PolyU spotlights top 10 innovations of the year in inaugural awards ceremony

The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU) has celebrated a year of remarkable scientific advancements by announcing the winners of its inaugural “PolyU Top 10 Research & Innovation Stories of the Year.”

Following a public voting campaign that garnered over 7,700 participants, ten groundbreaking projects were selected for their far-reaching societal impact, showcasing innovations from quantum technology to novel Alzheimer's treatments.

A new initiative to honor research impact

The first-of-its-kind campaign for the university aimed to recognize world-leading research and innovation while deepening community understanding of its scientific contributions.

The final ten awardees were chosen based on a combination of public votes from the PolyU community and the general public, alongside scores from a professional judging panel.

Professor Christopher Chao, Senior Vice President (Research and Innovation) of PolyU, praised the achievements. “These outstanding research stories affirm PolyU’s unwavering commitment to advancing knowledge and innovation that address societal needs,” he remarked.

“PolyU will continue to pursue its mission of delivering world-leading research and innovation for the benefit of society, fostering a dynamic research ecosystem and transforming bold ideas into impactful solutions.”

Innovations in health and medicine

The winning stories highlight PolyU's strategic focus in key areas, including artificial intelligence, life sciences, sustainability, and smart cities.

Among the celebrated health and medical breakthroughs was the establishment of the PolyU Advanced Therapy Product Laboratory, led by Professor Larry Chow Ming-cheung, which offers new hope to spinal cord injury patients by developing cell therapy products.

Another significant project, led by Professor Ben Ko Chi-bun, discovered the mechanism of the Chinese medicine extract tetrandrine, opening new avenues for treating viral infections and Alzheimer’s disease.

In a related field, a team led by Professor Anqi Qiu advanced our understanding of the link between sustained obesity and accelerated brain aging.

Pioneering sustainability and clean energy

In the realm of sustainability and energy, several projects were recognized for their potential to address global challenges.

A team led by Professor Yin Jun achieved a record-breaking 33.89 percent power-conversion efficiency in tandem solar cells with a novel passivation strategy.

Complementing this, research by Professor Li Gang and Professor Yang Guang aims to push perovskite/silicon tandem solar cells towards a 40 percent efficiency milestone, driving the commercialization of this energy-efficient technology.

Another innovation, from a team led by Professor Wang Zuankai and Professor Yao Haimin, created a self-powered mechanism for ejecting freezing droplets, offering cost-effective solutions for de-icing.

Meanwhile, research led by Professor Chen Jianli utilized satellite positioning data to better track Greenland’s ice sheet melt and assess its impact on sea-level rise.

Advancing AI and next-generation computing

The university also honored significant leaps in artificial intelligence and next-generation computing. Professor Liu Ai-Qun and his team successfully developed and tested Hong Kong’s first chip-based quantum communication network, a major step forward in cybersecurity.

In AI, a team led by Professor Yang Hongxia is reshaping the training paradigm with a novel collaborative approach, Co-GenAI, which promises to reduce costs and democratize AI research.

Another project, led by Professor Chen Changwen, developed a multi-modal agent called VideoMind, enabling AI to understand long videos in a way that emulates human thinking.

The public's choice: Reflecting community interest

Professor Chao expressed gratitude for the enthusiastic public response to the campaign, which attracted more than 7,700 votes. “Your support is not only a vote of confidence in PolyU’s research strengths, but also a clear reflection of society’s keen interest in innovation and its positive impact,” he said.

Reflecting this public interest, PolyU also gave special recognition to the three projects that garnered the highest number of votes.

These included a project on innovative sustainable personal cooling technologies to combat extreme heat, led by Professor Shou Dahua.

The other two public favorites were also among the top ten awardees—the discovery related to the Chinese medicine extract tetrandrine and the Advanced Therapy Product Laboratory for spinal cord injuries, highlighting their significant perceived relevance to society.