WELCOME SPEECH FOR NEW STUDENTS OF IVI (2025)

 

Dear new students, distinguished Fellows/lecturers and staff of IVI.

 

Assalamualaikum warahmatullahi wabarakatuh, and a very good day to all of you.

It is with great pleasure and sincere excitement that I welcome you to the Institute of Visual Informatics (IVI), Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia. You have made a significant and inspiring decision by choosing to join us, and I congratulate each of you for taking this important step in your academic and professional journey.

At IVI, we are more than just a research institute — we are a thriving community committed to excellence in visual informatics, artificial intelligence, computer vision, human–computer interaction, IoT, intelligent data analytics, and many other cutting-edge fields. Here, you will be immersed in a culture that strives not only for knowledge and innovation but also for impact — where your ideas, creativity, and curiosity are encouraged and supported every step of the way.

As postgraduate students, you are entering a realm of higher responsibility, deeper learning, and more challenging research. You will be pushed beyond what you thought possible. There will be late nights, experiments that don’t go according to plan, and questions that seem too big to answer. But there will also be breakthroughs, mentorships, collaborations, friendships, and satisfaction in seeing your ideas come to life. It is in these moments — the challenging and the triumphant alike — that you will grow not just as scholars, but as innovators, leaders, and contributors to society.

Here are a few thoughts as you embark on this journey:

 

1. Embrace curiosity & experimentation. The world of visual informatics and related technologies is evolving rapidly. Try ideas. It's okay to fail sometimes — some of our greatest lessons come through what doesn’t work.
2. Collaborate and build networks. Make use of the labs, the faculty, your fellow students. Engage with research groups — whether in Applied A.I., Simulation & Computer Vision, Information Systems & IoT — the breadth of expertise at IVI is yours to explore.
3. Stay grounded in impact. As you work on theories, models, or systems, remember that your work has the potential to shape society, industries, and the lives of people. Let ethics, sustainability, and real-world relevance guide your research.
4. Balance and well‐being. Postgraduate life can be intense. Take care of your health, take breaks, reach out when you need support. Whether it's academic, emotional, or logistical, you are not alone — IVI and UKM provide many resources to assist you.
5. Set goals, and revisit them often. Define both your short‐term and long‐term aims. Whether your goal is to publish, teach, translate research into industry applications, or start something new — keep them visible, track your progress, and adapt as needed.

 

To our faculty and staff: thank you for your tireless dedication. Your guidance, mentorship, and passion are what empower our students to excel. To our new students, I encourage you to fully immerse yourselves, to ask questions, to challenge norms, and to contribute uniquely to the IVI community.

In closing, I wish all of you an inspiring, productive, and fulfilling time at the Institute of Visual Informatics. May you find not only knowledge and success, but also purpose, connections, and growth that stay with you far beyond your years here.

A Malaysian pantun :

Selamat datang ke IVI kita,
   Tempat ilmu berkembang jaya,
Semangat belajar janganlah lupa,
   Masa depan cerah menanti kita

 

[Welcome to IVI, a place where knowledge grows bright, keep your spirit in learning full, a bright future awaits in sight.]

Once again, welcome to IVI — welcome to this journey. Let us build something remarkable together.Thank you. Terima kasih.

Prof. Dr. Riza Sulaiman

Director, IVI UKM

 

Carta Organisasi IVI, UKM 2025

 

Pengalaman Pentadbiran

 

Sekadar renungan masa lampau. Sejak UKM sudi menrima saya bekerja sebagai tenaga akademik bermula tahun 1986 hingga kini, saya berpeluang memegang beberapa jawatan pentadbiran. Semoga semuanya dikira sebagai ibadah oleh Allah. Dijangka pencen wajib pada tahun 2030. Insya Allah.

Terima kasih Allah, Alhamdulillah.

 

Just a reflection on the past. Since UKM was willing to accept me to work as an academic staff starting in 1986 until now, I have had the opportunity to hold several administrative positions. Hopefully all of them are considered as worship by Allah. It is expected that mandatory pension will be in 2030. God willing.

Thank you Allah, Alhamdulillah.

