Zhang Yaoxue

Zhang Yaoxue (; born January 1956) is a Chinese computer engineer, university administrator and politician who was president of Central South University from 2011 to 2017, and an academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering. He was a member of the 12th National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference.

Biography Zhang was born in Li County, Hunan, in January 1956. After the Cultural Revolution, he was a surveyor at the Zhiyatai Hydropower Station in his home-county.

Investigation On 17 October 2025, Zhang was put under investigation for alleged "serious violations of discipline and laws" by the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection (CCDI), the party's internal disciplinary body, and the National Supervisory Commission, the highest anti-corruption agency of China. Zhang was expelled from the party on 21 May 2026.

Contributions His most significant research contributions include: China's First Network Router: In 1995, he led the team that successfully developed China's first network router, a core device for internet connectivity, and promoted its industrialization. Transparent Computing: he pioneered research in the area, proposing a theory that expands the von Neumann architecture by separating information storage, computation, and management. This work is considered an original academic achievement that "preceded and included cloud computing". "Zhang's Method": In fundamental network theory, he proposed an interactive protocol synthesis method, referred to as "Zhang's Method" by American peers.

Honours and awards 1998 National Science and Technology Progress Award (Second Class) 2001 National Science and Technology Progress Award (Second Class) 2004 National Technological Invention Award (Second Class) 2005 Science and Technology Progress Award of the Ho Leung Ho Lee Foundation 2007 Member of the Chinese Academy of Engineering (CAE) 2015 State Natural Science Award (First Class) for his project on network computing models and foundational theory.