From January 19 to 23, Tsinghua University President Li Luming visited Switzerland and Germany.
During the visit, he attended the World Economic Forum (WEF) Annual Meeting 2026, participated in the Global University Leaders Forum (GULF) and the Board Meeting of the Global Alliance of Universities on Climate (GAUC), and visited leading local universities, research institutions, and industry leaders in both countries.
The visit aimed to enhance international cooperation in education, science and technology, talent development, and sustainable development.
Tsinghua University delegation visits the International Olympic Committee.
On January 19 in Switzerland, Li Luming held a series of meetings and visits with academic and institutional partners.
In Geneva, he visited the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN), toured the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) — a flagship Large-scale Scientific Facility — with a descent to the LHCb experimental cavern, and explored opportunities for deeper collaboration between CERN and the China Jinping Underground Laboratory (CJPL), a deep underground facility led by Tsinghua University, in frontier physics research.
In Lausanne, Li Luming visited the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and held talks with its Director General, Christophe de Kepper, to explore the potential applications of emerging technologies, including artificial intelligence, in the field of sports.
Later in Davos, Li Luming attended the Davos Roundtable hosted by Gajah Tunggal Tbk, a company headquartered in Indonesia, where he delivered remarks outlining the latest progress in Tsinghua University’s global strategy implementation.
During the World Economic Forum (WEF) Annual Meeting, Li Luming also participated in a series of events, engaging with leaders from across sectors to discuss pathways for cooperation and development on global issues.
On the afternoon of January 20, he attended the Global University Leaders Forum (GULF), joining leaders from renowned universities and research institutions to discuss the theme “Leadership in Transition: Universities and the World Ahead.” During the forum, he highlighted Tsinghua University’s innovative initiatives and achievements in leveraging artificial intelligence to empower education and science.
Participants of the GAUC Board Meeting
On the same day, Li Luming attended the Global Alliance of Universities on Climate (GAUC) Council for the 2025–2026 term.
During the meeting, he held discussions with Irene Tracey, vice-chancellor of the University of Oxford; Deborah Prentice, vice-chancellor of the University of Cambridge; Luis Vassy, president of Sciences Po; and Evelyn Wang, vice president of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
The discussions focused on strengthening collaboration among member universities within the alliance and deepening industry–academia coordination on climate governance. This was followed by a high-level dialogue featuring in-depth exchanges with representatives from academia and the global business community.
During the visit, Li Luming also met separately with Stephen Schwarzman, chairman, CEO and co-founder of Blackstone; Ray Dalio, founder of Bridgewater Associates; Wu Yibing, CEO of Temasek China; Andrew Forrest, founder and executive chairman of Fortescue; Eisaku Ito, president and CEO of Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, and Zhang Lei, CEO and founder of Envision, among other key partners.
He also met with alumni entrepreneurs, engaging in detailed exchanges on deepening university–industry collaboration, talent development, and sustainable development.
On January 21, Li Luming visited Zurich, where he met with Daniela Zetti, head of the Archives of Contemporary History at ETH Zurich. He toured the archives’ exhibitions and exchanged views on academic cooperation in archival research, as well as collaboration on curating and exhibiting valuable historical image collections.
Tsinghua University signs cooperation agreement with Technical University of Munich.
Whilst in Germany, on January 21, Li Luming met with Thomas F. Hofmann, president of the Technical University of Munich (TUM), and renewed the Memorandum of Understanding on the Establishment of a Flagship Partnership between the two universities.
The two parties reviewed the achievements of their collaboration in recent years and expressed their shared hope that the renewal of the flagship partnership memorandum of understanding would serve as an opportunity to further deepen cooperation in scientific research, innovation, and talent cultivation.
Following the meeting, Li Luming visited laboratories at TUM in the field of biomedical engineering.
Tsinghua University signs cooperation agreement with Hamburg University of Technology.
On January 23, Li Luming visited Hamburg University of Technology (TUHH) and signed an Educational and Research Cooperation Agreement and a student exchange agreement with TUHH President Andreas Timm-Giel. The two sides reviewed their multiple exchanges since June last year and the progress of cooperation between the two universities, and expressed their shared expectation for deeper collaboration in the future.
During the visit, Li Luming was also invited to deliver a speech, presenting Tsinghua University’s initiatives and insights on integrating artificial intelligence into education and cultivating cutting-edge, interdisciplinary innovative talent.
Li Luming also visited BMW Group and Airbus Hamburg, where he held in-depth discussions on frontier topics including AI-empowered manufacturing, green mobility, and carbon neutrality.
The discussions also explored ways to strengthen faculty and student exchanges and advance university–industry collaborative innovation as well as industry–academia–research cooperation.
Representatives from relevant departments and units of the University also participated in the related activities.
Editors: Li Han, John Paul Grima
