HKU sets up 5 Jockey Club STEM Labs to foster innovative and sustainable research

The University of Hong Kong (HKU) opened five new STEM labs under the support of HK$48.51 million from the Hong Kong Jockey Club Charities Trust.

The five STEM labs are dedicated to a range of innovative research fields, including advanced 3D integrated circuit technology, molecular imaging, multimedia and machine learning, quantitative remote sensing, and robotics for soft materials.

An inauguration ceremony was held today, officiated by Gong Peng, Vice-President (Academic Development) of HKU and Ada Chu, Head of Charities (Talent & Sector Development; Institute of Philanthropy) of The Hong Kong Jockey Club.

“HKU aspires to nurture future leaders in STEM fields,” said Gong. “We strongly believe that they can harness their expertise in inter-disciplinary research and create impact to the society.”

Gong said the Labs will drive research projects to examine complex problems and solutions – from food and energy security to water usage and environmental preservation.

“Talent & Sector Development is one of the focus areas of the Club’s charity strategy,” the Trust representative Chu said. “By investing in the establishment of these JC STEM Labs, the Club’s Charities Trust aims to support the development of STEM talents for Hong Kong and strengthen capacity in applied research and knowledge transfer.”

The “Advanced 3D Integrated Circuit Technology” STEM Lab, led by Professor Li Lain-jong of the Department of Mechanical Engineering, aims to develop key materials and technologies to achieve large-scale manufacturing of advanced three-dimensional integrated circuits (3DICs).

Led by Professor Jiang Haibo from the Department of Chemistry, the “Molecular Imaging” STEM Lab aims to develop innovative biological imaging technology.

Professor Xu Dong from the Department of Computer Science leads “Multimedia and Machine Learning” STEM Lab, aiming to build a powerful large-scale computing system that can efficiently handle complex artificial intelligence tasks.

The “Quantitative Remote Sensing” STEM Lab will be led by Professor Liang Shunlin, with a focus on environmental challenges.

Focusing on basic research on human-like skills of robots, “Robotics for Soft Materials” STEM Lab will be led by Kazuhiro Kosuge from the Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering.