Yang Yuanqing donates 200 million

Ask AI · Why does Yang Yuanqing choose to donate 200 million to his alma mater to support AI on its 130th anniversary?

According to an official account of Shanghai Jiao Tong University, on April 6, on the occasion of Shanghai Jiao Tong University’s 130th anniversary of its founding, Lenovo Group Chairman and CEO, Shanghai Jiao Tong University board director, and 1981 Computer Science alumnus Yang Yuanqing announced that he would donate RMB 200 million to his alma mater in his personal capacity, to support the renovation and rejuvenation of the old building in Teaching Building 3 at the Xuhui Campus. After the renovation, the building will be used to support scientific research innovation and talent development in the field of artificial intelligence.

At the same time, Lenovo Group and Shanghai Jiao Tong University jointly announced an upgrade to their strategic cooperation. Within the next five years, Lenovo Group will invest an additional RMB 300 million, and the two sides will jointly carry out in-depth research cooperation, talent development, and technology investment incubation around innovative areas such as artificial intelligence.

With everyone in attendance as witnesses, Yang Yuanqing and Yang Zhenbin, Secretary of the Party Committee of Shanghai Jiao Tong University, signed the donation agreement. Subsequently, Yang Zhenbin and Ding Kuiling, an academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and president of the university, signed the school–enterprise strategic cooperation agreement with Yang Yuanqing. Then, Yang Zhenbin and Ding Kuiling presented Yang Yuanqing with the donation certificate and a letter of thanks.

This cooperation achieves a key leap: from the 2021 pattern of “RMB 100 million in individual donations + RMB 200 million in school–enterprise cooperation” to a new framework of “RMB 200 million in individual donations + RMB 300 million in school–enterprise cooperation.”

Yang Yuanqing said that he will use this cooperation as a bond to provide tangible support for the university’s AI research innovation and talent development, helping his alma mater cultivate more internationally leading AI talent and make greater contributions to national science and technology innovation.

Yang Zhenbin extended his sincere gratitude to Yang Yuanqing, a board director, and to Lenovo Group for their long-term care and support for the development of the university. He said that Yang Yuanqing’s generous donation to support the development of the artificial intelligence discipline, and Lenovo Group’s signing of a 2.0 strategic cooperation agreement with the university, is a heartfelt continuation of their close and lasting goodwill. With the continued support of Mr. Yuanqing and Lenovo Group, the university will further gather high-level talent, nurture original achievements, and enhance its capacity to serve national strategies, playing an even greater role in the era of artificial intelligence.

Source: Shanghai Jiao Tong University official account