News

Prof. ZHANG Chengqi Elected as IEEE Fellow 2026

Prof. ZHANG Chengqi, Director of the Hong Kong Polytechnic University Shenzhen Research Institute (SZRI) and Chair Professor of Artificial Intelligence at the Department of Data Science and Artificial Intelligence (DSAI), has been elected as a Fellow of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) for the Class of 2026. This prestigious recognition is awarded in tribute to Prof. ZHANG’s outstanding contributions to graph neural networks and time series analysis.  IEEE Fellow is the highest grade of membership in IEEE, the world’s largest technical professional organisation dedicated to advancing technology for the benefit of humanity. The distinction is reserved for select IEEE members whose extraordinary accomplishments in any of the IEEE fields of interest are deemed fitting of this prestigious grade elevation. Less than 0.1% of voting members are selected annually for this member grade elevation, following a rigorous evaluation procedure by the IEEE Fellow Committee. Prof. ZHANG is a leading scholar in artificial intelligence and data mining, with a particular emphasis on graph neural networks and time series analysis—fields that are transforming the landscape of data science. He has published over 400 research papers in top international journals and conference proceedings, with more than 35,000 citations. His research excellence has been recognised with numerous awards, including the NSW Science and Engineering Award, the UTS Vice Chancellor Research Excellence Award, and the IEEE ICDM Outstanding Service Award. The DSAI community is honored to share the news of Prof. ZHANG’s well-deserved recognition for his outstanding contributions. His elevation to IEEE Fellow not only highlights his individual achievements but also reflects the department’s commitment to excellence in research and innovation in artificial intelligence and data science.

DSAI Team "EvoClass Nexus" Crowned Champion at Huawei Developer Competition 2025 Asia Pacific Region

The Department of Data Science and Artificial Intelligence (DSAI) is proud to announce that its research team, EvoClass Nexus, has emerged as the Champion and Grand Prize Winner at the Huawei Developer Competition 2025 Asia Pacific Region, earning a reward valued at US$5,000 (approx. HK$39,000). The project was developed by a dedicated team of researchers from DSAI, led by Prof. CHENG Ran (Associate Professor, DSAI/COMP) alongside core members and PhD students HUANG Beichen, LIANG Zhenyu, and ZHENG Bowen, whose combined expertise in AI agents was instrumental in this success. The competition involved multiple rigorous stages, including preliminary rounds, re-evaluations, and semi-finals, filtering through nearly 1,000 developers and 192 high-quality submissions from 10 countries and regions. Ultimately, only 15 elite teams successfully advanced to the Asia Pacific Final, where they were divided into two distinct tracks: Society and Sustainability, and Finance. With only one Grand Prize awarded per track, the EvoClass Nexus team secured the Championship for the Society and Sustainability sector, distinguishing themselves as the top innovators in AI for social impact. The championship-winning project, EvoClass, is an AI-empowered multi-agent education platform designed to bridge the "Cognitive Chasm" in modern education. The platform moves beyond traditional EdTech by creating a "Co-evolutionary" ecosystem where AI agents grow alongside students. The system has already been successfully deployed in the DSAI subject DSAI2201 Data Structures and Algorithms, demonstrating significant effectiveness in enhancing student engagement and reducing educator workload. This victory highlights the team's commitment to "Technology Equity"—using advanced AI to make private-tutor-level education accessible to all. By automating repetitive tasks and providing context-aware feedback, EvoClass empowers teachers to focus on pedagogical innovation.

PolyU Ranked 16th Globally and First in Hong Kong for Artificial Intelligence

The Department of Data Science & Artificial Intelligence (DSAI) is pleased to announce that PolyU has been ranked 16th globally and first in Hong Kong for Artificial Intelligence in the latest ShanghaiRanking’s Global Ranking of Academic Subjects (GRAS) 2025. This prestigious recognition highlights the department’s commitment to excellence in AI research, education, and innovation. This year marks the inaugural inclusion of Artificial Intelligence as a subject in the ShanghaiRanking’s GRAS, making PolyU’s top local ranking and impressive global position especially noteworthy. The University’s dedication to advancing AI is reflected in its cutting-edge research, innovative teaching, and strong industry collaborations. For more details, please refer to the online coverage: •    Ta Kung Pao •    Wen Wei Po •    Hong Kong China News Agency •    Chinese Press

DSAI Scholars Named Highly Cited Researchers 2025 by Clarivate Analytics

Two distinguished scholars from the Department of Data Science and Artificial Intelligence (DSAI) have been recognized in the “Highly Cited Researchers 2025” list by Clarivate Analytics, under the category of Computer Science. The honorees are Prof. CHENG Ran, Associate Professor and Presidential Young Scholar, and Prof. TAN Kay Chen, Head and Chair Professor of Computational Intelligence. The Highly Cited Researchers list, compiled by Clarivate Analytics, celebrates academics who have made significant and far-reaching contributions to their respective fields. This year, 6,868 scholars from 60 countries and regions were selected for their exceptional research impact. These individuals have authored multiple papers that rank in the top 1% by citations for their field and publication year over the past 11 years, representing just 1 in 1,000 of the global population of scientists and social scientists. This achievement highlights the outstanding research excellence and global influence of DSAI scholars, and reinforces the department’s commitment to advancing knowledge and innovation in data science and artificial intelligence.

