TOKYO (AP) – Jack Ma (AP, pic below), a cofounder of Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba Group, will be a visiting professor at Tokyo College, a research institute run by the prestigious University of Tokyo, the university said yesterday.
Ma will carry out research in sustainable agriculture and food production, it said in a statement.
It said that Ma, who heads his own philanthropic organisation, the Jack Ma Foundation will “share his rich experience and pioneering knowledge on entrepreneurship, corporate management and innovation”, with students and faculty.
Chinese regulators singled out Alibaba for scrutiny in a recent crackdown on technology and Internet companies, having put the brakes on a planned initial public offering in 2020 of Alibaba’s financial affiliate Ant Group.
Ma kept a low profile for several years and travelled overseas before returning to China recently.
His appointment began yesterday and runs through the end of October, the university said.
