On September 1, Chen Yulu, President of Nankai University, met with Zholdykhan Sanat, Chairman of the Board of Kazakhstan's National Agency for the Development of Innovations (QazInnovations). Both sides held productive discussions on deepening cooperation in areas such as digital economy and artificial intelligence (AI).

Chen Yulu introduced the disciplinary development of Nankai University and its recent achievements across various fields, highlighting multiple innovative breakthroughs in advancing digital economy education. He noted that NKU hosted the “2025 SCO Digital Economy Forum—Theme Forum of University Cooperation” as a supporting event for the SCO Summit 2025 in Tianjin. During the forum, NKU initiated the establishment of the “SCO Digital Economy University Alliance”, with the aim of building a new collaborative ecosystem for digital economy education among universities in SCO member states. He also highlighted NKU’s ongoing exchange programs with L.N. Gumilyov Eurasian National University (ENU) and expressed his hope for future collaboration with Kazakhstani industrial institutions.

Zholdykhan Sanat first conveyed greetings to Chen from Madiyev Zhaslan, Minister of Digital Development, Innovations and Aerospace Industry of Kazakhstan. He expressed his pleasure in learning that NKU and ENU have jointly launched two cooperative master’s degree programs in “Digital Economy and Industrial Innovation” and “International Business and Strategic Trade Control”. He further added that as the digital economy is fundamentally reshaping the global economic system through technological innovation and industrial convergence, President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev attaches great national importance to advancing digitalization and AI. He highlighted the urgent need to strengthen talent cultivation in foundational sciences and deepen the integration of scientific research with innovative industries. He expressed his strong expectations that future collaboration with prestigious Chinese universities like NKU, alongside ENU, in disciplines related to digital economy, AI, will foster the joint cultivation of high-quality talent, enhance industrial technology innovation, and actively implement the consensus reached by the leaders of both countries, thereby contributing to robust China-Kazakhstan cooperation.

The two sides also engaged in in-depth discussions on cooperation in AI governance and its applications in industrial integration.

The National Agency for the Development of Innovations (QazInnovations), a national-level innovation agency under the Ministry of Digital Development, Innovations and Aerospace Industry of Kazakhstan, is tasked with promoting innovation and entrepreneurship, supporting startups, facilitating technology transfer, and integrating Kazakhstan into the global innovation ecosystem.

（Edited and translated by Nankai News Team.)