On the morning of 25th July, the Ministry of Education's Future Technology Institute Development Meeting was held in Beijing. The meeting carried out in-depth exchanges and discussions around the further development of Future Technology Institutes. Representatives from the National Development and Reform Commission, the Ministry of Education, the Ministry of Science and Technology, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, the Ministry of Transport, the Ministry of Culture and Tourism, the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission of the State Council, the Chinese Academy of Sciences, current Future Technology Institutes and other institutions, as well as experts related to the education and the industry sectors, attended the meeting. Ni Jun, Dean of GIFT and Chief Manufacturing Officer of CATL made a keynote report at the meeting. Xi Lifeng, executive vice president of Shanghai Jiaotong University (hereafter SJTU), Yang Ming, Jin Sun, Wang Chong, Wang Jingchuan, and other leaders of GIFT and faculty representatives attended the meeting.
With the title “Exploration and Practice of Integration Innovation of Education, Science, and Technology and Talents”, Dean Ni Jun introduced GIFT's schooling mission, educational progress, and the development of an industry-academia cooperation platform, etc. He stressed that SJTU closely follows the requirements of the development guide of Future Technology Institute, studies future science and technology trends, identifies possible breakthroughs of strategic industries, and analyses the qualities and needs of future industry leaders. GIFT at SJTU plans to bind closely with CATL and other industry leaders, break traditional silos, and strengthen innovations and leadership. The institute is named “溥渊(Puyuan)”, because溥Pu means vastness and 渊Yuan means profoundness and reflects GIFT’s vision of valuing interdisciplinary approaches while encouraging a deep exploration of specific fields. More specifically, GIFT primarily focuses on two key areas : future energy and future health, while also aiming to educate and develop strategic, broad-minded scientific and technological leading talents.
After three years of development, GIFT has achieved milestones in exploring a new paradigm for integrating industry and academia f in scientific research and cross-field talent training. GIFT is committed to breaking the boundaries of learning, disciplines, and educational institutions , and has built two new undergraduate majors in sustainable energy and health science and technology in cooperation with leading enterprises and affiliated hospitals, as well as two postgraduate co-training bases in CATL and United Imaging. A large number of domestic and foreign leading scholars and industry leaders have been recruited to join GIFT, and more than 75 percent of GIFT's young faculty holds titles in “Four Youth Talents”; GIFT has set up a number of cross-research centers, such as the Future Battery Research Centre and the Brain Health and Technology Centre, and has continued to develop a full pipeline for talent education, scientific research, and commercialization.
Looking ahead, GIFT, under the guidance of the Ministry of Education, will strengthen the innovation of the industry-academia integration, build a strong faculty team, develop a new education model, and complete the construction of the Twin Towers base. GIFT is poised to turn into an education and innovation hub with global influence and distinct Chinese characteristics.
At the meeting, the Ministry of Education held the inaugural meeting of the Future Technology College Development Committee, where the committee discussed work plans centered around special working groups for conference activities , joint training, and the development of faculty and students. Yang Ming and Jin Sun from GIFT participated in the series of events. With leaders and experts from sister colleges, they engaged in a discussion on the development direction and strategies for cooperation and exchange within future technology colleges.
In addition, the Ministry of Education also held an exhibition of the achievements of the development of Future Technology Institutes. Zhou Tianhua, director of the Ministry of Education, and other leaders and colleagues from cooperative institutes visited the GIFT exhibition boards.
In 2021, the Ministry of Education established Future Technology Colleges at 12 universities including Peking University, Tsinghua University, and Shanghai Jiao Tong University, with the aim of developing them into sources of disruptive technological innovation and important bases for cultivating top-notch innovative talents. Starting from the supply side, these 12 Future Technology Colleges have fostered conceptual changes, have been guided by top experts, and collaborated with multiple research institutes and leading enterprises. They have established more than 30 future technology directions, explored innovative talent development strategies , produced multiplegroundbreaking technological achievements both domestically and internationally, and cultivated a group of young talents with innovative thinking. These colleges have become important forces driving the development of emerging industries.
