What Fudan University does

Fudan University is a public research university founded in 1905 in Shanghai, China, administered under the Ministry of Education and designated as a 'Double First Class' institution and a member of the C9 League. It operates across four Shanghai campuses (Handan, Fenglin, Zhangjiang, Jiangwan) plus the National Science Park hosting over 1,500 companies, serving approximately 40,000+ undergraduate, graduate, and international students, a K-12 affiliated school network, and a network of 14+ affiliated hospitals including Zhongshan, Huashan, Cancer, Children's, and Eye & ENT hospitals. The university is organized into colleges and research institutes spanning humanities, social sciences, natural sciences, engineering, medicine, and interdisciplinary studies, with dedicated institutes for brain-inspired intelligence, human phenomics, and intelligent robotics.

The university's research portfolio spans both foundational science and applied technologies, with 19 ESI top 1% disciplines (4 in top 1 per mille, ranked 2nd in mainland China), 15 Clarivate Highly Cited Researchers (2024), and 835 high-citation papers. Notable technical outputs include fiber integrated circuits (published Nature, January 2026), 2D-silicon hybrid memory chips (ATOM2CHIP, successfully taped out), the WUJI 32-bit RISC-V microprocessor, World Action Models framework for robotics AI, Human-Like 3D World Model for embodied cognition, gene therapy for OTOF deafness (90% response rate in 42 participants), and China's largest multi-disease, multi-modal brain database. The university does not sell commercial software products; instead, it commercializes research through its science park, technology transfer offices, and the newly established $100 million Fudan Science and Technology Innovation Overseas Investment Fund (December 2025).

Fudan's revenue model is institutional rather than transactional: primary funding comes from central and local government appropriations, tuition and fees, competitive research grants (national and international), and the substantial clinical revenue of its affiliated hospital network. Recent commercial-adjacent initiatives include the SMU-Fudan Doctor of Business Administration (Technology) with Singapore Management University (August 2026), the Fudan Global MBA Program (March 2026), and the Joint Research Center of Longevity Medicine with Ping An Insurance (June 2026). The university serves multiple customer segments — domestic and international students, patients, research partners (Harvard, Stanford, NUS, Duke, UC Irvine, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Chinese Academy of Sciences), senior executives, and tenant companies in the science park.

Name

Fudan University

Legal name

复旦大学 (Fudan University)

Website

https://fudan.edu.cn

Company type

Private

Founded year

1905

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1,001–5,000 employees

Short description

Fudan University is a top-tier Chinese public research university in Shanghai (founded 1905) operating across STEM, medicine, and humanities. It serves 40,000+ students, 14+ affiliated hospitals, and a science park of 1,500+ companies, generating breakthrough research in AI, 2D materials, gene therapy, and brain science.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Higher Education and Research

NAICS

Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools (611310), Professional and Management Development Training (61143)

SIC

Services-Commercial Physical & Biological Research (8731)

akta.pro primary industry

Comprehensive Doctoral Research Universities (Multi-Disciplinary) (EDAHABAA)

akta.pro secondary industry

Technical Universities with Computing, Data & AI Focus (EDAHAEAK)

Keywords

• Higher education
• Scientific research
• Medical services
• Executive education
• Technology transfer

Headquarters

HQ city

Shanghai

HQ country

China

HQ region

Asia

Offices5 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Operations, Marketing or Sales

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels9 records

Core offering

Fudan University is a comprehensive public research university delivering undergraduate, graduate, and doctoral degree programs across humanities, sciences, engineering, and medicine. It conducts scientific research through dedicated institutes (brain-inspired intelligence, human phenome, intelligent robotics) and operates a network of 14+ affiliated hospitals across Shanghai. The university also provides executive education, international student programs, and technology commercialization services through its national science park.

Product overview

Fudan University is a comprehensive academic institution organized into colleges and schools spanning humanities, social sciences, natural sciences, engineering, medicine, and interdisciplinary studies. The university operates research institutes, affiliated hospitals, and educational programs across undergraduate, graduate, and international education. Fudan University's institutional offerings include academic colleges (such as the School of Management, School of Computer Science, School of Life Sciences, and Shanghai Medical College), research centers, and affiliated clinical hospitals including Zhongshan Hospital, Huashan Hospital, Eye and ENT Hospital, and the Cancer Hospital. The university does not offer commercial software products or technology platforms in the product-intelligence sense.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• SMU-Fudan DBA (Technology): Joint doctoral program with Singapore Management University focused on technology-driven innovation and strategic transformation, structured across Singapore and Shanghai.
• Fudan Global MBA Program
• Center for Advancing Global Collaboration (CAGC)

