Signature Work Mentor

Dr. Luyao Zhang |Ph.D.

Dr. Luyao Zhang, Assistant Professor of Economics at Social Science Division and Senior Research Scientist at Data Science Research Center, Duke Kunshan University.

Research: Luyao (Sunshine) Zhang is Assistant Professor of Economics and Senior Research Scientist at the Data Science Research Center at Duke Kunshan University (DKU). She has an abiding passion for interdisciplinary collaborations, especially those related to Computational Economics (Algorithmic Game Theory and Mechanism Design), Artificial Intelligence (Machine Learning, AI Trust, Human-Computer Interaction), Cryptoeconomics (Blockchain for social good, DeFi, and Consensus Algorithms), Behavioral Science (Bounded Rationality, Trust, and Cooperation), and Interdisciplinary Big Data (Social Media, Sustainability, and Global Health). Her publications appear in economic journals for general interest and beyond, including American Economic Review: Papers and Proceedings, the Review of Economics and Statistics, the World Economy, Nature Scientific Data, ACM CCS, ACM AIES, Remote Sensing, Journal of Digital Earth, Data and Information Management, etc. She received Ph.D. in Economics at Ohio State University, supported by Presidential Fellowship and NSF dissertation grant. She graduated from Peking University with a B.A. in Economics and a B.S. in Math and Applied Math. She holds a blockchain strategy certificate at Oxford University and more than 30 data science certificates.  

Teaching: She has taught economics courses and beyond for students with diverse backgrounds in the U.S., Europe, and China, proposing an Artificial Intelligence and Business Strategy initiative. She has won several teaching prizes for innovation in research-oriented and project-based education. She is passionate about promoting undergraduate research and Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL). The courses entitled “Intelligent Economics: An Explainable AI Approach” and “Computational Microeconomics” that she developed in this spirit have been listed in the undergraduate curriculum across disciplines. She led the Duke CS+ project entitled “Decentralized Finance: Cryptocurrency and Blockchain on the Internet Computer” with professors in Computer Science and industry pioneers. She is currently leading an “Industry 4.0 Open Education Resource Publication Initiatives” supported by Duke Learning Innovation Center and DKU Center for Teaching and Learning under the Carrying the Innovation Forward program. As an adjunct faculty at New York University (NYU) Shanghai, she taught statistics courses in Integrated Marketing at the School of Professional Studies and core courses in Economics such as Econometrics and Game theory in the Summer Program.

Service:  Luyao has dedicated herself to service with empathy, which she believes is one critical cornerstone of any civil society. She has served the academic community and beyond. She serves on the research policy committee, the advisory board of the mind group as social science division representative and the faculty advisor program for student care at Duke Kunshan University. She also is the associate editor for IEEE Transactions on Computational Social System and the ambassador in Shanghai for Startup Genome. She is the Founding President for SciEcon CIC, NPO registered in the UK, aiming to cultivate integrated talents in research, innovation, and leadership. She was the Founding President of Dance Illumination, an NPO with 501 (c)(3) tax-exempt status to promote diverse dance histories.

Signature Work Mentee, Class of 2022, Duke Kunshan University

by the alphabetical order of the last name

Ziqiao Ao

Ziqiao Ao is a senior student at Duke Kunshan University, majoring in Data Science. She will pursue a master’s degree at Northwestern University Master of Science in Analytics program. She was well trained in the area of data science and business intelligence. Through previous experience, she made practical use of programming and data analytic tools, cultivating unique insights in blockchain, Decentralized Finance (DeFi), cryptocurrency, and Social Network Analysis (SNA). Also, she participated in multiple data-analytics projects, which strengthened her skills in data crawling, modeling, optimization, and machine learning. Additionally, she has made a mediocre achievement in employing rigorous technological methods to address problems in economics, finance, internet, e-commerce, etc., and has unfurled herself to these industries.

Francesco Cavallero

Francesco Cavallero is a senior at DKU majoring in Political Economy/Economics. He is currently at Duke where he is pursuing a B.S. in Economics with a finance concentration. During the past summers, he worked as research analyst at the Italian Banking Association covering FinTech, as a corporate finance analyst in a multinational manufacturing company, and as an M&A analyst in a boutique investment firm in Shanghai. After graduation, Francesco will work as M&A analyst in Milan. In his free time, you can find him sailing around the Mediterranean Sea.

Jisun (Jennifer) Lee

Jisun (Jennifer) Lee is a senior Economics student at Duke Kunshan University with expected graduation in May 2022. Her research interests lie at the intersection of finance, law, and computer science. After graduation, she will be working as an Investment Bank Compliance Analyst at Goldman Sachs in Hong Kong. For any questions regarding this research, please contact [email protected].

Ziliang (Lewis) Tian

Ziliang (Lewis) Tian is expected to graduate from Duke Kunshan University with a major in data science. He is a global visionary who enjoys working with people from all disciplines. He is always seeking new horizons and innovative solutions to complex problems. The fields of quantitative, sustainable finance and FinTech are of great interest to him.

Haoxin Yu

Haoxin (Peter) Yu is a senior student at Duke Kunshan University, majoring in Data Science. He was well trained in the area of data analytics and business intelligence. Through previous experience, he made practical use of programming and data analytic tools, cultivating unique insights in blockchain, Decentralized Finance (DeFi), ESG and risk management. Also, he participated in multiple data-analytics projects, which strengthened his skills in data processing, and machine learning. Additionally, he spared no efforts in exploring the Consulting, Internet, and Technology industries. As for the future research, he is interested in exploring data analytics, cutting-edge technologies such as blockchain and DeFi.

Jiasheng (Ray) Zhu

Jiasheng (Ray) Zhu is a student from the inaugural class of Duke Kunshan University and Duke University. He is a young economist and global leader with interdisciplinary and intercultural skills developed in a community of over 70 countries and regions. His academic interest lies in behavioral finance, investment, cryptocurrency, and blockchain. As a global citizen, he feels obliged to embrace challenges, unify young talents who share the same vision, and make the world a better place. He now serves SciEcon CIC as a co-founder and Director of AMA.