WASHINGTON, Sept 6 (Askume) – The U.S. Georgia Institute of Technology said on Friday it would end research and education with China’s Tianjin and Shenzhen following a U.S. congressional review of its cooperation with suspected entities with ties to the Chinese military.
In May this year, the House of Representatives Special Committee on China sent a letter to the Georgia Institute of Technology seeking details of its research on cutting-edge semiconductor technology with Tianjin University in northeastern China.
The Chinese school and its affiliated institutions were placed on an export restricted list by the US Commerce Department in 2020 for actions that violated US national security, including the theft of trade secrets and research collaborations that fueled China’s military development.
Georgia Tech is evaluating its status in China since Tianjin University was added to the Entity List, spokeswoman Abigail Tampi told Askume in an email.
“Tianjin University has had ample time to rectify the situation. As of today, Tianjin University remains on the Entity List, which makes Georgia Tech’s partnership with Tianjin University and subsequently Georgia Tech Shenzhen Institute (GTSI) no longer valid,” Tampi said.
Georgia Tech, a top U.S. engineering school and a major recipient of Defense Department funding, said in a side statement that it would stop participating in Shenzhen College’s programs, but that about 300 students currently studying at Shenzhen College would have the opportunity to complete degree requirements.
Liu Pengyu, a spokesman for the Chinese Embassy in Washington, said it was an “unfair smear” to characterize normal academic exchanges as a threat to national security.
We oppose the US’ attempt to generalize the concept of national security, politicize educational cooperation and academic exchanges, and hinder normal scientific research exchanges and cooperation, an embassy spokesperson said in a statement.
In January, Georgia Tech announced that researchers at its International Center for Nanoparticles and Nanosystems in Atlanta and Tianjin had created the world’s first functional semiconductor made from the nanomaterial graphene. It said it could lead to a “paradigm shift” in electronics and lead to faster computing speeds.
Geopolitical and scientific rivals, the United States and China, view semiconductors as a strategic industry with civilian and military applications, including quantum computing and advanced weapons systems.
The special committee noted in its May letter that the Tianjin research center is owned by a Chinese company whose subsidiaries supply the People’s Liberation Army (PLA).
Georgia Tech scientists who led the Tianjin project have defended the research, saying all results have been made available to the public and that the collaboration has undergone extensive legal review.
“Georgia Tech should not use a congressional investigation to pressure it to end its partnership with a blacklisted Chinese entity,” said U.S. Rep. Virginia Foxx, the Republican chairwoman of the House Education and Workforce Committee, who also serves on the committee.
“Nevertheless, we are glad that Georgia Tech has made the right decision and we hope other universities will follow suit,” Fox said in an email.
US agencies and Congress have stepped up scrutiny of Chinese government-backed influence and technology transfers at American universities, amid concerns that Beijing is exploiting America’s open and federally funded research environment to circumvent export controls and other national security laws.
The US Justice Department under President Joe Biden has ended a program under former President Donald Trump’s administration called the China Initiative that was aimed at combating Chinese espionage and intellectual property theft. Critics say the program promotes racial profiling against Asian Americans and denies scientific research.
