Successfully Hosted the First International Advisory Committee Meeting

On October 27, 2024, the School of Computer Science at Peking University successfully held its first International Advisory Committee meeting. The committee is composed of nine distinguished scholars and experts from world-class institutions, who will provide consulting and advice on the overall development strategy of the School of Computer Science. Their guidance will help the school achieve its strategic goal of advancing the two Double First-Class disciplines — Computer Science and Technology, and Software Engineering — to the forefront of global academia.

The invited members of the advisory committee include:

• John Edward Hopcroft, 1986 Turing Award laureate, Foreign Member of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, and Chair Professor at Peking University (Committee Chair)

• Andrew Yao, 2000 Turing Award laureate, Academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, Director of the Institute for Interdisciplinary Information Sciences, and Dean of the School of Artificial Intelligence at Tsinghua University

• Beng Chin Ooi, Foreign Member of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, and Li Ka Shing Professor at the National University of Singapore

• Wang Huaimin, Academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and Professor at the National University of Defense Technology

• Masaru Kitsuregawa, President of the Research Organization of Information and Systems in Japan and Distinguished Professor at the University of Tokyo

• Michael I. Jordan, Member of the National Academy of Sciences, National Academy of Engineering, and American Academy of Arts and Sciences; Distinguished Professor at the University of California, Berkeley, in the Departments of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, and Statistics

• Schahram Dustdar, Member of the European Academy of Sciences and Professor at the Vienna University of Technology, Austria

• Wenfei Fan, Foreign Member of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and Professor at the School of Informatics, University of Edinburgh

• C.-C. Jay Kuo, Fellow of the IEEE, Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, and Distinguished Professor at the University of Southern California, participating online

The meeting was attended by Academician Piao Shilong, Vice President of Peking University; Li Yun, Director of the Office of International Relations at Peking University; Academician Mei Hong, as well as Hu Zhenjiang, Dean of the School of Computer Science, Xiong Xiaoliang, Party Secretary, Vice Deans Zhou Minghui, Cui Bin, Guo Yao, department heads, research institute directors, and many faculty representatives.

The meeting was overall chaired by Vice Dean Zhou Minghui. Vice President Piao Shilong delivered a welcome address, warmly welcoming the international experts and expressing his deep respect for their contributions. He highlighted that many of the experts present are not only leaders in their respective research fields but also long-time collaborators and friends of Peking University. He expressed his hope that, through the International Advisory Committee platform, the experts would generously share their invaluable academic insights and industry perspectives, offering forward-thinking and practical advice to support the School of Computer Science in its teaching reform, scientific innovation, and international cooperation. Together, he hoped they could help elevate the school’s academic influence on the global stage.

Vice President Piao Shilong's Speech

Dean Hu Zhenjiang provided a comprehensive report on the school’s development history, faculty strength, research achievements, and future plans. He emphasized that the goal of the School of Computer Science at Peking University is to build an internationally top-tier academic culture and environment, one that attracts the world’s best students and scholars, and aims to rank among the top ten computer science departments globally. To achieve this, the school will continue to strengthen its discipline development, enhance its global competitiveness, and foster international cooperation, training leaders in computer science with a global perspective and innovative capabilities.

Dean Hu presented appointment letters to the advisory committee members and expressed that the involvement of these top-tier experts will provide forward-looking strategic guidance, further enhancing the school’s academic influence and competitiveness worldwide. He emphasized that the school’s success in the future will not only rely on its current research achievements and faculty strength, but also on the deep involvement and strategic insights of these global experts, which will broaden the school’s vision and direction for sustainable development.

Dean Hu Zhenjiang delivering the summary report

Group photo of the International Advisory Committee members

Following this, Vice Dean Cui Bin moderated a session where faculty representatives from key research areas presented their latest achievements in fields such as computer theory, architecture and networks, software engineering, data science and engineering, and artificial intelligence (including vision and natural language processing). The experts offered in-depth critiques, valuable feedback, and suggestions, providing beneficial references for the future research direction of the department.

Vice Dean Zhou Minghui overall chaired the meeting；Vice Dean Cui Bin moderating the session

Deng Xiaotie’s Report；Xu Chenren’s Report

Xie Tao’s Report；Bian Kaigui’s Report

Huang Tiejun’s Report；Committee Members in Discussion

Chair of the Committee: John E. Hopcroft；Member: Andrew Yao

Member: Michael I. Jordan；Member: Wang Huaimin

Member: Masaru Kitsuregawa；Member: Wenfei Fan

The afternoon session, chaired by Vice Dean Guo Yao, focused on the growth and development of young scholars. Seven young faculty members reported on their main research outcomes in fields such as systems security, in-network computing, trusted networking, embodied intelligence and large models, new storage technologies, and network telemetry. The experts offered strong praise for their research and provided targeted guidance and suggestions. These exchanges not only provided a valuable opportunity for young scholars to showcase their work but also pointed them in the right direction for their future research, inspiring their innovation and potential.

Vice Dean Guo Yao moderating the session；Li Ding’s Report

Wu Wenfei’s Report；Liu Guyue’s Report

Zhang Shanghang’s Report；Wang He’s Report

Zhang Jie’s Report；Huang Qun’s Report

Member: Schahram Dustdar；Member: Beng Chin Ooi

Member: C.-C. Jay Kuo；Dean Hu Zhenjiang taking notes

During the meeting, each committee member offered constructive advice on various aspects, including discipline development goals, faculty building, young talent cultivation, academic evaluation metrics, and international development strategies. The meeting successfully gathered insights from a broad range of perspectives and provided invaluable guidance for the future development of the School of Computer Science. This event marks a key step forward in the school’s efforts to gather global wisdom and drive academic innovation. The school will use this meeting as a new starting point to deepen exchanges and cooperation with leading international scholars and institutions, exploring cutting-edge areas of the discipline and driving continuous breakthroughs in research. At the same time, the school will continue to focus on cultivating and attracting young scholars to inject ongoing vitality into its sustainable development. The School of Computer Science at Peking University will work closely with the advisory committee’s experts to strive toward the goal of becoming a top-tier computer science department by 2030.