—facilities designed to enhance elderly convenience—thus easing planning anxiety. "Additionally, the newly launched real-time translation tool by AI Xiaoma eliminates the hassle of typing; users can simply press and speak into two microphones alternately on the same screen for seamless multilingual interaction."
Two Mafengwo's influencers (Feng Shou) shared what "Just for Fun" means to them in Singapore. Geotechnical engineer and super dad Ren Yuan Tai Shan reflected on how he once fixated on rigid itineraries, but now treasures spontaneous moments—like chatting with local elders while enjoying fish ball noodles with his child near HDB flats. Meanwhile, first-time visitor and ski coach Yi Yun looked forward to zoning out, sipping Kopi, and strolling around the vibrant, sun-soaked streets, hoping to stumble upon delightful surprises.
Beyond savoring local dishes at the Peranakan Flavor Remix Booth and creating handmade crafts at the Nanyang Mini Workshop, the appearance of the AI-powered "Xiaoma Robot" dressed in Singapore-themed outfits brought the event to a peak. Like travelers just back from Singapore, these robots offered guests a quirky, smart, and whimsical travel encounter.
As long-term strategic partners, STB and Mafengwo have previously precisely reached family and young traveler segments through campaigns like "The Best Summer Homework" and "Jackson Wang's Itinerary," pioneering the integration of the latest technology into travel as the first overseas destination AI partner. The launch of this AI travel companion marks a significant transition in their collaboration from "content marketing" to " intelligent services." It is understood that both parties will continue to upgrade the AI companion's features to empower the "Just for Fun" philosophy, enabling travelers to enjoy both meticulous planning and unexpected discoveries around every corner in their Singapore journey.
** The press release content is from PR Newswire. Bastille Post is not involved in its creation. **
When "Just for Fun" Meets AI Tech: Singapore Tourism Board and Mafengwo Explore New Ways to Travel in the Future
When "Just for Fun" Meets AI Tech: Singapore Tourism Board and Mafengwo Explore New Ways to Travel in the Future
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Spanning 10 countries, the 2026 selections highlight the program's global commitment to art conservation
Key Points
- Bank of America is awarding 18 Art Conservation Project™ grants to preserve significant artworks in 2026.
- This year's projects include the conservation of internationally renowned masterpieces, such as Rembrandt's The Night Watch, Picasso's The Old Guitarist, Matisse's La Négresse, and Titian's Bacchus and Ariadne.
- Previous projects include two copies of Magna Carta at the Society of Antiquaries of London, Claude Monet's Water Lilies at the Portland Art Museum and Chen Wen Hsi' Gibbons at the National Gallery Singapore.
- All conserved artworks will return to public display, reinforcing Bank of America's commitment to public access. Over 15,000 objects in 40 countries have been conserved through the Bank of America Art Conservation Project™ since 2010.
NEW YORK, April 24, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Bank of America announced today that 18 nonprofit cultural institutions across 10 countries will receive grants this year through the Bank of America Art Conservation Project™. The selected projects represent a wide range of artistic traditions and conservation needs, from fragile works on paper to paintings and objects requiring advanced preservation techniques.
This year's selections were unveiled at the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) in New York City, which received an Art Conservation Project™ grant in 2019 for the conservation of Vincent van Gogh's The Starry Night. MoMA is currently hosting a Marcel Duchamp exhibition sponsored by BofA.
"Every artwork has its own story - which is sometimes hidden beneath varnish, cracked pigment or centuries of decay," said Brian Siegel, Global Arts, Culture & Heritage Executive at Bank of America. "Conservation is the quiet work that brings those stories forward today and for future generations. What stands out about this year's projects is the variety of techniques involved. Some require meticulous surface cleaning, and in others, conservators will use imaging tools that didn't exist even a decade ago. Regardless of the method, the goal is simple: to ensure these works remain visible, accessible and enjoyed by visitors for years to come."
All conserved works will return to public display, reinforcing BofA's commitment to public access. Since 2010, the Bank of America Art Conservation Project™ has supported over 15,000 conservation projects in 40 countries, helping safeguard historically and culturally significant works that are vulnerable to time and environmental stress.
