A former Harvard University academic convicted of concealing his ties to China has taken up a professorship at a top Chinese university.��

Charles Lieber, a former chemist and nanoscientist at Harvard, was convicted in 2021 after federal investigators found he had hidden payments from the Chinese authorities in a high-profile case in the wake of US president Donald Trump’s controversial China Initiative.��

Lieber, who was suffering from incurable blood cancer, was sentenced to half a year of house arrest in 2023, on top of monetary fines, but avoided prison.��

The scientist joined Tsinghua University, China’s top institution, as a chair professor in April, the institution has announced.��

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He will be conducting research at Tsinghua Shenzhen International Graduate School, a joint venture campus first established in the Greater Bay area in 2001.��

In a statement released by the university, Lieber said he was “eager to embark on this journey” and lauded “Shenzhen’s dynamism and innovative spirit”, saying that this aligned “perfectly with my vision to co-create a global scientific hub here”.��

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Evidence presented against Lieber at the 2021 trial showed his contract with Chinese authorities paid him up to $50,000 (£37,650) per month in salary, up to $150,000 in living expenses, and another $1.5 million for research activities.

His defenders said he had hidden many of these payments to avoid controversy over the politically sensitive matter.��

Tsinghua vice-president Wang Hongwei said Lieber would “significantly advance materials science and biomedical engineering development at Tsinghua University and Shenzhen, foster in-depth interdisciplinary collaborations between domestic and international research teams, and support the growth of young scholars into world-class scientists”.��

It comes as academics are increasingly departing US universities following widespread attacks on higher education, including funding cuts, under Trump’s current administration.

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Universities around the world have been eager to poach talent leaving the US.

Lieber had also previously reportedly  to take up an academic position at the University of Hong Kong.��

helen.packer@timeshighereducation.com