News

Prof. CHAI Yang appointed as Director of Research Institute for Artificial Intelligence of Things (RIAIoT)

We are honoured to announce the appointment of Prof. CHAI Yang as Director of the Research Institute for Artificial Intelligence of Things (RIAIoT) under the PolyU Academy for Interdisciplinary Research (PAIR), effective 1 January 2026.  Prof. CHAI’s leadership will further advance interdisciplinary research and innovation in this rapidly evolving field. Prof. Chai is a distinguished scholar specialising in nanoelectronics devices and emerging computation paradigms.  He currently serves as Associate Dean of the Faculty of Science, Director of the University Research Facility in Materials Characterization and Device Fabrication, and Chair Professor of Semiconductor Physics in the Department of Applied Physics.  His research has been published in prestigious journals such as Nature, Nature Electronics and Nature Nanotechnology, and featured in leading publications including Nature and IEEE Spectrum.  Prof. Chai’s outstanding research contributions have earned him recognition among the world’s top 2% most-cited scientists, as compiled by Stanford University. At PAIR, Prof. Chai holds multiple important roles, serving as a Management Committee Member of the Research Institute for Intelligent Wearable Systems (RI-IWEAR) and as a Member of the Photonics Research Institute (PRI).

Establishment of Research Centre for Environmental, Social, and Governance Advancement

We are pleased to announce the establishment of the Research Centre for Environmental, Social, and Governance Advancement (RCESGA) with effect from 1 January 2026 as one of the constituent research units of PAIR! RCESGA aims to serve as a leading research centre focusing on the interactions among environmental, social, and governance issues for balancing the needs of the environment, society, and economy to ensure the long-term prosperity and sustainability of Hong Kong, the Chinese Mainland and the world. Prof. WU Qiang, Associate Head (Research) and Professor of the School of Accounting and Finance, will lead the Centre as RCESGA Director.  Prof. Mike LAI Kee-hung, Associate Dean (Academic Support) of Faculty of Business, Interim Head and Chair Professor of Shipping and Logistics of the Department of Logistics and Maritime Studies (LMS) will serve as RCESGA Co-Director. Prof. Eric CHUI, Head of Department of Applied Social Sciences, Co-Director of Policy Research Centre for Innovation and Technology and Chair Professor of Social Work and Criminology, Prof. Jerry YAN, Editor-in-Chief of Nexus and Chair Professor of Energy and Buildings of the Department of Building Environment and Energy Engineering, and Prof. YANG Dong, Associate Head and Associate Professor of LMS, will serve as RCESGA Associate Directors.

Prof. LIN Jianguo elected as HKAE Fellow

Congratulations to Prof. LIN Jianguo, Associate Director of the Research Institute for Advanced Manufacturing (RIAM) and Chair Professor of Materials Technologies, on being elected as one of the 2025 Fellows of the Hong Kong Academy of Engineering (HKAE). Prof. Lin is a leading expert in metal forming, materials technologies, and process modelling.  His research focuses on developing models that simulate microstructural evolution and material formability during metals processing for a wide range of engineering materials and applications.  He pioneered Hot Form Quench (HFQâ) Technology, which has been used in automotive and aerospace industries.  This breakthrough process enables the production of complex-shaped, high-strength aluminium components for vehicles, contributing to lighter and more environmentally friendly designs.  Prof. Lin’s engineering excellence has been widely recognised.  In 2021, he was awarded a Gold Medal by the Institute of Sheet Metal Engineering for his outstanding contribution to the UK sheet metal industry.  His significant contributions to the field have also earned him recognition among the world’s top 2% most-cited scientists, according to an index compiled by Stanford University. He was elected as a Fellow of Royal Academy of Engineering (FREng) in 2013. 

When physics meets biology: Prof. Yeomans of Oxford unravels how mechanical forces sculpt tissue shape

