Tsinghua University officially appointed material scientist Omar Yaghi on 3/7. Professor Yaghi will lead a research team dedicated to leveraging artificial intelligence (AI) to transform the design and synthesis of novel materials, aiming to significantly shorten development cycles.
Professor Yaghi, 61, is one of three scientists who received the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 2025 for his groundbreaking research on metal-organic frameworks (MOFs). These super-porous, sponge-like materials are capable of capturing and converting carbon, harvesting water from desert air, and absorbing hydrogen for clean energy production.
During the appointment ceremony, Professor Yaghi expressed his hope to develop new materials that address major environmental challenges such as water scarcity, carbon neutrality, and sustainable development. He also aims to contribute to training the next generation of scientists in AI-applied chemistry.
Before joining Tsinghua, Yaghi held the prestigious James and Neeltje Tretter Endowed Chair in Chemistry at the University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley), currently ranked as the number 1 public university in the US.
Born in 1965 into a Palestinian refugee family in Amman, Jordan, Yaghi moved to the US at 15. He earned his doctorate in Chemistry from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. His career includes stints at Arizona State University, the University of Michigan, and the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) before his tenure at UC Berkeley.
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Professor Omar Yaghi. *Photo: Tsinghua University Website*
In a November interview, Professor Yaghi highlighted the rapid advancement of AI-applied materials chemistry, which facilitates the creation of faster, more affordable, and sustainable materials. This approach moves beyond traditional trial-and-error methods, enabling scientists to design materials with enhanced precision. The next frontier involves developing materials with inherent instructions for specific functions, allowing them to operate akin to DNA.
Yaghi has garnered dozens of international academic accolades, including the Albert Einstein World Award of Science, the Wolf Prize in Chemistry, and the Balzan Prize.
He is currently a foreign member of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and has received the China Nano Research Award multiple times. He also maintains long-standing collaborations with several leading Chinese universities, including Tsinghua, Nanjing, Fudan, and Shanghai Jiao Tong.
Zhou Zihui, a former doctoral student of Yaghi at UC Berkeley, noted that Professor Yaghi has mentored approximately 200 doctoral students, with nearly half being Chinese. He consistently advised his students to consider not only the scientific aspect or publication of their work but also how to ensure their research reaches the world and positively impacts human lives.
The migration of talent from the West to China has intensified over the past two years. This trend extends beyond returning Chinese-origin professors and doctors; numerous foreign scientists have joined Chinese universities. Notable examples include mathematicians Ngo Bao Chau and Vu Ha Van (University of Hong Kong), biochemist Hartmut Michel (Jilin University), and mathematician Joshua Zahl (Nankai University).
*Khanh Linh (According to SCMP, Tsinghua University)*
