Established on April 16, 2025, the College of Smart Materials and Future Energy is a key strategic initiative by Fudan University to deepen disciplinary development and achieve leapfrog progress in engineering. This initiative addresses national needs for developing new quality productive forces and future industries in the fields of materials and energy. The key discipline of Materials Science and Engineering is one of the earliest at Fudan University to enter the top 1‰ globally in the ESI rankings and has been consecutively selected into the national Double First-Class Initiative.

The College is grounded in addressing major national strategic needs, focusing on tackling key technological challenges in smart materials and future energy. It aims to foster deep integration of new materials, new energy, and AI through multidisciplinary collaboration, nurturing future leaders in these industries. Currently, it offers five undergraduate programs, namely Electronic Science & Technology (EST), Energy Chemistry, Polymer Materials & Engineering, Materials Physics, and Materials Chemistry. Additionally, the college confers academic doctoral and master's degrees in Materials Science & Engineering (MSE), Electronic Science & Technology (EST), Chemistry, and Physics, as well as professional doctoral and master's degrees in Electronic Information, and Materials & Chemical Engineering (MCE).

The College is committed to establishing a closed-loop scientific research and innovation system encompassing theoretical breakthrough – technological innovation – industrial application. Key research frontiers include smart catalysis, clean energy, flexible smart materials, bio-nano materials, optoelectronics and sensing, and intelligent design and characterization. Research activities are supported by four secondary research entities: the Advanced Materials Laboratory, the Optical Fiber Research Center, the Fiber Electronics Materials and Devices Center, and the Institute for Advanced Studies in Future Energy; as well as two State Key Laboratories: the State Key Laboratory of Porous Materials and Separation Transformation, and the State Key Laboratory of Coatings for Advanced Equipment.

The inaugural Dean of the College is Professor Zhao Dongyuan, an Academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and a Professor at Fudan University. The current faculty and staff number at 157, comprising core members from the former Department of Materials Science, catalysis and battery research directions from the Department of Chemistry, battery and fiber application directions from the Department of Macromolecular Science, and all members from the Advanced Materials Laboratory

The establishment of the College of Smart Materials and Future Energy marks a new chapter in Fudan University's development of emerging engineering disciplines focused on transformative materials and energy technologies. The College will develop into a world-class, interdisciplinary innovation center, striving for breakthroughs in key technological areas and creating a model for sustainable future education.