January 7, 1997- February 23, 2026

 Zaiyan Xu

 An Aggie who made others feel seen

A computer engineering Ph.D. candidate at Texas A&M, Zaiyan Xu’s legacy extends far beyond his intellect. Throughout his time as an Aggie, he acted as a beam of emotional support for every person he encountered. His long-time friend and colleague, computer engineering Ph.D. candidate Chen Chen, describes Zaiyan as an emotionally intuitive individual who never failed to help — and occasionally cook for — a person in need.

“So, you know, the first time when I met him is in my friend’s home, and he cooked some Chinese chicken,” Chen said. “I forgot the name, and it was very delicious.”

Not only did he provide for those he loved, but Zaiyan was extremely passionate about making others aware of the details of life, acting as a teacher who stressed life’s importance.

“And then he knows a lot about, you know, food, cuisine, and he cares a lot about details,” Chen said. “For example, he also taught me, you know, how to dress, especially how to dress in a suit. Also, when he prepared foods, he cared a lot about those details.”

Instead of limiting his attention to detail to his hobbies, Zaiyan used his gift to make sure everyone around him knew that they were seen and taken care of.

“Yeah, and another memory I remember, when I was working on my last paper, not the last paper, I would say the most recent top-tier paper,” Chen said. “We published paper together, but the process is difficult. And he kind of identified that I need some support, but maybe I didn’t realize, so he just came and talked with me and tried to support me.”

During a time of intense academic pressure, when it would otherwise be easy to crawl into himself, Zaiyan never failed to notice others around him. Because of him and his gift of compassion, many of his friends never failed to feel cared for.

“In other words, he can recognize your mood more precisely than yourself,” Chen said. “It’s like, yeah, like sometimes I couldn’t recognize, ‘Oh, hey, maybe I’m in a bad mood,’ but it’s difficult for me to express or identify by myself, but he’s like, he can identify and he can point out, so he’s, from some point, he’s like therapist.”

As much as Zaiyan poured into others, he never expected anything in return. A man of true selflessness, he acted as a therapist for everyone who needed it, even when he may have needed help himself.

“He has lots of friends in the [Electrical and Computer Engineering] Department,” Chen said. “Yeah, but I don’t, unfortunately, in the last moment, I don’t think some are smart enough to, you know, identify his weakness, or like he really needs support in the last moments.”

Reminiscing on all of their memories at Aggie Park and in the lab, Chen was filled with gratitude for having had such a thoughtful and intentional friend. Although he may be gone, Chen has a farewell statement for Zaiyan to express his appreciation for all the good he infused into the lives around him.

“Thank you to him for bringing love to us,” Chen said. “We will bring this love to other people.”