On the evening of September 19th, Clas Neumann, the Global Senior Vice President of SAP, Head of SAP Labs Network, and Adjunct Professor of Tongji University, was invited by the School of Economics and Management, Tongji University (hereafter referred to as Tongji SEM) to attend the Tongji University Advanced Lecture Hall. Dr. Neumann delivered an excellent thematic report entitled “Artificial Intelligence – Generating the Future” at the 101 Auditorium of Jiren Building, Jiading Campus, Tongji University, which attracted about 500 students and received an enthusiastic reaction. Prof. ZHONG Ninghua , the Deputy Dean of Tongji SEM, chaired the event.

This high-level lecture has received high attention and strong support from SAP and SAP Labs China. The attendees of this event included Ruicheng Li (SAP Senior Vice President / SAP Labs China Managing Director)；Bill Xu (Director of strategic planning and operation of SAP Labs China), Helen Xie（Executive Assistant of Clas), Wenchao Cui (Executive Assistant of Clas).

Prof. Ninghua Zhong, the Vice Dean of TJSEM chaired the event

Dr. Clas Neumann is a member of SAP’s senior executive management team. Under his leadership, the SAP Labs Network has grown significantly. Dr. Neumann has focused on leveraging opportunities in fast-growing markets such as China, India, and Brazil to grow SAP’s business and contribute to the progress of the local economy. With extensive global experience, Dr. Neumann has worked in China and India for more than 20 years.

Prof. ZHONG Ninghua  Awarded Dr. Clas Neumann an Appointment Letter for Adjunct Professor at Tongji University

While AI has brought convenience and increased productivity to human life, there are some areas we need to be aware of, including bias and fairness, ethical issues, privacy and security, to name a few. And how to apply the innovative advantages brought by AI to enterprise process management is an important direction of development. Dr. Neumann shared his unique insights on the aforementioned topics related to artificial intelligence. In his view, by connecting the entire value chain through AI, people can eliminate the isolated manual processes that hinder innovation. In the new era of digital networks, it is key to make use of the characteristics of network economy, give play to the advantages of AI, fully connect upstream and downstream, and release potential.

Dr. Neumann stated that AI business applications still face five key challenges: The first is a to reach a common framework. This means that we also need to reach an agreement between the AI users, AI innovators, societies and regulators about a consensus on its use, value, benefit and risks. The second is a better mechanism for integrating the vast amount of unstructured external data with internal data of companies that need legally and policy wise to be handled very differently. The third issue is about a generally acceptance of AI in many countries, the potential digital divide within societies and across countries and the need to bridge the skill gap. The fourth is implementation, which means we move beyond the hype, find and productize attractive use cases that make a real difference to users. Finally, in the operational phase, it is necessary to continuously validate solutions and ensure that the technology is always safe, sustainable and responsible to provide useful services to people.

Dr. Neumann’s lecture lasted for nearly three hours, and he infected every audience with his rigorous and innovative way of thinking. Mr. XU Lei the Director of Strategic Planning and Operations at SAP Labs China, presided over the interactive session and introduced the development of SAP Labs China. Dozens of students enthusiastically asked questions and had a lively on-site exchange.