This year's projects include:
- 13 lobby murals at the Apollo Theater in New York
- The Palms of the Arc de Triomphe at the Centre des Monuments Nationaux in Paris
- The Judgement of Paris by Jacob de Backer at the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Vastu Sangrahalaya (CSMVS) in Mumbai
- Transfiguration by Camillo Procaccini at Duomo di Milano in Milan
- Four seventeenth-century tapestries by Raphael de la Planche at the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum in Boston
- More than 3,100 artworks at La Casa del Libro Museum in San Juan
- The Meeting of Dante and Virgil by Francesco Salviati, under the direction of Jan Rost, at the Minneapolis Institute of Art
- Juggler by Alice Rahon at the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts
- 52 paintings by Francisco Laso de los Ríos at Museo de Arte de Lima
- Baltazar de Borba Gato delivering the first shipment of gold from Brazil to the King of Portugal and José Bonifácio by Aldo Locatelli at Museu Paulista da Universidade de Sao Paulo
- La Négresse by Henri Matisse at the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C.
- The Night Watch by Rembrandt van Rijn at Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam
- Shadow Over the Land by Benny Andrews at the San José Museum of Art
- The Four Accomplishments and Immortal by Kano Sōgen Shigenobu at the Seattle Art Museum
- The Old Guitarist by Pablo Picasso at the Art Institute of Chicago
- With Liberty and Justice for All (A Work in Progress) by Jim Hodges at The Contemporary Austin
- Bacchus and Ariadne by Titian at the National Gallery in London
- Gaki Zōshi (Scroll of Hungry Ghosts) at the Tokyo National Museum
A brochure with additional information about selected projects is available here.
Bank of America
Bank of America is one of the world's leading financial institutions, serving individual consumers, small and middle-market businesses and large corporations with a full range of banking, investing, asset management and other financial and risk management products and services. The company provides unmatched convenience in the United States, serving nearly 70 million clients with approximately 3,500 retail financial centers, approximately 15,000 ATMs (automated teller machines) and award-winning digital banking with approximately 59 million verified digital users. Bank of America is a global leader in wealth management, corporate and investment banking and trading across a broad range of asset classes, serving corporations, governments, institutions and individuals around the world. Bank of America offers industry leading support to approximately 4 million small business households through a suite of innovative, easy-to-use online products and services. The company serves clients through operations across the United States, its territories and more than 35 countries. Bank of America Corporation stock (NYSE: BAC) is listed on the New York Stock Exchange.
At Bank of America, we believe that investing in the arts has a positive impact on our lives. We support a wide range of nonprofit organizations with funding and programming to help make the arts more accessible to communities around the world and to preserve works of art and heritage sites for generations to come. For more information about how we support the arts, please visit our Bank of America arts website.
For more Bank of America news, including dividend announcements and other important information, visit the Bank of America newsroom and register for news email alerts.
Reporters may contact
AnnMarie McDonald, Bank of America
Phone: 1.332.234.8635
annmarie.mcdonald@bofa.com
Spanning 10 countries, the 2026 selections highlight the program's global commitment to art conservation
Key Points
- Bank of America is awarding 18 Art Conservation Project™ grants to preserve significant artworks in 2026.
- This year's projects include the conservation of internationally renowned masterpieces, such as Rembrandt's The Night Watch, Picasso's The Old Guitarist, Matisse's La Négresse, and Titian's Bacchus and Ariadne.
- Previous projects include two copies of Magna Carta at the Society of Antiquaries of London, Claude Monet's Water Lilies at the Portland Art Museum and Chen Wen Hsi' Gibbons at the National Gallery Singapore.
- All conserved artworks will return to public display, reinforcing Bank of America's commitment to public access. Over 15,000 objects in 40 countries have been conserved through the Bank of America Art Conservation Project™ since 2010.
NEW YORK, April 24, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Bank of America announced today that 18 nonprofit cultural institutions across 10 countries will receive grants this year through the Bank of America Art Conservation Project™. The selected projects represent a wide range of artistic traditions and conservation needs, from fragile works on paper to paintings and objects requiring advanced preservation techniques.
