Honorary doctors of the Faculty of Science and Engineering

Honorary Doctor 2025

Jensen Huang is awarded an honorary doctorate for his groundbreaking contributions to the development of graphics processing units that constitute the technological foundation for AI.

AI will dramatically reshape most segments of industry and enable groundbreaking research, says Johan Ölvander, Dean at the Faculty of Science and Engineering.
We envisions a future where AI-powered machines work alongside humans to solve the world’s biggest challenges, an area where Linköping university is well positioned to take a leading role, states Anders Ynnerman Professor in Scientific visualization.

Portrait of Jensen Huang

Jensen Huang, CEO of Nvidia Nvidia

Jensen Huang, the founder and CEO of NVIDIA, is a visionary leader shaping the future of AI, accelerated computing, and scientific research. His journey, from Taiwan to Thailand and then the U.S., where he studied electrical engineering at Oregon State University and Stanford University, shaped his global perspective, laying the foundation for his groundbreaking work.

In 1993, Huang founded NVIDIA, initially focusing on revolutionizing computer graphics. Huang foresaw that the parallel processing capabilities of graphics processing units (GPUs) could do more than power video games. This insight culminated in the development of NVIDIA’s CUDA platform in 2006, transforming GPUs into powerful engines for accelerated computing – the technology foundation for AI. Under his leadership, NVIDIA has become a key player in the AI-driven industrial revolution, providing full-stack technology that researchers, developers and companies rely on to enable everything from advanced generative language models and AI agents to robots and autonomous vehicles.

Huang believes AI will dramatically reshape global industries such as transportation, healthcare and manufacturing. He envisions a future where AI-powered machines work alongside humans to solve the world’s biggest challenges. “Through continuous research and innovation Huang’s company NVIDIA is advancing technologies that enable AI deployment across industries and supports scientific and medical breakthroughs.“

Nominations

Anyone may nominate a person to become an honorary doctor of the Faculty of Science and Engineering.

Our policy is to appoint very well-qualified professionals with a personal connection to the faculty with respect to

research,
research education or similar scientific exchange, or
pedagogical development.

People outside academia having made significant contributions to the faculty may also be appointed honorary doctors, as well as persons who have contributed to increasing interest in science and engineering in the broadest sense.

Generally, however, someone who is already an honorary doctor at another Swedish university or faculty may not become an honorary doctor of the Faculty of Science and Engineering at Linköping University.

Nominations (stating the person's full name together with a short nomination and preferably including a CV) can be sent to Margareta Johansson, secretary of the faculty board. The deadline for 2025 nominations is December 20th 2024.

Please note that candidates should not be informed about them having been nominated.
Role models are very important, and since a majority of our past honorary doctors are men, the faculty is actively encouraging the nomination of female candidates. We also strive for an even distribution of honorary doctors across the scope of the faculty's research and education.

Honorary doctors 2024

In 2024, Marcus Wandt and Anton Zeilinger, was appointed honorary doctors of technology of the Faculty of Science and Engineering, Linköping University.

Marcus Wandt

Marcus Wandt, blir hedersdoktor 2024 vid Tekniska högskolan vid Linköpings universitet. ESA – Marcus Wandt

Marcus Wandt was 2024 appointed honorary doctor of technology. As Sweden's third astronaut in space, he has contributed to an increased interest in technology throughout the country. During his time as chief test pilot at Saab, Marcus Wandt has participated in several research projects in the field of aviation. Just aviation is an important research area for Linköping University where Saab and LiU have a long-term strategic partnership in both research and education

Anton Zeilinger

Porträtt av skäggig man (Anton Zeilinger) Anton Zeilinger, utsedd till hedersdoktor 2024 vid Tekniska högskolan vid Linköpings universitet. Fotograf Jacqueline Godany

Anton Zeilinger was in 2024 appointed honorary doctor of technology for his efforts in quantum technology. Among other things, he has done ground-breaking experiments with "entangled", photons that violate Bell's theorem. The experiment paves the way for quantum information science, which uses quantum mechanical systems for information processing and information transmission, providing higher computing power and more secure communication.

Our previous Honorary Doctors and their lectures