The 2nd Microsoft Joint Laboratory Symposium was successfully held in Harbin. Harbin Institute of Technology hosted this meeting, which was attended by China's Ministry of Education's Officers, the directors of the Microsoft Joint Labs from universities in Mainland China and Hong Kong, and senior management from Microsoft Research Asia.

Since 1999, Microsoft Research Asia has established 10 joint labs with top universities in Mainland China and Hong Kong. The symposium provide a platform for the universities gathered together to share the experience and findings of the joint labs, and discuss a range of issues including development planning, research topics and talent fostering. The aim of the seminar is to strengthen communications and improve mutual understanding, as well as foster cross-regional academic collaboration, and ultimately raise the overall standard of computing science research in the Greater China region.

"The joint labs provide a chance for Microsoft Research Asia and the higher education institutes to discuss ways to tackle challenging issues, including how to improve collaboration efforts between the region's top research institutes so as to benefit academic research and nurture top global talents; therefore, we wish to make use of the approach of the seminar to establish an open platform to foster an active and healthy industrial, academic and research ecosystem," said Dr Hsiao-Wuen Hon, managing director of Microsoft Research Asia.