Professor Jay Siegel, Vice-President and Pro-Vice-Chancellor (Teaching and Learning) of the University of Hong Kong (HKU), delivered a visionary address at the 2026 Inclusion Conference on the Bund in Shanghai on 10 September. In his speech, Professor Siegel emphasised the necessity of a human-centric AI economy and the critical importance of anticipating the long-term societal impacts of rapid technological advancement.

The HKU Academy for the Talented (the HKU Academy), a global talent platform for secondary school students worldwide managed by the Admissions Office of The University of Hong Kong (HKU), LIGHTSPEED STUDIOS, and Tencent WeTech Academy, have successfully concluded the third edition of “AI Adventures: When AI Meets Games with Tencent”. The programme brought together secondary students in Secondary 4 to 6 (Years 11 to 13 / Grades 10 to 12) for five days of immersive learning at the intersection of artificial intelligence and game development. The response from participants was overwhelmingly positive. 

Microplastics and nanoplastics are increasingly found throughout aquatic environments, raising concern about whether these tiny particles can move from exposed parents into their offspring. But a new critical review warns that harm observed in the next generation should not automatically be interpreted as evidence that plastic particles were directly transferred from mother to offspring.

Lactic acid is a key building block for biodegradable plastics, but producing it efficiently from renewable biomass remains challenging. Researchers have now developed a defect-engineered metal-organic framework catalyst that converts glucose into lactic acid with substantially improved efficiency, while also showing activity toward raw biomass feedstocks.

- Professor Kwang-Hyun Cho's team in the Department of Bio and Brain Engineering develops NUDGE, a general-purpose foundational technology that harnesses cells' own regulatory dynamics

- A single temporary intervention, without permanently altering genes, can switch cells between diverse states in computational models while preserving their native adaptability

- Expected to enable new control strategies spanning stem cell differentiation, aging, autoimmune disease, regenerative medicine, and cancer reversion therapy

UF Professor Laura Kim, who leads a cross-college project to detect endometriosis earlier and more accurately, recently received an NIH Trailblazer Award to develop a minimally invasive diamond-based quantum sensing platform capable of detecting subtle magnetic signals at the microscopic level.

The Bezos Earth Fund is granting $18 million for ROOTS, a three-year Salk project to test deeper-rooted, more resilient crops that can store more carbon in soil. The project builds on six years of work through Salk’s Harnessing Plants Initiative, which has identified 347 gene candidates and advanced 37 projects across genes and crops. The grant brings the Bezos Earth Fund’s total support for Salk to $48 million.

Researchers from Virginia Tech, Arizona State University, and Iowa State University have received a $2 million grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF) to solve that problem by manufacturing self-lubricating, wear-resistant metal alloys that won't break down even at ultra-high temperatures.