AsianScientist (Dec. 15, 2015) – To mark the 25th anniversary of diplomatic relations between Singapore and the People’s Republic of China (PRC), three universities from each country have signed three memoranda of understanding (MOU). The new bonds build on existing strong collaborations between the universities in student and faculty exchanges, and joint research and development.
The universities and their respective partners are National University of Singapore (NUS) and Tsinghua University, Nanyang Technological University (NTU) and Peking University, as well as Singapore University of Technology and Design (SUTD) and Zhejiang University.
The collaborations between the Singapore and Chinese universities will be funded through a donation of RMB 150 million (~US$23.2 million) from the family of Mr. Ng Teng Fong, with each pair of universities receiving RMB 50 million (~US$7.7 million).
NUS and Tsinghua University will be focusing on joint research and development in areas of mutual interest and complementary expertise, such as data science and data analytics. The two universities will also identify opportunities for the commercialization of technology.
In addition, NUS and Tsinghua University will collaborate on student exchanges and entrepreneurship education and research, such as programs on technology entrepreneurship, for both undergraduate and postgraduate students, among other activities.
NTU and Peking University (PKU) will establish a Joint NTU-PKU Research Institute whose research areas include multi-modal big data analytics technologies for smart cities and human-centered technologies for healthy living and lifelong learning. The joint research institute will support Singapore’s Smart Nation vision that harnesses technology and data to improve living standards, strengthen communities, and create more business opportunities.
The Institute will work closely with NTU’s Rapid-Rich Object Search (ROSE) Lab, which is also an NTU-PKU collaboration that aims to pioneer next-generation visual and object search technologies, and the Research Center of Excellence in Active Living for the Elderly (LILY), which develops digital solutions for the elderly. The new partnership will also involve joint research, student, faculty and research staff exchanges.
SUTD and Zhejiang University will establish a SUTD-ZJU Innovation, Design and Entrepreneurship Alliance (IDEA), focusing on design innovation in China and Singapore in the initial areas of manufacturing, urbanization and sustainability. IDEA will enable SUTD and ZJU to harness their strengths in design and engineering to jointly pursue scholarly activities in areas that are relevant to both China and Singapore, and eventually translate them into viable commercial outcomes in the market.
SUTD-ZJU IDEA will be implemented through the establishment of a Joint Center covering areas of mutual interest. The Joint Center will have a presence in the campuses of both SUTD and ZJU to promote the exchange and flow of ideas, research and talent between both institutions to jointly advance the vision of IDEA.
The Joint Center will also work closely with relevant entities in both SUTD and ZJU to identify and seed commercially viable ideas and outcomes into entrepreneurial opportunities that can be jointly taken up by SUTD and ZJU personnel and/or students to bring them to market.
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Source: Nanyang Technological University.
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