Beijing Review

PEOPLE & POINTS

XIAOMI FOUNDER DONATES TO ALMA MATER

Smartphone maker Xiaomi’s founder Lei Jun donated 1.3 billion yuan ($183.7 million) to his alma mater Wuhan University on November 29, on the 130th anniversary of the university’s founding. The donation is the highest-ever to a Chinese higher learning institution by an individual contributor.

The funds will support basic research in the fields of mathematics, physics, chemistry, literature, history and philosophy, as well as scientific and technological innovations in computing science, and the nurture of undergraduates.

Lei graduated from Wuhan University’s School of Computer Science and Technology in 1991. In 2010, he founded Xiaomi, which is now one of the world’s top five smartphone makers.

Prior to this latest donation, Lei

You’re reading a preview, subscribe to read more.

More from Beijing Review

Beijing Review6 min read
A Chinese Institutional Innovation
Roughly the size of Europe but home to around twice as many people, China is diverse not only in geography, but also in language, culture and ethnicity. Addressing domestic ethnic affairs in contemporary China is the country’s system of regional ethn
Beijing Review5 min readWorld
Rekindling Sino-U.S. Education Cooperation
Chinese President Xi Jinping’s recent reply to a letter from Lamont Repollet, President of Kean University in New Jersey, the U.S., could not have occurred at a more opportune time. Written against the backdrop of the 50,000-student initiative announ
Beijing Review4 min read
The Master’s Piece
What kind of artwork can grace the Great Hall of the People, a state building that functions as a meeting place for national-level events in China? The answer is the large mural Magnificent China, 18 meters long and 3.72 meters wide, located in the G

Related Books & Audiobooks