Why Alibaba’s AI and Security Leaders Made MIT’s TR35 List in 2017

On August 16, 2017 MIT Technology Review announced its TR35 list of global young technology innovators, selecting Alibaba AI Lab chief scientist Wang Gang and Alibaba Cloud chief security scientist Wu Hanqing, the first time two people from a Chinese company made the list.

The TR35 award, established in 1999, recognizes outstanding individuals under 35 in fields such as IT, biotechnology, and business, evaluating impact, innovation, ambition, future potential, and communication.

Past winners include Google co‑founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin, Linux creator Linus Torvalds, Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg, Yahoo founder Jerry Yang, and Apple design director Jony Ive.

Since its inception, the award has selected 820 individuals, with 17 Chinese honorees; this year’s dual selection sets a new precedent for Chinese tech firms.

Wang Gang, formerly a tenured professor at Singapore’s Nanyang Technological University, joined Alibaba AI Labs in March 2018, focusing on machine learning, computer vision, and natural language understanding. He was recognized in 2016 for his contributions to deep neural network design and later helped commercialize AI through products like the Tmall Genie X1.

Wu Hanqing, the first Chinese security professional on the TR35, joined Alibaba in 2005 and helped build the security architecture for Alibaba, Taobao, Alipay, and Alibaba Cloud, becoming the youngest senior technical expert at age 23.

Their recognition underscores the growing global acknowledgment of Chinese technology talent.

In March 2017 Alibaba launched the “NASA” initiative, a 20‑year plan to build a powerful independent R&D organization, establishing institutes such as iDST and AI Labs and launching the global research project “AIR” to advance foundational computer science research. Reported data shows Alibaba’s AI talent grew by 325% between 2015 and 2017.