We adopted two strategies to determine whether KIAA1217 induces EMT to promote HCC cell migration and invasion via STAT3 activation: downregulating STAT3 in HepG2 cells with KIAA1217 overexpression or activating STAT3 in HepG2 cells with KIAA1217 silencing. Here, KIAA1217 is linked to hepatocellular carcinoma.