你好 was the first and only Chinese word I knew when I landed in Shanghai.
Now, four years later, I have a few more words, and a story to tell.
It’s an honor to stand here today, representing the Class of 2026 . And while my journey started with just one word, all of ours started with something in common: stepping into the unknown.
Back then, most of us arrived with excitement... and a little bit of fear. For many of us, it was a new city, a new language. For others, it was a new environment, new expectations, a new chapter.
But over the past four years, Shanghai slowly became something none of us expected: home. It's the laughter at Magnolia Café, the 2 a.m. library sessions, the nights when your model finally converges... until five minutes before the deadline. It's the problem sets that made you question not just your code, but your entire career choice. Classmates became teammates, teammates became friends, and we built something that truly defines NYU Shanghai: a community shaped by diversity, curiosity, and connection.
But honestly? This place was never just about the classes. I came here for the degree. I stayed for everything else.
The faculty who actually cared, not just about the syllabus, but about us. The ones who nurtured something in us: critical thinking, intellectual curiosity, the courage to question.
And the Ayis and the shifus, whose warm smile on my worst mornings carried me more than they'll ever know.
And then the opportunities: New York, Abu Dhabi, London, Paris, research labs, students from over 70 countries. I didn't just learn cross-cultural communication here. I lived it.
We learned to think like scientists and problem solvers, to sit with uncertainty, iterate, fail, and try again. Turns out that's not just how you train a model. That's how you build a life.
NYU Shanghai's vision was always to prepare us for lives of discovery and meaning, leaders who move through the world with curiosity, integrity, and purpose. We are not just graduates of that vision. We are proof that it works.
And yet, even with the best faculty, the warmest community, and the greatest opportunities, there were still moments when the hardest battle was the one inside our own heads.
There is a quote I want to leave with you: "Doubt kills more dreams than failure ever will." Let that sink in. Not failure. Doubt.
Failure we can survive, it teaches us, it gives us another draft. But doubt convinces you to never even start. Doubt is the person you never became, not because you couldn't, but because you told yourself you couldn't.
And here is the truth nobody talks about at graduations: every single one of us has heard that voice.
The voice that said you don't belong here. That you're not enough. I heard it. You heard it. We all did.
But look around you. We are still here.
We stayed when it was hard. We showed up when we were exhausted. We rebuilt when things fell apart. And we did it, in a foreign city, far from home, under pressure that would have broken a lesser version of us. You did it once. You will do it again.
So when life gets hard, and it will, remember this room. Remember that you have already defeated the hardest opponent you will ever face: the doubt inside your own mind.
Before I close, I want to dedicate this moment to my parents, especially my dad. I don't have a world leader who inspires me. I have him. A man who never stopped believing in me, even when I stopped believing in myself. This degree carries your belief as much as it does my name. Mom, Dad, this one's for you.
And to every family and friend in this room, thank you. You carried us here. This moment is yours too. So graduates, take a moment—turn to the people who supported you… and let them feel this moment with you.
We didn't come this far to only come this far. This is not our finish line. This is our starting point. Class of 2026, let's go!