On 11 July 2023, the SJTU Asia-Pacific Graduate Institute (SJTU-APGI) successfully held ‘Celebration of Growth’, a ceremony which saw the inauguration of two new centres: the SAIF Southeast Asia Center and the AI-Translational Medicine Singapore Center.

The ceremony was presided over by SJTU-APGI Dean, Professor Peng Yinghong, and graced by Shanghai Jiao Tong University’s President, Professor Ding Kuiling and the Minister-Counsellor of the Embassy of the People's Republic of China in Singapore, Han Jun. Ding and Han jointly inaugurated the two newly-established centres: the SAIF Southeast Asia Center and the AI-Translational Medicine Singapore Center. The addition of the two new centres on top of its existing centres such as the Antai Asia-Pacific Center, CREATE Program Management Center, Urban Governance Research Center, and the Southeast Asia Center marked a significant milestone for SJTU-APGI since its establishment in 2019.

The Shanghai Advanced Institute of Finance (SAIF), Artificial Intelligence Institute and the Institute of Translational Medicine, SJTU had visited and conducted studies in Singapore multiple times before making strategic decisions to establish their respective overseas centres in Singapore. The formation of these centres will further enhance collaboration and exchanges between SJTU and Singapore in the fields of finance, artificial intelligence, and translational medicine. The SAIF Southeast Asia Center will serve as SAIF's first overseas centre which seeks to incorporate Chinese and foreign educational characteristics. The AI-Translational Medicine Singapore Center will promote technological innovation by combining the translational medicine and artificial intelligence fields through resource sharing and complementary strengths. The AI-Translational Medicine Singapore Center was also presented with a generous donation from Dr. Zhu Yifan, partner of NewMargin Venture.

This year also marked SJTU’s 30th year of providing education in Singapore. Over the years, with the guidance of SJTU, it has overcome several challenges to maintain a steady development. This was especially so during the COVID-19 pandemic when SJTU-APGI was just newly-established. During the ceremony, Professor Chen Fangruo, Dean of the Antai College of Economics and Management, reviewed the 30-year journey in Singapore and introduced the development concepts and plans of the Antai Asia-Pacific Center (AAPC), announcing the upcoming launch of its 30th-anniversary celebration series. At the ceremony, AAPC and Yicai Global signed a strategic cooperation agreement which seeks to foster a strong collaboration in organising forum activities and brand promotion.

Minister-Counsellor Han Jun then gave a speech in which he recognised SJTU-APGI’s remarkable achievements in teaching, research, and cooperative exchanges. He also expressed his hopes for SJTU, through SJTU-APGI as a hub, to drive more cooperation between Chinese universities and Singapore. 

In President Ding Kuiling’s concluding speech, he highlighted the internationalisation traits of SJTU and covered various aspects, such as the university's unique features and achievements in promoting international cooperative education. Ding also shared the plans for SJTU-APGI, reaffirming SJTU’s commitment and focus on high-level international cooperation and emphasizing the importance of Singapore for the university’s internationalisation efforts. 

During his visit to Singapore, President Ding also attended a special meeting with Singapore's Deputy Prime Minister Heng Swee Keat as well as the management committee meeting for the E2S2-CREATE program. He and his delegation, accompanied by SJTU-APGI Dean Peng Yinghong, also visited the National University of Singapore (NUS), Nanyang Technological University (NTU), the Agency for Science, Technology, and Research (A*STAR), and conducted discussions with students, faculty, and SJTU alumni representatives in Singapore.