Prof. Julia M. YEOMANS of the University of Oxford, UK, delivered a PAIR Distinguished Lecture titled “Active Matter meets mechanobiology: Evading the decay to equilibrium” on 18 December 2025.  The event drew over 70 in-person participants and an online audience exceeding 15,500 across various social media platforms. Prof. Yeomans commenced her presentation by introducing the concept of active systems—systems pushed out of thermodynamic equilibrium by energy at the particle level.  This framework is particularly valuable for understanding biological phenomena such as biomechanics and self-assembly, and supports the design of novel micro-engines and internally driven microchannel flows.  These examples underscore the broader principles of non-equilibrium statistical physics. Building on this foundation, Prof. Yeomans explored the physics of active matter and its implications for mechanobiology and developmental biology.  She discussed how active matter provides a new perspective on the organisation and behaviour of living systems, illustrating this with examples including the intricate patterns that emerge in bacterial colonies and the dynamics of dense active nematics, such as microtubules propelled by motor proteins.  In these systems, far-field flow patterns exhibit nematic symmetry—where liquid crystal molecules align in the same general direction.  Gradients in the magnitude or direction of nematic order—essentially, misalignments of molecules across a surface—create regions with different alignment directions, making them susceptible to splay distortions that lead to bending or curving deformations in tissues.  Notably, active turbulence within these systems can be suppressed by confinement, and in deformable nematic systems, the force axis is not necessarily aligned with the shape axis—adding to the complexity of their behaviour. Prof. Yeomans also addressed the relevance of these principles to medical science, specifically the distribution of lesions in invasive breast cancer.  By comparing histological slides with computational simulations, she presented evidence suggesting that cluster motility, rather than cell proliferation, is the primary driver of the distinctive patterns seen in malignant breast cancer.  This insight has significant implications for understanding tumour progression and could inform future therapeutic strategies. Furthermore, she examined the dynamics of epithelial cells, which can be modelled as deformable active nematics.  In addressing such systems, it is essential to develop theoretical approaches that decouple cellular shape from mechanical stress to provide a more accurate representation of tissue behaviour and development. In conclusion, Prof. Yeomans emphasised the importance of interdisciplinary research at the intersection of physics, biology and engineering, noting that advances in the study of active matter are continually reshaping our understanding of living systems and their complex behaviours. Following the presentation was a lively question-and-answer session moderated by Prof. WANG Liqiu, Member of Research Institute for Sports Science and Technology and Research Centre of Textiles for Future Fashion, Otto Poon Charitable Foundation Professor in Smart and Sustainable Energy and Chair Professor of Thermal-Fluid and Energy Engineering in the Department of Mechanical Engineering.  Prof. Yeomans led a productive discussion that engaged both the on-site and online audiences. Please click here for an online review.

Harnessing sensors and AI for sustainable urban futures: Insights from Prof. Banthia’s distinguished lecture

Prof. Nemkumar BANTHIA of The University of British Columbia, Canada, delivered a PAIR Distinguished Lecture titled “Toward Carbon-Neutral Cities: Sensors and Cyber-Physical Networks for Green Infrastructure” on 17 December 2025.  The event attracted over 90 in-person participants and an online audience of more than 17,900 across various social media platforms. Prof. Banthia commenced his presentation by emphasising the contribution of construction and building operations to global carbon emissions, and the urgent need for data-driven mitigation strategies.  He cited statistics indicating that the built environment accounts for at least 51% of annual global CO2 emissions.  He warned that, if current practices persist and no action is taken, many regions—including Vancouver—could be submerged by 2100.  He then explored how sensor networks underpin the digital economy and facilitate the transition towards smarter, greener, and more energy-efficient urban systems.  Prof. Banthia further highlighted the role of environmental and occupancy sensors in optimising building performance, enhancing user comfort, and reducing operational carbon.  He discussed how advancements in machine learning, such as edge computing, data integration, and cloud platform updates, enable more accurate real-time detection.  He explained that digital twins of building energy systems support data-driven modelling, operational forecasting and control, anomaly detection, predictive maintenance, and multi-objective optimisation of building systems. The lecture continued with an overview of sensor technologies for assessing structural integrity, extending service life, and reducing embodied carbon through informed maintenance and retrofitting.  Prof. Banthia underscored the importance of real-time monitoring and predictive analytics for anticipating and mitigating both natural and human-induced hazards, citing a case study of damage monitoring to a university building in Chile following the 2010 earthquake.  He proposed integrated frameworks that combine operational, structural, and resilience monitoring for holistic carbon management and enhanced infrastructure performance.  He also reviewed significant datasets obtained from currently monitored structures, assessing their implications for carbon reduction, safety, and resilience.   In conclusion, Prof. Banthia introduced emerging approaches for leveraging sensor data, artificial intelligence (AI), and digital twins to enable carbon-neutral, smart, and resilient infrastructure systems.  He stressed that digital infrastructure equipped with Internet-of-things (IoT) enabled sensors represents the future—enabling minimised life-cycle costs, prudent asset management, and carbon neutrality.  He noted that substantial data are essential for machine learning and AI to reach their full potential. After the presentation, Ir Prof. POON Chi-sun, Director of Research Centre for Resources Engineering towards Carbon Neutrality (RCRE), moderated a dynamic question-and-answer session. The audience participated actively in a thoughtful exchange with Prof. Banthia. Please click here for an online review.

