Cambridge University ‘received “generous gift” from Chinese software giant with links to country’s spy agency’ to fund engineering fellowship
- Cambridge University has followed Oxford in being linked with China’s Tencent
- Software firm with links to China’s communist regime gave ‘gift’ to the university
- The ‘generous gift’ helped Cambridge to fund research into quantum computers
Cambrigde University is said to have received a ‘generous gift,’ from a Chinese software giant with links to the country’s community spy agency, in order to fund an engineering fellowship.
Financial backing from Tencent funded research into quantum computers under Cambridge’s Dowling postdoctoral research fellowship.
Quantum computers are state-of-the-art tech that are able to solve problems that would be impossible for standard devices.
Cambridge University announced it had received a ‘generous gift,’ from Tencent in 2019, to fund a fellowship researching quantum computers
News of the ‘generous gift,’ comes amid outrage that Oxford will rename its prestigious professorship of physics after the Chinese company in return for a £700,000 donation.
Yesterday The Daily Mail revealed The Wykeham chair of physics, which was established in 1900 and comes with a fellowship at 14th-century New College, will be known as the Tencent-Wykeham chair in honour of the computing conglomerate, Oxford sources revealed.
CIA sources have claimed that when Tencent was founded it received money and support from the Ministry of State Security, China’s main intelligence agency. A Pentagon report last month said it has been working closely with Chinese security agencies on AI.
Tencent owns the WeChat communications app, popular with millions of Chinese emigres to keep in touch with home.
The conglomerate denies that it received intelligence funding, saying its finances were ‘transparent’. It rejects accusations of wrongdoing.
According to The Times, Cambridge announced it had received a ‘generous gift’ from Tencent in 2019 to fund a five-year postdoctoral research fellowship in the department of engineering
Jesus College at Cambridge has ties to the company too.
It has hosted the Yidan Prize Conference: Europe on three occasions, the award offers a prize $3.9mllion from Charles Chen Yidan, one of Tencent’s founding members.
CIA sources have claimed that when Tencent was founded it received money and support from the Ministry of State Security, China’s main intelligence agency
MailOnline has approached Cambridge University and Tencent for comment.
An Oxford University spokesman told the Daily Mail: ‘The University has a rigorous due diligence process and Tencent has been approved as an appropriate donor by our independent Committee to Review Donations, which includes independent, external representatives.
‘We have a very clear position on academic independence from donations. Our donors have no say in setting the research and teaching programmes of the posts they fund, nor do they have any access to the