PolyU marked a significant milestone in advancing language science with the presentation of the 2026 Yuen Ren Chao Prize in Language Science at a ceremony held on 8 May. Established by the Faculty of Humanities (FH), the biennial award honours exceptional contributions to language research and education while commemorating the legacy of the late Professor Yuen Ren Chao, widely regarded as the father of modern Chinese linguistics. The Prize underscores PolyU’s commitment to interdisciplinary scholarship and its growing emphasis on the role of language science in an era shaped by artificial intelligence.

This year’s honours were conferred on two internationally acclaimed scholars whose work has had far-reaching global impact. Professor Brian MacWhinney, Theresa Heinz Professor of Cognitive Psychology at Carnegie Mellon University, received the Lifetime Achievement Award. Professor Charles B. Chang, Fellow of the Psychonomic Society, was awarded the Early Career Contribution Award in recognition of his influential research and leadership in the field.

Prof. MacWhinney, the recipient of the Lifetime Achievement Award.

Professor MacWhinney is celebrated for more than five decades of pioneering contributions that have reshaped the study of human language. His work integrates experimental methods, large-scale data resources and computational modelling to address the complexity of language acquisition and use. He is best known as the founding Director of the Child Language Data Exchange System (CHILDES) and TalkBank, the world’s largest open-access repositories for spoken-language data. These platforms have become indispensable research infrastructure, enabling scholars worldwide to access and analyse language data across diverse populations and contexts.

Prof. Chang, the recipient of the Early Career Contribution Award.

Professor Chang, meanwhile, represents a new generation of language scientists driving innovative research in bilingualism and phonetics. His work focuses on how languages interact within the multilingual mind, particularly how a speaker’s first language can shift under the influence of a second language over relatively short periods. Through rigorous experimental phonetic analysis, he has provided groundbreaking evidence of dynamic cross-linguistic influence, advancing understanding of bilingual speech, heritage language development and the evolving nature of multilingual sound systems.

Addressing the ceremony, PolyU President Professor Jin-Guang Teng highlighted the broader significance of the Prize, noting that it aligns closely with the University’s motto, “To learn and to apply, for the benefit of mankind.” He emphasised that language science plays a foundational role in understanding communication, especially as artificial intelligence continues to transform how people learn and create knowledge. He also pointed to the recent establishment of the Division of Artificial Intelligence and the Humanities as a reflection of PolyU’s commitment to integrating technological innovation with humanistic inquiry.

Representing the Prize’s sponsor, PolyU Technology and Consultancy Company Limited (PTeC), Professor Christopher Chao, Senior Vice President (Research and Innovation), stressed the importance of translating academic excellence into real-world impact. He noted that the Yuen Ren Chao Prize in Language Science embodies PolyU’s dedication to research that is both scientifically rigorous and socially relevant.

Echoing this vision, Professor Hu Guangwei, Interim Dean of the FH, remarked that the occasion not only celebrates outstanding scholarly achievements but also reaffirms the essential role of humanistic knowledge in driving innovation in an increasingly AI-driven world.