IBM is donating $100 million in software to Chinese universities

IBM announced today its plan to donate US$100 million worth of big data and analytics software to 100 Chinese universities in the hope of helping to create the “next generation” of data scientists. According to IBM, the effort aims to reach up to 40,000 students per year to gain expertise in big data and analytics — a skill that the company says is increasingly in demand in China. The plan follows a memorandum of understanding that IBM signed with the Chinese Ministry of Education in the first quarter of this year, with a focus on addressing the big data and analytics “skills opportunity” in the country. “IBM is privileged to extend its collaboration with the Ministry of Education and universities in China,” said D.C. Chien, chairman and CEO of IBM’s Greater China Group. “Together we will be able to accelerate the nurturing of skills in big data and analytics and help prepare future business leaders to apply [big data and analytics] technologies to tackle complex societal issues, from health care to transportation and public services.” Under the new initiative, IBM will set up big data and analytics technology centres, and provide technical training to professors and faculty, in areas ranging from information management, data mining, social media analytics, and risk management.