Prof. Raymond WONG elected member of The Hong Kong Academy of Sciences

Congratulations to Prof. Raymond WONG Wai-yeung, Dean of Faculty of Science, Clarea Au Professor in Energy and Chair Professor of Chemical Technology, on his election as a new member of The Hong Kong Academy of Sciences (ASHK). Prof. Wong is a distinguished scholar in the field of advanced materials and energy science. His research focuses on the design and synthesis of molecular functional materials and one‑ and two‑dimensional metallopolymers with photofunctional properties and energy applications.  His team is committed to transforming cutting-edge chemistry research into meaningful solutions for sustainable energy. Prof. Wong is currently Associate Director of the Otto Poon Charitable Foundation Research Institute for Smart Energy (RISE), Member of the Research Institute for Sustainable Urban Development (RISUD), the Research Institute for Intelligent Wearable Systems (RI-IWEAR) and the Research Institute for Sports Science and Technology (RISports). Explore more about Prof. Wong’s research: https://polyu.hk/HRubO Press release of ASHK: Hong Kong Academy of Sciences Elects Five New Members – The Hong Kong Academy of Sciences Online coverage (Chinese only): Bauhinia - https://polyu.me/3KVZqE0 Wen Wei Po - https://polyu.me/4iOcVlE Bastille Post - https://polyu.me/3XOTn73

Harvard expert Prof. John D. Spengler discusses climate crisis and cooling innovations at PAIR Seminar

On 9 December 2025, Prof. John D. SPENGLER from Harvard University delivered a PAIR Seminar titled “If you think it is hot now – just wait a few years”. The seminar explored innovative approaches to cooling neighbourhoods, saving lives, and strengthening local economies. The event attracted over 70 in-person participants and an online audience of more than 13,000 across various social media platforms. Prof. Spengler began his presentation by highlighting warnings from experts regarding the climate crisis and global warming. He emphasised that transitioning from fossil fuels—such as coal, oil and natural gas—to renewable energy, including wind, solar and other green alternatives, is a key solution to these challenges. Using the analogy of the Earth as a patient visiting a doctor, Prof. Spengler described how his team and collaborators monitor the planet’s vital signs. This includes measuring ground and sea temperatures; collecting fluid samples from seas, lakes, rivers and water pipes; and monitoring moisture and relative humidity. The findings indicate that a significant portion of the world’s population will experience, for the first time in human history, prolonged exposures to uncompensable extreme moist heat. As urban heat islands contribute to increased heat-related mortality, Prof. Spengler warned that the widespread use of air-conditioning, dark surfaces and high glaze materials are among the main culprits. To address these issues, he advocated for the adoption of smart surfaces, such as trees, solar panels, bioswales, urban meadows, porous pavements, reflective pavements and cool roofs. Prof. Spengler went on to share recent collaborations with industry partners and universities on smart surface projects. He asserted that smart surfaces offer cost-effective and scalable tools for climate adaptation, and that global urban adoption of current reflective surface technologies could reduce up to 78 gigatonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2e). Smart surfaces can also cool cities by up to 5°F, providing a powerful, systemic public health intervention. These measures help protect outdoor workers, reduce electricity costs for families and businesses, and sustain economic activities such as tourism, construction and recreation. Furthermore, under-invested, low-income communities and communities of colour are typically 10–15°F hotter than wealthier areas; smart surfaces can help redress these inequalities. Prof. Spengler emphasised the importance of working together with young people and the wider community to create a cooler world. The objectives are to assess the accrued health benefits and costs for cities adopting extreme heat mitigation strategies, as well as to examine differential impacts and benefits through the lens of environmental justice. Following the presentation was a lively question-and-answer session moderated by Prof. CHEN Qingyan, Director of PAIR. Both the on-site and online audiences engaged in a productive discussion with Prof. Spengler. Please click here for an online review.

