Good afternoon

SUTD Chairman, Mr Lee Tzu Yang

Mr Lim Tuang Liang, Government Chief Sustainability Officer, Ministry of Sustainability and the Environment,

Board of Trustees,

Distinguished Guests,

Faculty and Staff,

Ladies and Gentlemen.

And most importantly, our Class of 2024!

My heartiest congratulations to all of you.

Well done! You have made it!

I believe you and your family must be especially proud today as you have reached a significant milestone in your life. Let us all give them a round of applause to celebrate this achievement.

Most of you began your SUTD journey in 2020, during the peak of the pandemic. I still remember we had to conduct the Freshman Inauguration Ceremony digitally. You had to adjust to the various transitions that took place throughout the last few years. I commend you for your strength of mind and adaptability in taking all the changes in your stride.

That same year, SUTD also underwent many changes including the change of our academic calendar so that our freshmore school term would begin in September instead of May.

Let us look back at some of the activities that you have participated in. Here are some photos of the Orientation. Despite it being subject to safe management measures, many of you still looked like you had an enjoyable time interacting with your new friends and embarking on your new learning journey in SUTD.

This was also the year we welcomed our first batch of Design and Artificial Intelligence (DAI) students. At that time, Generative AI had not yet pushed AI to the forefront of technology. But SUTD has always been a trailblazer in redefining design education, staying ahead of the curve. We foresaw the transformative impact of AI, driven by rapid digital advancements and the exponential growth of data, embedding design capabilities into everyday tools and platforms. This integration empowers individuals and businesses to collaborate and create more robust, impactful solutions that not only enhance efficiency and productivity but also address the large-scale, complex challenges our world faces today. Thus, we are excited to graduate our pioneer batch of DAI students, who are equipped to unlock the full potential of design by harnessing the power of AI, paving the way for new opportunities in innovation.

For example, at the Capstone showcase last month, there were many projects that incorporated design, AI and technology together to create innovative and human-centric solutions to problems. One such project is Veritas, a web application that can detect deepfake speech, specially with a Singaporean accent. This app features a high accuracy for verifying the authenticity of audio clips and can speed up the research for creating better models to identify deepfake speech.

Another example is a project that arose from the first Temasek-SUTD Generative AI Hackathon. Three SUTD students worked with a Temasek employee to develop a GenAI solution, which can transcribe and summarise videos, and send key information to help track market developments. This prototype received second-place in the hackathon, and was deployed in a Temasek Trust’s event.

I remember in my speech at your Freshman Inauguration Ceremony, I emphasised that SUTD is not a university cast out of a standard mold. Over the years, you have gone through more than 5,000 hours of course work, over 20 design projects, at least one industrial internship, 5^th row activities and countless sleepless nights. I believe these have instilled in you an inquisitive mind, a keen interest in learning for life, a compassionate heart for people, and the skills to pick up new subjects on your own. And more importantly, this experience has taught you to think outside the box, challenge the status quo, build confidence, and be more agile and resilient.

I would like to highlight some graduands from your cohort who have displayed some of these qualities. For example, there is Raphael Yee, who came from an Arts background. However, he faced some mental health challenges and struggled with completing his education. He later joined start-up Carousell and found his calling in coding, and wanted to get a tertiary education. After being rejected multiple times in his university application, Raphael registered for the A Levels as a private candidate during his National Service. He persevered in his studies and made it to SUTD, and is today graduating with Honours with Distinction. Now Raphael is going to work on his startup Homu that was spun off from his Capstone project, and is currently incubating in SUTD.

Another student I would like to mention is Kellie Sim, who was from the SUTD-Duke-NUS Special Track programme. After seeing her peers struggle with mental health issues, she developed a deep passion to help the youths of tomorrow. To this end, she is heavily involved in volunteering with the Youth Corps Singapore as a Community Peer Supporter. In her special track programme, she discovered her interests lay not in becoming a medical doctor, but in leveraging engineering and technology to pioneer novel healthcare solutions, particularly in mental health. Hence, Kellie changed tracks and is continuing with a PhD programme at SUTD after graduating.

