More coverage on HKUST holding its information day for UG admissions in GZ on Sunday.  Undergraduate Recruitment & Admissions Office (URAO) Director Prof. Emily M. NASON noted that the University plans to admit about 300 students through China's 2026 national college entrance exam ("Gaokao").  The 2026 online application system will be opened next Friday. Meanwhile, HKUST will hold its Information Day for UG Admissions at the Clear Water Bay campus on November 1. (Various media)

跨学科学院（AIS）是香港科技大学的第五所学院，致力于推动创新教学与前沿跨学科研究，以培育复合型人才，应对全球社会日新月异的挑战。
香港科技大学跨学科学院代表、环境管理与科技课程联席主任王哲教授介绍，本年度跨学科学院新增“可持续发展延伸主修”，学生可在理、工、商、人文社会科学以及其他跨学科主修课程之外，同时修读热门的可持续发展主题课程作为延伸主修。
文／广州日报新花城记者：林霞虹
图/香港科技大学
广州日报新花城编辑：赵小满

Prof. WANG Zhe, Co-director of the Environmental Management and Technology Program, represented the Academy of Interdisciplinary Studies (AIS) to share the updates of AIS UG programs, including the new extended major in Sustainability and the renaming of BSc in Integrative Systems and Design to BSc in Innovation, Design and Technology to groom technologists and innovators. Prof. Wang also shared the AIS graduates' strong employment prospects, a remarkable 21% increase of the starting salary over the previous year, amid global volatility.

A feature story by i-Cable TV highlighted how universities are encouraging students to create AI-generated films through art and technology education. HKUST organized the "AI Film Festival", the first of its kind in Greater China, showcasing 35 AI-generated short films selected from over 700 global entries. The story included interviews with the Assistant Professor of the Division of Arts and Machine Creativity (AMC), Prof. Anyi RAO, who predicted the first AI film could reach cinemas within one to two years, and PhD in Individualized Interdisciplinary Program student Ms. TANG Yuying and Mr. WEI Zheng, who discussed the creative challenges posed by current AI limitations in character control and emotional expression.

The Associate Head and Chair Professor of the Division of Environment & Sustainability (ENVR), Prof. CHEN Fei, has become the second scholar from Greater China to receive the prestigious 2025 Luke Howard Award from the International Association for Urban Climate. This award was conferred in recognition of his exceptional leadership and transformative contributions to urban climatology. Prof. CHEN is currently collaborating with the Head and Chair Professor of the Division of Environment & Sustainability (ENVR) and the Chair Professor of the Department of Civil & Environmental Engineering (CIVL), Prof. Alexis LAU Kai-Hon; the Chair Professor of the Division of Environment & Sustainability (ENVR) and the Department of Mathematics (MATH), Prof. Jimmy FUNG; the Associate Professor of the Division of Environment & Sustainability (ENVR), Prof. SHI Xiaoming; and the Associate Professor of the Department of Civil & Environmental Engineering (CIVL), Prof. YANG Jiachuan, to lead the development of a next-generation global urban weather prediction model. (Various media)

At the 2025 Beijing-HK-Macao Young Scientists Conference, the Research Associate Professor of Division of Environment & Sustainability (ENVR), Prof. HAN Wei highlighted in an interview that HK and Beijing, both being international I&T centers, can complement each other. HK scholars can leverage Beijing's scientific facilities, while helping Beijing take its technological achievements to the world.  (Various media)

The Head and Chair Professor of Department of Chemistry (CHEM) and the Chair Professor of Division of Environment & Sustainability (ENVR), Prof. YU Jianzhen, and the Liwei Huang Associate Professor of Business of Department of Finance (FINA), Prof. JI Yan have been awarded fellowship under the 2025/26 Research Grants Council (RGC)’s Senior Research Fellow Scheme (SRFS) and Research Fellow Scheme (RFS), respectively. Their research projects, which focus on atmospheric analytical chemistry and AI-powered imperfect competition in financial markets, have secured fundings of over HK$13.6 million. VPRD Prof. Tim CHENG noted that this year's projects addressed critical global challenges and have potential to yield transformative breakthroughs with far-reaching societal benefits. Also on the list are three scholars from PolyU and seven scholars from CUHK. (Various media)

Cutting-edge technology was showcased for first-year students at HKUST(GZ)'s welcome ceremony held last Saturday. The President of HKUST(GZ), Prof. Lionel NI tasked the student representatives to locate their admission letter and gift boxes on site.
Prof. HUI Pan, HKUST(GZ) Information Hub Associate Dean and Chair Professor of the HKUST’s Division of Emerging Interdisciplinary Areas (EMIA), along with his team, assisted the students in the task using XR glasses. A humanoid robot delivered the admission letters to them. (Sina)

Prof. Erwin HUANG, the Adjunct Professor of Division of Integrative Systems & Design (ISD), attended the book launch session for the book titled "Why Children Should Read Even More in the AI Era" last Wednesday. (Various media)

A column article by Prof. Erwin HUANG, the Adjunct Professor of Division of Integrative Systems & Design (ISD), on how to use AI effectively to improve thinking skills. (HK Economic Times)

A column article by Prof. Erwin HUANG, the Adjunct Professor of Division of Integrative Systems & Design (ISD), on using CODA to build a reliable AI assistant. (HK Economic Journal)