Terima kasih UKM

UCAPAN PENERIMAAN JAWATAN : Riza bin Sulaiman

 

UCAPAN PENERIMAAN JAWATAN PENGARAH DAN PENGHARGAAN KEPADA MANTAN PENGARAH

 

Assalamualaikum warahmatullahi wabarakatuh,
Salam sejahtera dan salam hormat kepada semua.

Dari Pekan ke Masjid Tanah,
Bawa bekalan sekarung lokan;
Saya dipanggil memikul amanah,
Mohon sokongan, kita jayakan.

Segala puji dan syukur saya panjatkan ke hadrat Allah SWT kerana dengan limpah kurnia-Nya, saya diberikan amanah dan kepercayaan untuk memegang jawatan sebagai Pengarah. Saya menyedari bahawa ini bukanlah satu penghormatan semata-mata, tetapi satu tanggungjawab besar yang perlu saya pikul dengan penuh amanah, dedikasi dan keikhlasan.

Setiap kali saya diberi amanah, saya akan kongsikan pegangan saya daripada ucapan Sayyidina Abu Bakar As-Siddiq r.a. ketika dilantik menjadi Khalifah, beliau telah berkata:

"Wahai manusia! Sesungguhnya aku telah dilantik menjadi pemimpin kamu, padahal aku bukanlah orang yang terbaik dalam kalangan kamu. Jika aku berlaku baik, bantulah aku; jika aku bersalah, betulkanlah aku. Kebenaran itu adalah amanah, dan kebatilan itu adalah khianat."

Ucapan ini mengingatkan saya bahawa kepimpinan adalah suatu amanah yang perlu dipandu oleh nilai keadilan, ketelusan dan rasa tanggungjawab terhadap orang yang kita pimpin. Tidak patut ada cakap-cakap belakang kerana ini bukan ajaran agama kita. Saya mohon agar semua warga IVI sentiasa menegur dan menasihati saya sekiranya saya tersilap langkah, tegur secara berhemah dan berhadapan. serta bersama-sama berganding bahu dalam membawa organisasi ini ke arah kecemerlangan.

Insya Allah aka nada beberapa amalan kepimpinan Islam yang saya amalkan, di antaranya :

• ·       Memudahkan dan bukan menghukum (Facilitate and not Penalise).
• ·       Mengenal pasti kekuatan individu dalam pasukan (Identify strength of individual in team).

Saya juga ingin merakamkan setinggi-tinggi penghargaan dan terima kasih kepada mantan Pengarah, Prof. Madya Dr Rabiah Abd Kadir, atas kepimpinan cemerlang beliau sebelum ini. Sumbangan, idea dan usaha beliau telah meninggalkan kesan yang sangat bermakna dan menjadi asas kukuh kepada perjalanan kita seterusnya. Semoga segala jasa beliau diberkati dan terus menjadi inspirasi kepada kita semua.

Kayuh perahu di tengah bendang,
Bawa bekalan berkongsi makan;
Berat sama kita pikul dan galang,
Ringan sama kita jinjingkan.

 Akhir kata, saya berharap agar segala usaha yang bakal kita laksanakan akan dipermudahkan dan diberkati Allah SWT. Marilah kita terus bekerjasama dengan semangat yang tinggi demi mencapai visi dan misi IVI kita.

 Sekian, terima kasih.

 Prof. Ir. Dr. Riza bin Sulaiman

Prof. Ir. Dr Riza Sulaiman - Research with Industry partners

 

Various AI and IoT Vending Machines (VM)

9th International Conference on Man-Machine Systems (ICoMMS 2025) - Keynote Speaker

18-19 August 2025.

Thank you to the organiser:

Faculty of Electrical Engineering and Technology

UNIMAP, Malaysia.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VbKcMLcN9yU

 

IVI Drone Studio (UKM)

 

With the rapid development of drone technology, it has shown great application potential and market value in many fields such as education, scientific research, industry and social services around the world. In order to keep up with this technological trend, enhance the practical ability of UKM students in the field of drone technology, and promote the widespread application of drone technology and the deep integration of industry, academia and research . With the strong support and cooperation of the Institute of Informatics (IVI) of Univsersiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM), Globalfront International (GFI) sincerely joins hands with China's leading drone manufacturer DJI to jointly launch the Malaysia Drone Professional Certificate Program and Drone Smartshop.