I am Zhengru Ren, an Associate Professor in the Department of Ocean Engineering and Civil Engineering at Shanghai Jiao Tong University (SJTU). Our ocean engineering program has been ranked No. 1 globally for five consecutive years.

My research is driven by a passion for advancing the digitalization, automation, and intelligization of demanding marine operations (such as lifting, towing, and mating), which are vital to marine resource development and offshore maintenance. However, these operations currently face significant challenges: they are high-cost, high-risk, and highly demanding. The unpredictable ocean environment and strong nonlinear coupling between waves, winds, currents, and marine structures present immense hurdles to implementing cutting-edge technologies like digital twins and embodied intelligence.

In response, my work focuses on pushing the boundaries of marine operations through integrated research in multi-source perception, intelligent decision-making, and autonomous control of vessels and onboard equipment. By merging mechanics with cybernetics, my team aims to achieve breakthroughs in the unified theory and applications, moving ever closer to a true digital twin for marine operations.

If you are a motivated student excited about high-impact research that is both innovative and practical, I warmly invite you to join us. Together, we can tackle real-world challenges and contribute to safer, smarter, and more sustainable ocean engineering.

Welcome to collaborate and create the future with us!

ren.zhengru@sjtu.edu.cn