(Yicai Global) June 1 -- Google has entered it first partnership with a Chinese university on artificial intelligence and other technology fields. The tie-up was unveiled on the same day as the US internet company brought out its second mobile app in China.

Google has agreed with Shanghai's prestigious Fudan University to open a joint lab to support studies on AI, data science, mobile applications and other emerging technologies, the university said on its website yesterday. The pair will also support the creation of a China-US Youth Maker Exchange Center to cultivate top-notch innovative talent in a two-year deal.

With the California-based company's main services blocked in China, its presence in the country has largely centered on AI development. Google opened its China AI Center in Beijing last December, led by Li Feifei, its chief scientist in cloud, AI and machine learning. Li said at the time that Google values the opportunity to work with top talent in China.

The app launched for Android phones is called Files Go. It helps users manage their files to free up storage space and is available through the app stores of Baidu, Huawei, Tencent and Xiaomi.

"It happened to be on the same day," a Google spokeswoman told state-backed newspaper Global Times in response to a question asking whether the two events would help open the Chinese market to the company. "Google has always been here." It has been involved in the country's education sector since 2006, she added.

Google's China-based education unit has been working with schools on undergraduate, higher vocational and secondary teaching. The projects supported include joint scientific research, curriculum design, teacher training and tutoring on information technology for middle school students.

Faced with an increasing level of protectionism from the US government, Google has to strike a balance between politics and its business overseas, Liu Dingding, a veteran industry analyst, told Global Times. The company has always valued China's huge market, he added.

Editors: Emmi Laine, William Clegg