(Register Now) DSAI Distinguished Seminar Series - Advancing AI with Insights from Brain Intelligence

You are cordially invited to attend the DSAI seminar by Prof. Dr. Wolfgang Maass on “Advancing AI with Insights from Brain Intelligence” with details as follows:   Date: 28 Oct 2025 Time: 11:00 - 12:00 Venue: PQ303, PolyU If you are interested, please register at: https://polyu.hk/KelWq (Registration Deadline: 24 Oct 2025)   For enquiry, please contact us at dsai.enquiry@polyu.edu.hk. We look forward to seeing you at the seminar!   Best regards, Department of Data Science and Artificial Intelligence  

Nine DSAI Scholars ranked among World’s Top 2% Most-cited Scientists 2025

We are pleased to announce that nine staff members from PolyU’s Department of Data Science and Artificial Intelligence (DSAI) have been included in the latest list of the World’s Top 2% Most-Cited Scientists 2025, compiled by Stanford University. This prestigious list is based on composite indicators of publication impact, including total citations, citations to single-authored publications, and the H-index. It is divided into two categories: career-long citation impact and single-year citation impact, recognizing both long-term and recent research achievements. The following DSAI academic staff have been recognised:  Name (in alphabetical order of surname) Subject Field Prof. CHENG Ran Artificial Intelligence & Image Processing Prof. CHUNG F.L. Korris Artificial Intelligence & Image Processing Prof. HUANG Jian Statistics & Probability Prof. KUMAR Ajay Artificial Intelligence & Image Processing Prof. TAN Kay Chen Artificial Intelligence & Image Processing Prof. WU Xiao Ming Artificial Intelligence & Image Processing Prof. YANG Qiang Artificial Intelligence & Image Processing Prof. ZHANG Chengqi Artificial Intelligence & Image Processing Prof. ZHANG Weixiong Artificial Intelligence & Image Processing .telerik-reTable-4 { border-collapse: collapse; border: solid 0px; font-family: Tahoma; } .telerik-reTable-4 tr.telerik-reTableHeaderRow-4 { border-width: 1.0pt 1.0pt 3.0pt 1.0pt; margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-bottom: 10.0pt; margin-left: 0in; line-height: 115%; font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: "Calibri", "sans-serif"; width: 119.7pt; background: #4F81BD; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; color: #FFFFFF; } .telerik-reTable-4 td.telerik-reTableHeaderFirstCol-4 { padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; } .telerik-reTable-4 td.telerik-reTableHeaderLastCol-4 { padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; } .telerik-reTable-4 td.telerik-reTableHeaderOddCol-4 { padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; } .telerik-reTable-4 td.telerik-reTableHeaderEvenCol-4 { padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; } .telerik-reTable-4 tr.telerik-reTableOddRow-4 { border-width: 1pt; color: #666666; font-size: 10pt; vertical-align: top; border-bottom-style: solid; border-bottom-color: #4F81BD; } .telerik-reTable-4 tr.telerik-reTableEvenRow-4 { color: #666666; font-size: 10pt; vertical-align: top; } .telerik-reTable-4 td.telerik-reTableFirstCol-4 { border-width: 1pt; border-color: #4F81BD; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; border-bottom-style: solid; border-left-style: solid; } .telerik-reTable-4 td.telerik-reTableLastCol-4 { border-width: 1pt; border-color: #4F81BD; border-bottom-style: solid; border-right-style: solid; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; } .telerik-reTable-4 td.telerik-reTableOddCol-4 { border-width: 1pt; border-color: #4F81BD; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; border-bottom-style: solid; } .telerik-reTable-4 td.telerik-reTableEvenCol-4 { border-width: 1pt; border-color: #4F81BD; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; border-bottom-style: solid; } .telerik-reTable-4 tr.telerik-reTableFooterRow-4 { color: #355C8C; background-color: #FFFFFF; font-size: 10pt; vertical-align: top; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; } .telerik-reTable-4 td.telerik-reTableFooterFirstCol-4 { border-width: 1pt; border-color: #4F81BD; border-bottom-style: solid; border-left-style: solid; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; } .telerik-reTable-4 td.telerik-reTableFooterLastCol-4 { border-width: 1pt; border-color: #4F81BD; border-bottom-style: solid; border-right-style: solid; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; } .telerik-reTable-4 td.telerik-reTableFooterOddCol-4 { border-width: 1pt; border-color: #4F81BD; border-bottom-style: solid; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; } .telerik-reTable-4 td.telerik-reTableFooterEvenCol-4 { border-width: 1pt; border-color: #4F81BD; border-bottom-style: solid; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; } For more information, please visit: https://elsevier.digitalcommonsdata.com/datasets/btchxktzyw/8 

