On the afternoon of May 16, the Roundtable on “AI-Driven International Cooperation in the Digital Intelligence Era” and the launch ceremony of the YES Project of Wuhan University of Technology were held in the multifunctional hall at Nanhu Library. Eight distinguished guests and university leaders from different countries and institutions attended the event. The meeting facilitated in-depth exchanges, explored new paths, and opened a new chapter in international education cooperation. WUT President Yang Zongkai attended the meeting and delivered a speech, while Vice President Mai Liqiang of WUT chaired the session.

Yang Zongkai gave a brief overview of WUT’s development in terms of talent cultivation and international cooperation in his welcome speech. He emphasized that in response to the challenges and opportunities brought by digital transformation, WUT had taken the lead in “recognizing changes, adapting to changes, and driving changes”—achieving significant results recognized worldwide. He noted that this roundtable brought together key stakeholders to explore high-potential breakthrough areas in international education. He expressed hopes that all participants would work together to establish an “AI + Engineering Universities International Cooperation Alliance,” build a sustainable and regular mechanism for resource sharing and faculty-student exchanges, and actively explore new models and paths for deep integration between AI and education. This would provide strong momentum for global academic cooperation and talent cultivation to meet future societal needs, and contribute to the digital transformation and internationalization of education—ultimately contributing to a shared future for humanity.

During the discussion session titled “AI Empowering International Cooperation,” Jérôme Dinet, representative of the President of the University of Lorraine (France); Georg Pohnert, Vice President of Friedrich Schiller University Jena (Germany); Elwen Evans, President of University of Wales Trinity Saint David (UK); Zhemom, Vice President of the Tajik Institute of Metallurgy and Mining; Shen Dai, President of Brest Business School (France); Zhu Wei, Vice President of University of Wales Trinity Saint David (UK); Is Sophorn, Vice President of Royal Academy of Cambodia and Kemara University; and Emmanuel Peter, Vice President of Efrei (France), delivered keynote speeches. They addressed topics such as “AI Empowering Educational Reform and Innovation”, “AI Empowering Intercultural Faculty-Student Exchange”, and “AI Empowering International Academic Cooperation”. Drawing on their respective academic strengths and research specialties, they explored the immense potential and value of AI from three dimensions: teaching reform, intercultural exchange, and global research collaboration.

At the event, WUT and its partner institutions from the UK, France, Germany, and other countries jointly launched the YES Project, initiating a new phase of inter-university student exchange and promoting reciprocal faculty and student engagement. All attending university leaders also jointly issued the Joint Initiative on AI Empowering Shared Educational Resources. As one of the key outcomes of the conference, this initiative marks a significant step toward deeper collaboration in resource sharing. Leveraging AI technology, the initiative aims to optimize the use of educational resources, injecting new vitality into international education cooperation.

This roundtable’s in-depth discussions and exchanges deepened understanding of the theme “AI Empowering International Cooperation in the Digital Intelligence Era,” clarified directions and strategies for AI-enabled collaboration in teaching, faculty-student exchange, and academic research, and led to the successful signing of multiple cooperation agreements. These agreements kick-start important projects on talent exchange and resource sharing. WUT will continue to actively promote higher-level collaboration among universities and contribute its wisdom and strength to the cause of education internationalization. Leaders from relevant administrative offices and academic departments at WUT also attended the event.

Written by: Xie Xintian

Rewritten by: Lu Yu

Edited by: Li Tiantian, Li Huihui

Source: Publicity Department of the CPC WUT Committee, International Office of WUT