COMP eNews JUL 2026

From Federated Learning Privacy Research to a Third Prize at IEEE GLOBECOM 2024 4MT

During my PhD study at COMP, I had the honor of participating in the Four Minute Thesis Competition at IEEE GLOBECOM 2024. My presentation, titled "Investigating Privacy Leakage in Federated Learning," introduced the privacy risks behind one of the most popular machine learning paradigms. In federated learning, multiple parties collaboratively train a model by exchanging gradients instead of raw data; however, these gradients may still reveal sensitive information if not well protected.

The competition was highly selective, with 43 initial entries and only 14 finalists invited to present at GLOBECOM. Each finalist had just 4 minutes to explain their thesis to a panel of judges and a broad audience. I was delighted to be selected as a finalist and ultimately receive the 3rd Prize. This experience strengthened my ability to communicate complex ideas clearly and concisely, while giving me the opportunity to share my research with the international communications and computing community.

Gamer to Programmer

As someone who grew up loving games, I never imagined that creating one would be this hard — until I stepped into my first semester of Computer Science. I quickly learned that COMP is a practical field where almost any idea can be turned into a useful tool, but transforming a concept into a working project from zero to one is genuinely tough. Still, my passion for gaming kept me going.

Over the years, I gradually picked up the skills I needed right here in COMP, and I’m grateful that I can finally build the things I once only dreamed of. That journey from gamer to programmer culminated in my final year project: a VR education game that blends immersive play with learning. It’s my way of showing that with enough persistence, a player can become a creator.

From PolyU COMP to a Summer Research Experience in the U.S.

This summer, I had the opportunity to participate in a research programme in the United States, where I joined an academic lab and experienced research in an international environment. It became an important milestone in my journey as a Computer Science student.

My preparation started at PolyU COMP. Through courses and projects in programming, machine learning, systems, and AI, I built a solid technical foundation. Beyond coursework, I also gained hands-on research experience in a PolyU research group, where I learned to read papers, run experiments, discuss ideas, and contribute to ongoing projects. These experiences made me more confident and competitive when applying for summer research opportunities.

During the programme, I further developed my ability to approach open-ended problems and communicate research ideas. I hope my experience encourages more COMP students to explore research, use opportunities at PolyU, and take bold steps towards global academic experiences.

From Pakistan to PolyU: A Year of Firsts

Bridging Minds and Borders: Dang Zihan's AI Journey at Nanjing University

I am a student from the Department of Computing at PolyU, and I had the privilege of participating in the "AI Without Borders, Creating the Future with Intelligence" Lecture Series of the Jiangsu-Hong Kong-Macao University Alliance, held from 29 June to 5 July 2025 at Nanjing University.

During this programme, I attended lectures by distinguished scholars, including Prof. Zheng Hairong (Academician of CAS), Prof. Ma Yi (HKU), Prof. Xu Chengzhong (University of Macau), and Prof. Zhan Dechuan (Nanjing University). My experience also included company visits to iFlytek in Suzhou, cultural excursions to Niushoushan, the Confucius Temple, and Pingjiang Road, as well as campus tours of Nanjing University and its Suzhou campus.

I successfully completed a group presentation at the closing ceremony and was awarded a certificate by the Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan Affairs Office of Nanjing University on 4 July 2025. This experience significantly deepened my understanding of cutting-edge AI trends and fostered valuable cross-regional academic exchange.