Products and services

• Undergraduate Degree Programs Four-year bachelor's degree programs offered across Fudan's colleges and schools; admission is based on China's national college entrance examination (Gaokao) with provincial recruitment teams traveling to meet prospective students.
• Graduate and Doctoral Degree Programs Master's and doctoral research degree programs offered through Fudan's graduate schools, including research-intensive programs at institutes such as the Institute of Brain-Inspired Intelligence Science and Technology, the Human Phenome Institute, and Shanghai Medical College.
• International Student Programs Degree programs and exchange opportunities for foreign students, administered through the dedicated International Students Office (iso.fudan.edu.cn).
• Fudan Global MBA Program Global MBA program emphasizing Chinese management practices, AI in business, cross-cultural management, and real-world projects, delivered in hybrid online-offline format for aspiring global managers.
• SMU-Fudan Doctor of Business Administration (Technology) Technology-focused doctoral program for senior executives jointly offered with Singapore Management University, targeting leaders driving strategic innovation at the intersection of business and technology.
• Affiliated Hospital Medical Services Clinical care, specialized treatments, and clinical trial services delivered through Fudan's network of 14+ affiliated hospitals across Shanghai, including tertiary general hospitals, specialty hospitals, and a proton and heavy ion center.
• Technology Transfer and Incubation (Fudan University National Science Park) Science park and technology commercialization services hosting 1,500+ companies, providing incubation and industrialization pathways for university-originated research.
• Fudan Science and Technology Innovation Overseas Investment Fund $100 million university-backed venture fund investing in early-stage technology startups and innovation ventures.

Quantifiable outcome

• Gene therapy for OTOF deafness: 90% of 42 participants showed hearing improvement, half reached normal hearing levels at 2.5 years
• +6 more outcomes

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature19 records

Partnerships

21 partnerships are on record, tiered major, minor and flagship.

• Ping An Insurance (Group) Company of ChinamajorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 2 June 2026Ping An partnered with Fudan University to establish the Joint Research Center of Longevity Medicine, enhancing research and services related to healthy aging and longevity. This complements Ping An's 'Ping An Home' service brand launch for proactive health management in China.
• PKU Healthcare GroupmajorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 2 June 2026Ping An also partnered with PKU Healthcare Group and Fudan University to establish a longevity medicine research center under the Ping An Home service brand, focused on healthy aging research.
• FinVolution GroupmajorGTM or Marketing Partner · 28 May 2026Fudan University's Natural Language Processing Lab serves as official partner competition of NLPCC 2026 for the 2026 FinVolution Global Data Science Competition on turn-taking modeling in voice AI conversations. Prize pool of RMB 308,000 (approx. USD 42,900).
• China Computer FederationmajorGTM or Marketing Partner · 28 May 2026Served as academic advisor for the 2026 FinVolution Global Data Science Competition, with Fudan University's NLP Lab as official partner competition of NLPCC 2026.
• Shanghai Jiao Tong UniversitymajorTechnology or Integration · 27 May 2026SynuSight Biotech and researchers from Shanghai Jiao Tong University's Bio-X Institute collaborated with teams from the Chinese Academy of Sciences and Huashan Hospital, Fudan University to develop TPPP/p25-SAA detection method for diagnosing synucleinopathies. Published in Cell.
• ASC Student Supercomputer ChallengeminorGTM or Marketing Partner · 27 May 2026Fudan University's NLP Lab supported the 2026 ASC Student Supercomputer Challenge as an academic advisor. The competition featured workloads including world models, gravitational wave simulations, and quantum circuit simulations.
• Stanford UniversitymajorTechnology or Integration · 24 May 2026Stanford researchers including contributors from Fudan University developed MIDAS, a protein engineering method that reduces design-build-test workflow from days/weeks to ~24 hours. Includes contributors from Fudan University and Promega Corporation.
• Chinese Academy of SciencesmajorTechnology or Integration · 23 May 2026Scientists at the Chinese Academy of Sciences and Fudan University jointly developed a lab-grown biological pacemaker using human pluripotent stem cells creating a 3D sinoatrial node organoid capable of generating electrical impulses. First replication of complete heart rhythm signal generation in a laboratory setting.
• Shanghai Innovation InstitutemajorTechnology or Integration · 17 May 2026Researchers from Fudan University, Shanghai Innovation Institute, and National University of Singapore published a systematic review cataloging ~100 papers on World Action Models (WAMs) for robotics AI.
• National University of Singapore (NUS)majorTechnology or Integration · 5 May 2026Researchers from NUS and Fudan University jointly developed ARuleCon, an AI tool that translates security rules between different SIEM platforms (Splunk, Microsoft Sentinel, IBM QRadar, Google Chronicle, RSA NetWitness). Uses an agentic RAG pipeline with Python-based consistency checks.
• Duke UniversitymajorTechnology or Integration · 4 May 2026Researchers from Fudan University in Shanghai and Duke University published a study in Nature Climate Change revealing that atmospheric microplastics have direct radiative forcing of 0.039 +/- 0.019 W/m2 globally, equivalent to 16.2% of black carbon's warming effect.
• Mass Eye and Ear, Harvard Medical SchoolmajorTechnology or Integration · 24 April 2026Gene therapy study for inherited deafness caused by OTOF gene mutations conducted jointly by researchers at Mass Eye and Ear, Harvard Medical School, and Fudan University across eight trial centers in China. 90% of 42 participants showed hearing improvement. Published in Nature.
• Macau University of Science and TechnologymajorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 17 April 2026Joint organizers of the 4th International Conference on Single-Cell and Spatial Omics (TICSSO-4) held in Beijing March 28-30, 2026. Conference attracted over 5,000 registered participants with 64 scientific presentations across nine thematic forums.
• Chongqing Medical UniversitymajorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 17 April 2026Joint organizers of TICSSO-4 conference along with Fudan's Human Phenome Institute, focusing on spatiotemporal mapping, AI and digitalization, and tumor and immunity.
• Moushen IntelligencemajorTechnology or Integration · 13 March 2026Moushen Intelligence collaborated with Fudan University and Shanghai Chuangzhi College to develop Human-Like 3D World Model (HL3DWM) enabling robots to understand 3D space by imitating human cognitive behaviors. Achieved 5-20% performance improvement over existing 3D LLMs.
• Singapore Management University (SMU)flagshipStrategic or Co-development Partner · 3 March 2026SMU and Fudan jointly launched the SMU-Fudan Doctor of Business Administration (Technology), the first tech-focused DBA in the region. Program targets senior executives seeking to lead strategic innovation at the intersection of business and technology. Structured across Singapore and Shanghai with joint faculty supervision. Applications for inaugural August 2026 intake are open.
• UC Irvine (UCI)majorTechnology or Integration · 4 February 2026Water UCI at UC Irvine received a $1.39 million grant from the Cyrus Tang Foundation for a three-year US-China water quality research initiative. Teams from UC Irvine, Fudan University, and Tsinghua University will study agricultural and urban runoff pollution in both countries, focusing on Taihu Lake and Yangtze delta in China.
• University of SharjahminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 13 November 2025University of Sharjah and Fudan University hosted a UAE-focused leadership programme covering topics like UAE's economic transformation, digital economy, and China-UAE cooperation in clean energy and fintech sectors.
• The University of Hong Kong (HKU)majorTechnology or Integration · 1 September 2025Co-led study by researchers from HKU and Fudan University published in Nature Climate Change revealing that clustered tropical cyclones are declining in frequency in Northwestern Pacific while increasing in the North Atlantic.
• TimePieminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 26 June 2025TimePie Longevity Forum advisory support from Fudan University's Big Health Informatics Research Center for China's longevity medical services sector industry report.
• China DailyminorGTM or Marketing PartnerFudan University signed a new strategic cooperation agreement with China Daily for international communication on June 22, 2026, to promote global understanding of the university.

