On September 26, President Kwang Hyung Lee of KAIST and Andrew Hamilton, President of New York University (NYU), gathered at a board meeting in New York to announce a newfound partnership between KAIST and NYU. This decision was directly endorsed by attendees including high-profile figures such as South Korean president Yoon Suk-Yeol and New York City mayor Eric Adams.
The partnership between the two universities aims to focus on education in arts, mathematics, engineering, technology, science, and humanities. President Hamilton stated, “We believe this partnership is very much in line with NYU’s commitment to global engagement and will make important contributions to New York’s tech sector. It’s exciting to think how much NYU and KAIST have to learn from one another, and how much we may accomplish together.” During the board meeting, KAIST also expressed its hopes of extending the partnership into an expanded campus in New York City by 2025. KAIST aims to increase the stability and feasibility of this plan by integrating previously committed donors into the project.
Both institutions have already committed space on their campuses for the announced collaboration. KAIST announced that they would provide facilities for NYU staff on the Daejeon campus, and joint KAIST-NYU offices are to be opened in One Metrotech Center, a business and education center located at the core of NYU’s engineering corridor in Downtown Brooklyn, New York. The partnership effort will start with an assortment of research collaborations between approximately 50 faculty members from KAIST and NYU. Additionally, discussions were raised about the possibility of establishing a joint undergraduate engineering degree program, as well as a study-abroad program, that would include an intensive hands-on learning environment and industry experience in both countries.
The proposal made in this board meeting was a huge change from KAIST’s statement made last December, where it committed to building an independent campus in New York by receiving a donation of buildings and around 33,000 m2 of land from BIG Investment Group Chairman Hee Nam Bae. KAIST explained that its strategy of first introducing a campus jointly with NYU would help secure procedural and financial stability during the early stages of establishment, as opposed to relying heavily on individual donors.
With this collaboration, KAIST intends to create an incubating center for Korean startups in the US, sharing a joint vision with NYU to “[rewrite] Wall Street”. By using New York City as a footing for entry to overseas markets, South Korean startups will find it easier to obtain opportunities in successful ventures. NYC mayor Adams said, “We have worked closely with KAIST to develop strategies for increasing their presence and investments in New York. This is the start of a relationship that I am confident will bring even more academic, business, and technological opportunities to the five boroughs.” President Lee affirmed, “We are very excited to be … building stronger ties between Korea and the United States.”