Leading Chinese universities and Big Tech partners to establish a joint metaverse research institute

Shanghai Securities Journal reports that some of the most influential IT businesses in China have teamed up to establish the Joint Research Institute of Metaverse and Virtual-Real Interaction in Shanghai. The research institute will include some of the top Big Tech companies such as Tencent, Huawei, Epic Games, and China Mobile’s Migu, as well as leading universities including Fudan, Peking, Renmin, Zhejiang, and Nanjing, which have been named the ‘the research co-construction units for the institute’. Zhao Xing, a professor at the Big Data Research Institute at Fudan University and the National Intelligent Evaluation and Governance Experimental Base, was appointed dean of the new institute. Zhao said that Shanghai has the experience of digital transformation and construction and has the strong support of metaverse talent, technology, industry, urban environment, and consumption capacity – making it the ideal place for the institute.