NTU did it first: 10 ways we made tech history
As Singapore celebrates its 60th birthday, HEY! spotlights NTU’s strides in innovation that exemplify the spirit of SG60
by Derek Rodriguez
1ST FULL-SIZE AUTONOMOUS ELECTRIC BUS IN THE WORLD
No driver, no problem
Volvo and NTU ferried Singapore into the future of public transportation in 2019 with the world’s first full-size driverless electric bus. The 12m-long vehicle, which can carry about 80 people, has sensors and a sophisticated artificial intelligence (AI) navigation system. It was tested on our campus and at NTU’s autonomous vehicle testing circuit nearby – in both rain and shine. Launched to huge international media interest, the bus showcased how NTU collaborates with industry and government to create solutions that drive real change.
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Click or tap on the visual below to hop aboard the future of transportation
1ST ROBOT MASSEUSE IN SINGAPORE
Deep tissue tech
Will robots take over the world one day? Maybe. But until then, one of them is lending a helping hand in our hour of knead. Robot masseuse EMMA made its debut in 2017 and has been used in Traditional Chinese Medicine clinics and hospitals to relieve lower back discomfort in patients. Developed by NTU startup AiTreat, the robot gives personalised massages with the help of AI algorithms. EMMA has gone global, working in clinics around the world, even the famous Mayo Clinic in the US.
1ST SATELLITE DESIGNED AND BUILT IN SINGAPORE
From campus to cosmos
NTU isn’t just your passport to the world, but to the universe. Since 2009, the university has been running Singapore’s first satellite programme for undergraduates and postgraduates. In 2011, X-SAT, the first made-in-Singapore satellite, was launched into orbit to capture images of Earth and track environmental changes. NTU has since launched 13 satellites, with the next one slated for lift-off later this year.
1ST 3D-PRINTED CAR IN SINGAPORE
Print, race, win
Quite the feat for a student-built project, Nanyang Venture 8 turned heads in an NTU garage in 2015 as Singapore’s first – and likely Asia’s first – 3D-printed car. The solar-powered electric vehicle was designed and built by students from the College of Engineering, using techniques they had learnt in class. They 3D-printed 150 components and mounted them on a carbon fibre chassis to form the car’s cabin. More than a head-turner, the car (and its creators) competed in races from Manila to London, picking up six awards along the way.
1ST DEEP-TECH UNICORN FROM SINGAPORE
From uni to unicorn
NTU spin-off Nanofilm became Singapore’s first deep-tech unicorn when it achieved a valuation of $1.9 billion following its initial public offering in 2020. Founded in 1999 by NTU professor Dr Shi Xu, the company made its mark with ultra-thin protective coatings used in everything from consumer gadgets to optical devices and automotive parts. In 2023, Nanofilm came full circle, partnering with NTU to launch a corporate lab focused on pushing the frontiers of advanced coatings and nanofabrication.
1ST ARTWORK IN SPACE AND THE DEEP SEA
To the stars, moon and sea
While NTU innovations often shoot for the moon, two will actually land there later this year – after orbiting Earth. In 2022, two 3D-printed cubes, designed by a Singaporean artist and created at NTU, were part of the first-ever art collection displayed aboard the International Space Station. The artist teamed up with NTU again this year to send another 3D-printed cube to the ocean floor near the Mariana Trench off Japan, making it part of the world’s deepest art installation.
1ST LARGE-SCALE WOODEN BUILDING IN SOUTHEAST ASIA
Wooden wonder
Why was NTU’s sports hall named The Wave? Perhaps because it made waves as the first large building made from sustainable mass-engineered timber. Or maybe it was for its 70m-long curved roof, which took just weeks to install. Whatever the reason, it’s easy to see why it’s a game-changer. It looks cool from the outside, and is even cooler inside, thanks to the high-tech air-conditioning that chills from the ground up. The sprawling, pillarless arena can also be reconfigured quickly to host 13 badminton games or three basketball games, or anything in between.
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Click or tap on the visual below to catch The Wave
1ST LEGO-STYLE HIGH-RISE RESIDENCES IN SINGAPORE
Snapped into place
If you live in an HDB flat or a condominium built in the last five years, there’s a good chance it was constructed using a method where finished rooms are built in a factory and then stacked on-site like building blocks. As a testbed for new urban ideas, NTU is home to the first of these “Lego-style” buildings. Entire rooms in Binjai, Tanjong and Banyan Halls – complete with lighting, windows and fans – were assembled off-site and then stacked into place on campus.
1ST OUTDOOR DELIVERY ROBOT IN SINGAPORE
The hunger bot games
The pandemic was a time of uncertainty, but one silver lining was the FoodBot. Over two years, a fleet of these adorable food delivery “boxes on wheels” completed more than 12,000 deliveries to hungry students on campus and people at the nearby CleanTech Park. What makes the self-driving bots even more special is that they were made from scratch by Renaissance Engineering Programme students, who started building them in a lab right below their hall rooms.
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Click or tap on the visual below to summon a FoodBot. Food not included
1ST HUMAN-SIZED ROBOT IN SINGAPORE
One giant leap for robotkind
In 2011, a 1.8m-tall “fella” made headlines in almost every local newspaper. His claim to fame? Being the world’s tallest intelligent humanoid robot at the time. Apart from having a 500-word vocabulary, Nash could find his own way around. At his unveiling, he stood shoulder to shoulder with his human counterparts, earning him the nickname “Singapore’s C-3PO” from the media.
This story was published in the Mar-Apr 2025 issue of HEY!. To read it and other stories from this issue in print, click here
