Dr. Gabby FUNG Ka-Yan (Class of 2024) and Dr. Mike FUNG Kwong-Chiu (Class of 2026), graduates of the PhD in Individualized Interdisciplinary Program (IIP), have garnered global acclaim for their collaborative research project, “Loving Baby”, sweeping four awards at the Silicon Valley International Invention Festival (SVIIF) 2026, the eLearning Forum Asia (eLFA) Awards 2026, and the 2nd AIREA International Competition on AI in Education 2026.

Funded by the Tai Po Wang Fuk Court Emergency Relief Fund of the Li Ka Shing Foundation, the "Loving Baby" project explores how AI and emotional robotics can support children's positive thinking development and bring research outcomes to the campus. 

Jointly led by The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST) and The Education University of Hong Kong (EdUHK), the project team designed creative hands-on activities, interactive play, and emotional engagement with the robot. During in-school pilots, students enthusiastically participated, expressing their emotions sincerely in a relaxed environment. Teachers observed that these interactions encouraged students to open up and share their feelings, significantly enhancing peer empathy, mutual understanding, and a caring school culture.

"Loving Baby" has captured global attention by successfully bridging advanced technical engineering with social-emotional pedagogy since its launch, including:

• Silicon Valley International Invention Festival (SVIIF) 2026 – Silver Medal
• eLearning Forum Asia (eLFA) Awards 2026 – Technology Innovation Gold Award and Community Outreach Bronze Award
• 2nd AIREA International Competition on AI in Education 2026 – Merit Award

The project exemplifies how interdisciplinary training can bridge institutions to solve complex social problems. "Loving Baby" is jointly supervised and executed by Prof. SIN Kuen-Fung (Professor, Department of Special Education and Counselling , EdUHK), Prof. MOW Wai-Ho (Professor, Department of Electronic and Computer Engineering, HKUST), Dr. Gabby Fung, and Dr. Mike Fung.