(FREE BEACON) – A Chinese tech billionaire whose company censors the internet in China has donated millions of dollars to MIT and Princeton University and advises two Ivy League schools on expanding their presence in China.
Ma Huateng, the founder of Tencent, has given at least $5 million to Princeton through his personal charity since 2017 and $5 million since 2018 to MIT, according to previously unreported Department of Education records. Ma also serves on the advisory boards for the Yale Center Beijing and the Cornell China Center, where he and other Chinese business leaders advise the schools on developing partnerships in China. Tencent’s charity contributed $900,000 to Columbia University in 2017, according to the Department of Education records.
As Ma forged ties to the schools, the Chinese government enlisted Tencent and other tech firms as part of an ambitious plan to dominate the field of artificial intelligence by 2030. The Defense Department said in a report last year that China plans to use technology developed by the firms for both commercial and military purposes.
