Embarking on the future of AI

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Nanyang Technological University, Singapore (NTU Singapore) and Alibaba Group officially launched the Alibaba-NTU Singapore Joint Research Institute (JRI) in February 2018. This is Alibaba’s first research institute on AI outside China.

The joint research institute seeks to combine NTU’s human-centred AI technology which has been applied to areas such as health, ageing, homes and communities, with Alibaba’s leading technologies including Natural Language Processing (NLP), computer vision, machine learning and cloud computing to explore further technology breakthroughs and real-life AI solutions.

The JRI will push the frontiers of AI to change the current technology-centric philosophy of AI research into one which is human-centric. The goal is to make AI to become more effective, accessible and inclusive so that it can address future societal needs in ageless aging, new lifestyles and human-centered mobility. These AI and cloud technologies will be developed and tested on the NTU Smart Campus to demonstrate the effectiveness of the solutions before taking them to the market in Singapore and rest of the world. The program dovetails with Singapore’s ambition to train AI and data-science talent to support the country’s “Smart Nation” vision and its transformation to “Industry 4.0”.


Research Focus

The JRI aims to push the frontiers of AI to change the current technology-centric philosophy of AI research into one which is human-centric. The goal is make AI to become more effective, accessible and inclusive so that it can address future societal needs in ageless aging, new lifestyles and human-centered mobility.

City Brain

Cloud Intelligence

Data Analytics & Intelligence

Health AI

AIoT Technologies

Human Centered Mobility

Alibaba Talent Programme 2021

summar training

In order to nurture R&D talents in Artificial Intelligence and other related areas, Alibaba Group has launched the “Alibaba Talent Programme” in Singapore to support outstanding undergraduate and masters graduates to pursue their PhD degrees.

More about this programme
NTU President Prof Subra Suresh deliver her speech on stage during the launch ceremony Alibaba CTO Jeff Zhang deliver her speech on stage during the launch ceremony

Using AI technologies, we can address fundamental societal challenges such as ageing population which is a huge issue for cities with a rapidly ageing population such as Singapore. For example, virtual AI assistants can be deployed to improve work productivity and smart sensors can be used to watch the health of the elderly, with data stored on the cloud for continuous monitoring. These AI and cloud technologies will be developed and tested on the NTU Smart Campus to demonstrate the effectiveness of the solutions so that our partners can have confidence before taking them to the market in Singapore and rest of the world.

Professor Subra Suresh, NTU Singapore President

We are excited to work with the best and brightest around the world such as researchers at NTU to develop smart solutions for our future. Alibaba has been dedicated to working on technology breakthroughs and practical applications of AI, and this collaboration is another example of how we are advancing our technological leadership globally for better living and enabling businesses worldwide through innovation.

Mr Jeff Zhang, Chief Technology Officer of Alibaba Group

Turn ideas into reality

We seek collaborations that will further our research in the area of AI. Get in touch.