Scale indicators11 records

Recent moves10 records

Expansion highlights7 records

Direct peers

• Tsinghua University: Beijing-based comprehensive research university, #1 in mainland China per THE 2026 and the most direct domestic competitor across STEM, engineering, and increasingly AI. Fudan and Tsinghua compete head-to-head in national rankings, faculty recruitment, and high-impact publications.
• Peking University: Top Chinese comprehensive research university with strong humanities, life sciences, and medicine, and ranked #2 in THE Asia 2026. A direct competitor to Fudan in the all-around 'comprehensive research' positioning and in the domestic student-talent market.
• Zhejiang University: C9 League comprehensive research university with particularly strong engineering and computer science programs. Competes directly with Fudan for ESI top-1% discipline counts, technology-transfer partnerships, and high-impact publications across applied sciences.
• Shanghai Jiao Tong University: Another Shanghai-based C9 research university, partner on the TPPP/p25 seed amplification assay published in Cell. A direct local competitor in talent, hospital network, and Shanghai government funding.
• Nanjing University: C9 League comprehensive research university with strong chemistry, physics, and Earth sciences programs. Competes with Fudan for top disciplinary placements and for inbound graduate-student talent in STEM.
• University of Science and Technology of China (USTC): C9 League research university, particularly strong in physics, mathematics, and quantum/computing research. Competes with Fudan's AI, brain-inspired intelligence, and 2D-material initiatives for top disciplinary placements and graduate-student pool.
• National University of Singapore (NUS): Direct research partner on the ARuleCon AI SIEM tool and on the World Action Models robotics review. A globally ranked comprehensive research university with comparable strengths in computing, AI, and translational biomedicine that competes for ASEAN talent and Faculty.

Broad incumbents

• Stanford University: Global research leader and partner on the MIDAS protein-engineering platform. Functions as a broader benchmark / collaborator rather than a direct competitor; the comparison highlights Fudan's relative scale and commercialization stage.
• Harvard University: Partner on OTOF gene-therapy trials, the global benchmark for university-affiliated hospital systems (Mass General Brigham) and the gold standard in translational biomedicine, offering a reference for what Fudan's hospital network could evolve toward.
• Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT): Global leader in computing, materials science, and engineering, and an aspirational benchmark for Fudan's semiconductor, AI, and applied-research ambitions. Not a direct competitor, but represents the upper bound on what a comprehensive research university's technology commercialization pipeline can achieve.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat7 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/fudan-university

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles17 records

Subsidiaries32 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Fudan University