FAS Endows 3 New Professorships at Harvard in Civil Discourse and AI

Harvard’s Faculty of Arts and Sciences will endow three new professorships and a fund for generative AI after an alumni donation, the University announced in a press release on Monday.

A joint donation from Alfred Lin ’94 and Rebecca Lin ’94 will create two professorships in civil discourse, and one in artificial intelligence at the School of Engineering and Applied Science, according to the release. The gift will also launch the Edgerley Family Dean’s Innovation Fund for generative AI.

Alfred Lin is a partner at the early-stage venture capital firm Sequoia Capital, and a board member of several companies including Airbnb, DoorDash, and Zipline. Rebecca Lin is an artist who has worked on various Walt Disney Animation Studios series and sits on the California Academy of Sciences’ board of trustees.

The donation comes a few months after University President Alan M. Garber ’76 launched a working group to explore ways to expand open inquiry at Harvard. Earlier this month, the group released a report calling for “classrooms with the tools and mindset conducive to rigorous, lively discussion and constructive disagreement.”

“By dedicating their support to civil discourse and artificial intelligence, they are both strengthening the foundation of our campus culture and pushing the boundaries of our teaching practices,” Garber said in the release. “Progress in these two areas is fundamental to our future as a University.”

The past year has marked uncertainty surrounding Harvard’s fundraising abilities. The University saw a $151 million decrease in donations during the 2024 fiscal year, with a number of high-profile donors pausing their contributions over the school’s handling of antisemitism on campus.

However, Rebecca Lin attributed Harvard’s fundraising challenges as part of her motivation for donating.

“Alfred and I have tried to support Harvard when we could or consistently, but we also believe in supporting Harvard when times are challenging, and we want to help during those times,” Rebecca Lin said in the release.

According to the press release, the Lins’ gift — given in celebration of their 30th Harvard College reunion — helped the Class of 1994 set the record for highest grossing 30th reunion campaign in Harvard College’s history, with a total of more than $200 million.

Alfred Lin wrote in a statement that his experiences in “Justice” — a class then taught by professors Michael J. Sandel and Harvey C. Mansfield ’53 — partially inspired his donation.

“They would argue the extreme sides. They were never disagreeable, and they would always make you think,” Alfred Lin wrote. “We modeled what we learned about social discourse in Justice or other classes when we were just talking around the table at Quincy Grille.”

—Staff writer Maeve T. Brennan can be reached at maeve.brennan@thecrimson.com. Follow her on X @mtbrennan.

—Staff writer Angelina J. Parker can be reached at angelina.parker@thecrimson.com. Follow her on X @angelinajparker.