This year's selections were unveiled at the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) in New York City, which received an Art Conservation Project™ grant in 2019 for the conservation of Vincent van Gogh's The Starry Night. MoMA is currently hosting a Marcel Duchamp exhibition sponsored by BofA.
"Every artwork has its own story - which is sometimes hidden beneath varnish, cracked pigment or centuries of decay," said Brian Siegel, Global Arts, Culture & Heritage Executive at Bank of America. "Conservation is the quiet work that brings those stories forward today and for future generations. What stands out about this year's projects is the variety of techniques involved. Some require meticulous surface cleaning, and in others, conservators will use imaging tools that didn't exist even a decade ago. Regardless of the method, the goal is simple: to ensure these works remain visible, accessible and enjoyed by visitors for years to come."
All conserved works will return to public display, reinforcing BofA's commitment to public access. Since 2010, the Bank of America Art Conservation Project™ has supported over 15,000 conservation projects in 40 countries, helping safeguard historically and culturally significant works that are vulnerable to time and environmental stress.
This year's projects include:
- 13 lobby murals at the Apollo Theater in New York
- The Palms of the Arc de Triomphe at the Centre des Monuments Nationaux in Paris
- The Judgement of Paris by Jacob de Backer at the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Vastu Sangrahalaya (CSMVS) in Mumbai
- Transfiguration by Camillo Procaccini at Duomo di Milano in Milan
- Four seventeenth-century tapestries by Raphael de la Planche at the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum in Boston
- More than 3,100 artworks at La Casa del Libro Museum in San Juan
- The Meeting of Dante and Virgil by Francesco Salviati, under the direction of Jan Rost, at the Minneapolis Institute of Art
- Juggler by Alice Rahon at the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts
- 52 paintings by Francisco Laso de los Ríos at Museo de Arte de Lima
- Baltazar de Borba Gato delivering the first shipment of gold from Brazil to the King of Portugal and José Bonifácio by Aldo Locatelli at Museu Paulista da Universidade de Sao Paulo
- La Négresse by Henri Matisse at the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C.
- The Night Watch by Rembrandt van Rijn at Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam
- Shadow Over the Land by Benny Andrews at the San José Museum of Art
- The Four Accomplishments and Immortal by Kano Sōgen Shigenobu at the Seattle Art Museum
- The Old Guitarist by Pablo Picasso at the Art Institute of Chicago
- With Liberty and Justice for All (A Work in Progress) by Jim Hodges at The Contemporary Austin
- Bacchus and Ariadne by Titian at the National Gallery in London
- Gaki Zōshi (Scroll of Hungry Ghosts) at the Tokyo National Museum
A brochure with additional information about selected projects is available here.
Bank of America
Bank of America is one of the world's leading financial institutions, serving individual consumers, small and middle-market businesses and large corporations with a full range of banking, investing, asset management and other financial and risk management products and services. The company provides unmatched convenience in the United States, serving nearly 70 million clients with approximately 3,500 retail financial centers, approximately 15,000 ATMs (automated teller machines) and award-winning digital banking with approximately 59 million verified digital users. Bank of America is a global leader in wealth management, corporate and investment banking and trading across a broad range of asset classes, serving corporations, governments, institutions and individuals around the world. Bank of America offers industry leading support to approximately 4 million small business households through a suite of innovative, easy-to-use online products and services. The company serves clients through operations across the United States, its territories and more than 35 countries. Bank of America Corporation stock (NYSE: BAC) is listed on the New York Stock Exchange.
At Bank of America, we believe that investing in the arts has a positive impact on our lives. We support a wide range of nonprofit organizations with funding and programming to help make the arts more accessible to communities around the world and to preserve works of art and heritage sites for generations to come. For more information about how we support the arts, please visit our Bank of America arts website.
For more Bank of America news, including dividend announcements and other important information, visit the Bank of America newsroom and register for news email alerts.
Reporters may contact
AnnMarie McDonald, Bank of America
Phone: 1.332.234.8635
annmarie.mcdonald@bofa.com
** This press release is distributed by PR Newswire through automated distribution system, for which the client assumes full responsibility. **
Historic Artworks Receive Funding through BofA's Art Conservation Project™
