HKUST Boundless Article

Covering more than 70 percent of Earth’s surface, the oceans regulate our climate, sustain marine ecosystems, and support life on a global scale. However, the complexity of the underwater world is often overlooked and taken for granted because so much of it is hidden from view.

This is precisely the challenge that Prof. GAN Jianping and his research team at HKUST set out to confront. 

Floating in microgravity inside China’s Tiangong Space Station, Hong Kong’s first payload specialist, Dr. LAI Ka-Ying, alongside her Shenzhou-23 crewmates, carefully assembled and mounted a compact high-tech payload developed by HKUST on the exterior of the station.

The launch and operational success of “MUSICO”, the Multi-Spectral Imaging Carbon Observatory, brings together two Hong Kong firsts: our first astronaut and the first Hong Kong-developed scientific payload to be deployed on a national space station, representing a unique confluence of Hong Kong talent.

HKUST is building a fast-moving bridge between research and real-world application through the Industrial Alliance alongside the inaugural Cheng Kar-Shun Robotics Institute (CKSRI) Industrial Summit. 

The dynamic platform will help turn intelligent breakthroughs into technologies that can be tested, improved, and deployed. 

Built around one shared goal, the alliance aims to advance embodied intelligence and other emerging technologies, in alignment with the national “AI+ initiative” in the 15th Five-Year Plan. 

A deep-sea scientific expedition aboard the research vessel Shenhai Yihao to the Haima cold seep in the South China Sea marked the first time a large group of early-career researchers from Hong Kong has participated in such a manned deep-diving voyage.

The achievement represents a major step forward for Hong Kong scholars in engaging deeply with national deep-sea research platforms and international deep-sea scientific programs.

We know that the bond between a teacher and a student can supercharge learning. But what if the “teacher” isn't human?

A recent study from HKUST, published in the neuroscience journal Neuron, suggests that a brief pre-class interaction with an AI can change how your brain prepares for learning.

 
Boundless: Professor Hsing, thank you for joining us. Could you start by telling us about the breakthrough your team has recently published in Nature Biotechnology?

Developed economies worldwide, including Hong Kong, are now dealing with the issue of aging societies. Extended lifespans place significant caregiving and financial burdens on older adults, their families, and healthcare systems, creating an urgent need to understand the biological basis of “healthy aging.”

In response, a 5-year study project launched at HKUST, with support from the Bright Future Charitable Foundation, has set out to unlock the secrets to healthy longevity using HKUST’s groundbreaking technologies.