The Executive Committee of the Corporation of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) visited Shenzhen. President Chen Shiyi was invited to join them for a working lunch.

President Chen Shiyi joined MIT Corporation Chair Robert B. Millard, MIT President L. Rafael Reif, Provost Martin A. Schmidt, and other MIT representatives. President Chen Shiyi introduced the MIT representatives to SUSTech, focusing on its unique development history and recent achievements. He answered many questions from the MIT committee members about the state of Chinese higher education and about Shenzhen. There was significant discussion about reform of China’s higher education sectors, the service that universities provide to society and innovation in running tertiary educational institutions.

2016 saw SUSTech and MIT start talking about collaborative synergies in areas such as education and research. On June 15, 2018, MIT and SUSTech signed a collaboration agreement to build Centers for Mechanical Engineering Research and Education, with centers in both Boston and Shenzhen.