MacMillan Center for International and Area Studies at Yale
MacMillan Center for International and Area Studies at Yale
MacMillan Center

Katelyn Wang ’27 Connects AI Dialogue and China Research Through In-Region Learning

Supported by the MacMillan Center and Yale’s Schmidt Program, the Economics and Political Science major joined the Yale Renmin Student Dialogue and met with peers, policymakers, and robotics leaders in China.

Katelyn Wang ’27, a junior double-majoring in Economics and Political Science, traces her academic interest in China to The Rise of China with Professor Daniel Mattingly. That course led to MacMillan Center-funded research on the People’s Republic of China and its government structure as part of a collaborative project with Mattingly. It also set the stage for an in-region experience that brought her coursework into conversation with policy and technology.

This spring break, Wang served as a Yale delegate to the 2026 Yale Renmin University Student Dialogue on Artificial Intelligence, Emerging Technologies, and U.S.-China Relations. She described the dialogue as a “rare channel of communication” between U.S. and Chinese peers amid geopolitical tension and AI competition, and she emphasized the importance of “facilitating understanding, establishing common definitions,” and identifying areas of both heightened risk and collaboration. Traveling to Beijing, Suzhou, and Hangzhou, she participated in Track II dialogue with Chinese university peers, engaged with Yale Center Beijing, met with the U.S. Embassy in Beijing, and visited leading Chinese robotics firms.

Wang shared that the Embassy visit and industry meetings felt “very exclusive.”

“These are people who are very safeguarded in China, and being able to actually speak with them was refreshing,” she said. She noted how quickly academic discussions became concrete during site visits that highlighted embodied AI and a visible pride in innovation.

Conversations with Chinese peers also shaped Wang’s thinking about AI governance, including how they approached the relationship between academic research, the private sector, and military applications. As an intellectual property scholar and an artist, she was especially attentive to discussions about safeguarding creative industries.

In whatever job you have, whether it’s a teacher or working in government, your edge will always be that you know China better.

Katelyn Wang '27

“For me, I do a lot of research in how we protect original artists in the age of AI, so I am more prone to protecting our intellectual property spaces,” she explained. She was excited to find her Renmin counterparts also deeply valued safeguarding creative industries as a form of AI governance.

Wang credits support from the Yale MacMillan Center and the Yale Schmidt Program on AI, Emerging Tech, and National Power for making her participation possible, alongside Yale mentors and programs that helped her prepare, including the Yale Jackson School of Global Affairs and guidance from faculty, advisors, and graduate students with regional expertise. She sees in-region learning as essential for students who want to engage China with seriousness and nuance.

“In whatever job you have, whether it’s a teacher or working in government, your edge will always be that you know China better,” she said.