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News

AI for the Future: Summit and Expo 2021

The CUHK Jockey Club AI for the Future Project, jointly organized by the Faculty of Engineering and the Faculty of Education and sponsored by The Hong Kong Jockey Club Charities Trust, held a summit on 10 December, attracting over 200 educators.

Prof. Martin Wong, Dean of Engineering, and Fan Xitao, Dean of Education, delivered speeches at the summit. Professor Wong said, ‘The Faculty of Engineering is glad that the Project has bridged AI education at secondary and university levels. We shall continue to support the Project in turning the younger generation into capable leaders and innovators. Professor Fan said, ‘Beyond nurturing young innovators, “creating an AI future” is also about collaboration among leaders in education to create a sustainable habitat for AI education.’

In his welcoming remarks, Prof. Yam Yeung of the Department of Mechanical and Automation Engineering, who is also the principal investigator of the Project, said, ‘We hope to popularize AI education and prepare students for the era of human-machine coexistence. We hope they would apply their AI skills while exploring their life and connecting with the rest of the world.’

The keynote speech of the summit was given by the renowned AI researcher Dr. Lee Kai-fu, chairman and CEO of Sinovation Ventures and president of Sinovation Ventures Artificial Intelligence Institute. In his speech, Dr. Lee invited the attendees to picture how AI might transform the world and shape the next generation. The two panel discussions were moderated by Prof. Helen Meng of Systems Engineering and Engineering Management, who also serves as the co-principal investigator of the Project, and Prof. Irwin King, chairman of the Department of Computer Science and Engineering and head of the Project’s e-platform team. Joined by AI experts and veteran local educators, the panels discussed the potential, current applications, prospects and risks of AI.

The AI for the Future Project has recently been awarded the Gold Award of the Smart Citizens (Smart Education and Learning) category of the 2021 Hong Kong Information and Communication Technology Awards for actively promoting the application of information technology in education and developing innovative solutions with social benefits. Results of the Project’s research and work in education were showcased at the Learning and Teaching Expo, held concurrently with the summit. Exhibits include the CUHK-JC iCar—a mini AI-powered car developed by the Project—a selection of exhibits from the Project’s AI Education and Exploration Lab, the award-winning entries in the Secondary School Think and Create Competition 2021, and the Artificial Intelligence Curriculum for Junior Secondary Students in Hong Kong - Teaching and Learning Pack. Four thematic workshops were also held on the first day of the expo by doctoral researchers at CUHK and principal investigators of the Project’s laboratories. The workshops welcomed a full-house with encouraging response.