Graduating is always a sentimental moment, as after today, you will bid farewell to your schoolmates who will be going their separate ways. However, the memories that you have made over the years will be the ones that you look back fondly upon. And hopefully, the SUTD family and friends you made will be lifelong ones from whom you can draw support, whatever your endeavours may be, in your next stages of life.

You may have heard that this year, I too will be “graduating”. I will be stepping down as President of SUTD in the second half of the year, which means this will be my last commencement ceremony as SUTD President. Like you, today is somewhat a bittersweet and sentimental moment for me too. Although I may have been in SUTD far longer than all of you – over 15 years, I hope that even your short few years here have allowed you the opportunity to experience the familial love, unwavering support and unconditional friendships that I have oftentimes been showered with by the SUTD community.

As a fellow “graduate” who has experienced and learnt from starting a brand-new university from scratch, I feel it falls to me to share with you a few key traits that have helped me navigate the trailblazing journey of SUTD. I hope it can also guide you as you continue to innovate and become an upgraded version of yourselves.

Firstly, it is important to cultivate a growth mindset. This mindset embodies the willingness, curiosity, and humility to constantly learn and develop yourself to stay relevant in our complex and uncertain world. Graduates of your generation will need to acquire new skills and knowledge multiple times throughout their lives, so never stop learning or growing. A growth mindset also enables you to view failure as an opportunity to learn and improve, rather than a setback. Everyone encounters failure, but what matters is how you pick yourself up and keep moving forward.

Secondly, in a rapidly transforming world, aim to be a “Master of Change” rather than a “victim of change.” As the saying goes, “Life is not about waiting for the storm to pass, but learning to dance in the rain.” This means developing both agility and cognitive flexibility—the ability to learn and adapt strategies when needed. By doing so, you will not only cope more effectively with changes but also better adapt to unexpected events and find alternative solutions to problems.

Thirdly, you must continuously innovate throughout your life. This requires an imaginative mindset—one that is not confined by self-imposed limitations but embraces risks and explores new possibilities. It is also crucial to connect different disciplines and integrate diverse ideas to create something new. As Louis Pasteur once said: “In the fields of observation, chance only favours the prepared mind.” Our minds must be sharp and observant, to make new discoveries.

Last but not least, practice self-awareness and build meaning in what you do. Your journey through life will not be a straight line, but a zigzag path with twists and turns. While not every day will be smooth sailing, you can make each day meaningful by focusing your energy on creating and building anew. Self-awareness enables you to continuously reignite your passion and reconnect with your purpose in life. It is within this context of meaning that you will fill your days with purpose and positive energy.

Today, you have finished one chapter of your life and are about to start a new one. Many of you stepped into SUTD with great ideas and big dreams. I hope you will continue to dream new dreams and set them as a lighthouse, guiding you through rough seas without losing sight of your goals. Let your dreams take you to the highest of your hopes, and to the most special places your heart has ever known.

Remember, once an SUTD student, always a part of the SUTD Family. SUTD is committed to supporting your lifelong learning and innovation journey.

There is the SUTD Academy that offers various types of CET programmes, the Fab Lab and Library as well as our faculty and research centres. They are resources that you can tap on to help you in your career development. Therefore, come back and explore all of these with us.

This year’s commencement ceremony is the 10^th since we graduated our first cohort in 2015. Every year, as we march down this auditorium, I feel a strong sense of excitement and satisfaction as I witness the growth and transformation of our graduands during their years in SUTD. This year is no different. I am humbled by your achievements and so proud of each and every one of you.

And I am confident that you will fly the flag of SUTD high, just like the nine batches of seniors before you, and that the vision we have ingrained in you will enable you to become trailblazers wherever you go and in whatever you do, as you spread your wings to create a better world by Design.

Once again, my heartiest congratulations and best wishes to you, and a Big Thank You, Class of 2024!