Keynote Speaker

Dr. Kai-Fu Lee

Title: Cloud Computing

Abstract:

We are in the midst of a massive shift in computing – from PC-based applications to cloud-based applications, from storing on the PC to storing on the cloud. Cloud computing liberates the user from having to remember where the data is, enables the user to access information anywhere once created, and makes services fast and powerful through essentially infinite information and computing. People are using cloud services to find, share, create, and organize information. People are also using cloud services to shop, bank, communicate, socialize. By using cloud computing, these capabilities will be accessible not only on PCs but also telephones, automobiles, televisions, and appliances.

Google has been a pioneer in cloud computing. Behind Google's search, GMail, and other applications is a hardware architecture (in Google's data centers), operating system components (such as Google File System), and software programming methodology (Map Reduce). These technologies have accelerated Google's development and deployment of new cloud-based applications. To help bring about the cloud computing paradigm, Google is partnering with universities in United States, China, and other countries to develop Cloud Computing courseware.

Google is committed to help bring about the era of cloud computing, which we believe will facilitate services that are convenient, easy-to-learn, people-centric, scalable, and device-ready.

Biographical Information:

Kai-Fu Lee is a Vice President of Engineering at Google, Inc. and President of Google Greater China. He joined Google in 2005 to start Google's operations in China.

Prior to joining Google, Lee was a Corporate Vice President responsible for advanced natural language and user interface technologies. He joined Microsoft in 1998 and was the founder of Microsoft Research Asia, which has since become one of the best research centers in the world. MIT Technology Review called it "the hottest computer science research lab in the world."

From 1996 to 1998, Lee was the President of Cosmo Software, a subsidiary of Silicon Graphics, Inc. (SGI). At SGI, Lee was responsible for several product lines and the company's Web strategy. Before joining SGI, Lee spent six years at Apple, most recently as vice president of the company's interactive media group, which developed QuickTime, QuickDraw 3D, QuickTime VR and PlainTalk speech technologies.

From 1988 to 1990, he was an assistant professor at Carnegie Mellon University, where he developed the world's first speaker-independent continuous speech-recognition system. This system was selected as the "Most Important Innovation of 1988" by Business Week. While at Carnegie Mellon, Lee also developed the world-champion computer program that plays the game "Othello" and that defeated the human world champion in 1988.

Lee holds a doctorate in computer science from Carnegie Mellon University and a bachelor's in computer science with highest honors from Columbia University. Lee is a Fellow of the IEEE.