The first leg of the 2025–2026 Sino-Foreign University Cup kicked off last weekend, bringing together students from NYU Shanghai, Duke Kunshan University (DKU), and the University of Nottingham Ningbo China (UNNC) for a tournament of athleticism, friendship, and cultural exchange at DKU. 

• Last Thursday, the Law and Policy Society hosted a panel discussion with Vice Chancellor Jeffrey Lehman, who reflected on his professional journey and shared thoughtful advice for aspiring leaders and future lawyers. 

• On October 18, IMA Associate Arts Professor Stavros Didakis joined a cross-NYU campus forum on AI ethics within creative practice, organized by Tisch Graduate Student Organization, NYU Shanghai Student Government, and Runway ML. The forum brought together experts from education, the creative industries, and the AI sector to discuss the responsible use of AI and how to preserve originality and deeper value in creations. A recording of the event can be seen on the NYU Stream Platform. 

• Opening on October 27, Gaia Commons exhibition weaves together ecofeminist stories and practices from China, Asia, Europe, the Americas, and Antarctica,  reimagining the planet not as property but as commons—a living field of shared becoming. The exhibit is hosted by the Inclusive Ecology Collective and co-curated by Duke Kunshan University, NYU Shanghai, Qiji Art Center, Yungu Eco-Community, and WildBound and can be found on East 3rd.

• On Thursday, Assistant Professor of Management and Organizations Tian Yuan presented her research on how organizational status shapes firms’ access to political influence. Using data from Fortune 1000 rankings and a sharp regression discontinuity design, she and her collaborators found that companies ranked within the Fortune 500 enjoy significantly greater political access than those just below the cutoff. The study suggests that higher-status firms both seek and are granted more access to policymakers, highlighting status as a key determinant of corporate political activity and expanding the understanding of how prestige affects nonmarket strategy.

• On Monday, the Center for Data Science hosted Frontiers in Large Language Models, a day-long event bringing together leading AI researchers from NYU, UCLA, HKU, HKUST, Tsinghua University, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, and Alibaba. Moderated by NYU Shanghai Assistant Professor of Computer Science Zhao Chen, the event featured lightning talks on cutting-edge topics, discussions, and closing remarks that recaptured the key insights on large language model research.

“The obsession with eating anything, anytime, anywhere – 365 days a year – comes at a huge cost to the planet, and to our own health.”

— Naandi Foundation CEO Manoj Kumar, speaking on being a conscientious consumer

A visitor to the West Bund Art Center interacts with the work Hospital.exe by IMA LowRes Research Resident Eddie Fuxiang Xiang NYU IMA LowRes ’25. FutureLab 2025’s themed exhibition Currents featured works by students from Interactive Media Arts, IMA Low Res program and NYU Global Show & Tell. 

• 2025 FutureLab Opened

At the annual FutureLab exhibition at the West Bund Art Center, artworks showcased the learning and research journeys of students, graduates, and fellows from NYU Shanghai IMA, NYU Tisch School of the Arts, and NYU Global Show & Tell in Interactive Media Arts, Xinmin Evening News reported.

• Ho Rui An’s Dual Exhibitions: The Dark Side of History and the Burden of Responsibility

ArtReview featured Singaporean artist Ho Rui An’s dual exhibitions at ICA and at Vanguard Gallery in Shanghai tracing the intertwined histories of labor, ideology, and modernization across Asia.