Department of Data Science and Artificial Intelligence Engages Prospective Students at PolyU Info Day 2025

The Department of Data Science and Artificial Intelligence (DSAI) participated in PolyU Information Day 2025 on 27 September 2025, the annual university-wide event targeted at prospective undergraduate students. DSAI showcased the Bachelor of Science (Honours) Scheme in Data Science and Artificial Intelligence (JUPAS Code: JS3223), which offers two majors: BSc (Hons) in Data Science and Analytics and BSc (Hons) in Financial Technology and Artificial Intelligence. The department attracted strong interest, with over 400 attendees at two programme info seminars exploring the curriculum, learning experiences, and career prospects. Our consultation booth also welcomed many visitors for one-on-one consultations with faculty and students, providing insights into DSAI’s diverse learning pathways and hands-on opportunities. Thank you to everyone who joined us at Info Day 2025—we look forward to welcoming future AI and data-driven innovators to our community!

DSAI PhD Student Receives Best Paper Merit at PRSC 2025

We are delighted to announce that DONG Jiangwen, PhD student at the Department of Data Science and Artificial Intelligence (DSAI), has been awarded the Best Paper Merit at the 3rd PolyU Research Student Conference (PRSC 2025), held from 2–4 July 2025. The paper, titled “A Subject-Based Directed Acyclic Graph for Multi-Agent Heterogeneous Reasoning,” was co-authored by Jiangwen with his supervisor Prof. LIN Wanyu, Assistant Professor of DSAI&COMP, and Mr LIN Zehui, Research Assistant of DSAI. Jiangwen was awarded a certificate and a cash prize of HK$ 4,000 sponsored by Sinopec. Organised by the Graduate School, PRSC is PolyU’s flagship research student conference. Led by Research Postgraduate (RPg) students, PRSC aims to promote innovative and high-quality research, providing RPg students and the students of the College of Undergraduate Researchers and Innovators (CURI) with the opportunity to present their research work and findings. The conference also serves as a valuable platform for students from different disciplines to network, collaborate, and build a supportive research community at PolyU. Congratulations to Jiangwen and the team on this outstanding achievement! For more information about PRSC, please visit: https://events.polyu.edu.hk/prsc2025  

DSAI Welcomes New Students at Orientation Sessions

The Department of Data Science and Artificial Intelligence (DSAI) recently hosted a series of orientation sessions to welcome new students to its undergraduate and postgraduate programmes. These sessions provided valuable information, guidance, and a warm introduction to the DSAI community. The orientation for BSc (Hons) Scheme in Data Science and Artificial Intelligence students took place on 29 August 2025. The session began with a welcoming speech by Prof. CHEN Changwen, Interim Dean of the Faculty of Computing and Mathematics Sciences, followed by remarks from Prof. TAN Kay Chen, Head of DSAI, who expressed his excitement for the new academic year and encouraged students to make the most of their university experience. Prof. JIANG Binyan, Associate Head (Teaching) and Scheme Leader, then introduced the Department and the curriculum. Meetings with Programme Leaders, Deputy Programme Leaders, and Academic Advisors were also held, ensuring students were well-prepared for their academic journey. The orientation for the MSc in Artificial Intelligence and Big Data (MScAIBD) programme was held on 2 September 2025, while the orientation for the MSc in Data Science and Analytics (MScDSA) programme took place on 3 September 2025. At both sessions, Prof. TAN Kay Chen welcomed the new students and encouraged them to embrace the opportunities and challenges of the coming academic year. Each orientation featured a comprehensive programme briefing—delivered by Prof. Korris CHUNG for MScAIBD and Prof. QI Houduo for MScDSA—covering the programme structure and available resources. Students also received practical advice on studying at PolyU and living in Hong Kong, with special guidance to help international students acclimate to their new environment. The orientation sessions marked an important milestone for new students, equipping them with essential information and connecting them with faculty and peers. With each new cohort, the department strengthens its commitment to excellence in teaching, research, and innovation, and continues to build a strong network among students, faculty, and alumni.

(Register Now) Ctrl+Z for GenAI: Undoing What Models Learn and Teaching them What “Not” Means

You are cordially invited to attend the DSAI seminar by Prof. Mayank Vatsa on “Ctrl+Z for GenAI: Undoing What Models Learn and Teaching them What “Not” Means” with details as follows:   Date: 12 Sep 2025 (Fri) Time: 14:30 - 15:30 Venue: Z211, PolyU If you are interested, please register at: https://polyu.hk/FXkMe  (Registration Deadline: 8 Sep 2025)   For enquiry, please contact us at dsai.enquiry@polyu.edu.hk. We look forward to seeing you at the seminar!   Best regards, Department of Data Science and Artificial Intelligence