AMD CEO Lisa Su to give the Institute’s 2026 Commencement address
Lisa Su ’90 SM ‘91 PhD ‘94 is a leading executive in the semiconductor industry
Photo courtesy of Advanced Micro Devices (AMD)
On May 28, 2026, Lisa Su ’90 SM ’91 PhD ’94 will deliver MIT’s 2026 Commencement address at the OneMIT Commencement Ceremony. “MIT has always held a special place in my life and career, and I’m thrilled to accept the invitation to speak at Commencement,” Su stated in an announcement.
President Sally Kornbluth commended Su’s role as a mentor and inspiration for her classmates, highlighting how she “created instructions that guided generations of student researchers” in using the Institute’s advanced equipment. “Lisa is renowned for her intellectual rigor, boldness, and originality,” Kornbluth stated.
Su expressed excitement for the Class of 2026 as they prepare to share their skills and ideas in a time when AI is expanding possibilities for the future. In an interview with the Harvard Business Review, Su noted AI’s role in accelerating “all aspects of business and humanity,” including content creation, research, and healthcare.
Su was born in Tainan, Taiwan and grew up in Queens, New York. In 1991, Su obtained a BS/MS in Electrical Engineering (EECS) from MIT, where she participated in the 6A internship program, UROP, and Eta Kappa Nu, the national honor society for EECS students. Su also completed a PhD in Electrical Engineering from MIT, specializing in semiconductor device physics and integration, along with silicon-on-insulator devices.
After completing her PhD, Su went on to work at Texas Instruments as technical staff before becoming Vice President of Semiconductor R&D at IBM and later, General Manager at Freescale Semiconductor. Since 2014, she has served as the chair and CEO of the semiconductor company Advanced Micro Devices (AMD), where she is credited for transforming the company into an industry leader in “high performance and AI computing.” Su joins only 11% of Fortune 500 female CEOs. According to WIRED, Su increased the company’s market cap from $2 billion to $300 billion while gaining ground amidst competition from NVIDIA and Google. Su sports an AI-positive outlook, describing it as the “most transformational technology of our time.”
Even in her position at AMD, Su remains tied to MIT. She spoke at the 2017 doctoral hooding ceremony, and in 2018, she established the Lisa Su Fellowship Fund, which supports female graduate students in nanotechnology. Furthermore, she served on the Electrical Engineering and Computer Science Visiting Committee for 10 years. In 2022, Building 12, which houses MIT.nano, was named the Lisa T. Su Building in her honor.
Su has been awarded the Global Semiconductor Association’s Dr. Morris Chang Exemplary Leadership Award and the Robert N. Noyce Medal, among other accolades. She was named TIME’s 2024 CEO of the Year and has been recognized as one of TIME’s 100 Most Influential People and Fortune’s Most Powerful People in Business. Su is also a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and the National Academy of Engineering.
“Lisa Su has embraced MIT’s ‘mind and hand’ motto over the course of her career,” said Jim Poterba, the chair of the Commencement Committee, praising Su for her scientific discoveries in semiconductor design and engineering, as well as her business executive leadership.
Senior class president Heba Hussein ’26 believes Su’s journey “embodies the spirit of MIT,” and expressed excitement in welcoming her at Commencement as the class of 2026 prepares to “step into the world carrying the same MIT values.”
“I think all MIT students respect the ‘lock-in’ that must have been required to achieve all that she has, with AMD and beyond,” says Alice Hall ’26, president of the Undergraduate Association.