Prof. CHAI Yang receives Croucher Senior Research Fellowship 2026 for revolutionising AI computation

Prof. CHAI Yang, Associate Dean (Research) of the Faculty of Science and Chair Professor of Semiconductor Physics, has been awarded the prestigious Croucher Senior Research Fellowship 2026 in recognition of his outstanding achievements in revolutionising artificial intelligence (AI) computation at the sensor level.  Each recipient of the Senior Research Fellowship receives up to HK$3 million in funding to support their research. Prof. Chai’s research focuses on bioinspired computing and semiconductor devices.  He has pioneered a disruptive in-sensor computing paradigm that revolutionises AI computation at the sensor level and has actualised this paradigm through hardware implementation for vision sensors. His innovative research on sensory AI contributes to the advancement in machine vision with enhanced image recognition, visual adaptation in extremely dim or bright lighting, and agile perception of dynamic motion. Prof. Chai is currently Management Committee Member of the Research Institute for Intelligent Wearable Systems (RI-IWEAR), Member of the Research Institute for Artificial Intelligence of Things (RIAIoT) and the Photonics Research Institute (PRI). Press release: https://polyu.me/3MoIA0Y   Online coverage: Ta Kung Pao - https://polyu.me/44ktP5s Wen Wei Po - https://polyu.me/4q2OoMf Hong Kong Economic Times - https://polyu.me/3XJs6D6 Ming Pao Daily News - https://polyu.me/48sXbB5 Sing Tao Daily - https://polyu.me/48JuEGq (subscription required) Headline Daily - https://polyu.me/4pppdTT Australian Chinese Daily - https://polyu.me/4ab928g Mingpao Canada - https://polyu.me/455jQRI  

Supporting future-ready cities: PolyU launches free advanced education course on sustainable city developments

The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU) continues to advance interdisciplinary learning with the launch of its second course under the Advanced Education Programme, offered by the PolyU Academy for Interdisciplinary Research (PAIR). Beginning in Spring 2026, the new course, “Sustainable Cities”, will run for thirteen weeks and cover five applied science areas, including urban informatics, sustainable urban systems and technologies, smart energy systems, land and environmental management, and resource engineering with carbon neutrality.  Designed by PolyU experts, the programme equips learners with knowledge of pressing global challenges, PolyU-led innovations addressing them, and technological challenges in related fields. The course is open free of charge to eligible members of the public, requires no prior background, and is available in dual mode — in-person or online — to accommodate learners in Hong Kong and abroad.  Participants who meet attendance requirements may apply for a certificate of completion. Enrolment closes on 31 December 2025, with limited quota for physical attendance and online places available on a first-come, first-served basis. For details and registration, please visit: https://www.polyu.edu.hk/pair/education/. Online coverage: etnet - https://polyu.me/3YfGCm3 Taiwan Business News - https://polyu.me/4ppupXT Line Today - https://polyu.me/4iJml1H Weekender Singapore - https://polyu.me/4iPEoDB Thailand Business News - https://polyu.me/491zLTy Yahoo Finance - https://polyu.me/4pZJCit am730 - https://polyu.me/4iLGBjr Macau Monthly - https://polyu.me/44eWvwO Insight News Network - https://polyu.me/4pSRwKh The Hub News - https://polyu.me/4pVUcXJ Big Times - https://polyu.me/44gi7J9 Sina HK - https://polyu.me/44gfRl9

PAIR Newsletter · Issue 16 · December 2025 is now available

We are excited to release the latest issue of the PAIR Newsletter! In Issue 16, we proudly introduce “Impact Stories”, a new article series dedicated to the work of PAIR researchers who are making a positive difference in the world.  Selected PolyU innovations for this issue include colour management technologies, novel fungus-based fat replacer, smart city index, and cooling clothes—research achievements that combinedly help improve our health, advance technologies and optimise living spaces. This issue’s Feature Stories delve into pressing issues in two very different scientific fields: geographical information science and energy science.  Pioneering geographer Prof. Michael GOODCHILD discusses the continuing problem of “uncertainty” in modern-day maps and geospatial data, alongside the booming development of AI.  E-fuel developer Prof. ZHAO Tianshou explains how his innovation provides a “two birds one stone” strategy for the energy sector. Furthermore, multiple PAIR constituent research units have established partnerships with industry and governments for influential collaborations in a variety of fields spanning sports science, healthcare, smart city, and sustainable agriculture and fisheries. Read on to discover the latest updates at PAIR! PAIR Newsletter · Issue 16: https://www.polyu.edu.hk/pair/publications/issue-16/