"So as to" is a compound preposition that has an infinitive as its object.

"So as to" is a compound preposition that has an infinitive as its object.

So as to become successful, they should be committed and think positively.

Note that it's not unusual for an infinitive to be the object of a preposition; for example:

My baby does nothing but cry.

"So as to" is usually, but not always, followed by a stative verb, such as be, become, keep, have, be, understand, learn, appear, know, seem, etc. Stative verbs express a state or condition rather than an action.

She does it so as to keep herself busy and productive.

You can use the compound preposition "in order to" instead of "so as to". In general, "so as to" is slightly more formal than "in order to".

In order to transition to a low-carbon economy, we need a large-scale structural change.

Notice that you can use "so as to" at the start of a sentence. Be aware, however, that a sentence introduced by "so as to" requires a comma after the introductory phrase.

So as to become a better speaker, you should engage with your audience and learn body language.

And remember, the negative of "so as to" is "so as not to".

The company does not discuss any upcoming measures so as not to cause investors to misread signals.