US-China tech war: China taps 12 top universities to rival MIT and Stanford in science and technology research
- Peking University and Tsinghua University in Beijing are among the first batch of higher education institutions tapped to set up new tech schools
- Plan is part of Beijing’s aim to become a world-leading power by 2035 amid increasing trade and tech pressure from the US
China has tapped 12 of the country’s top universities to build “schools of future technology” in yet another move by the country to become a global science and technology powerhouse.
The prestigious Peking University and Tsinghua University in Beijing are among the first batch of higher education institutions designated by the Ministry of Education to establish new schools focused on building China’s advantage in frontier technologies, according to a statement by the Ministry on Wednesday.
As part of a wider plan announced last year, the new technology schools will be tasked with research and development of “cutting-edge, revolutionary and disruptive technologies in the next 10-15 years”, the cultivation of future innovation leaders, and transforming the country’s reputation from “Made in China to Created in China”, according to the statement.
With the new schools, China wants to compete with top global universities such as the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Stanford University in the US, said Li Yi, chief research fellow at the Shanghai Academy of Social Sciences.
“In the past we were able to travel around the world to learn about the new scientific frontiers, but the West, especially the US, is increasingly limiting the channel of overseas study and communication [for Chinese students], which makes it more pressing to build influential institutions of our own,” Li said.