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The Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK) held an inauguration ceremony for four new Jockey Club (JC) STEM Labs yesterday (13 November) after receiving latest donation of HK$39.8 million from The Hong Kong Jockey Club Charities Trust (the Trust). The officiating guests at the ceremony were Professor Isabella Poon Wai-yin, CUHK’s Provost, and Ms Elsie Tsang, Executive Manager of Charities (Children & Youth in Families) for the Trust. Four Global STEM Scholars (JC STEM Lab Directors), Professor Lin Xiaojun, Professor Ouyang Wanli, Professor Sun Wing-kin, and Professor Pan Jialin, also attended the ceremony and witnessed the inauguration.

Professor Poon expressed heartfelt gratitude to the Trust, noting that “CUHK will soon launch the Strategic Plan 2026–2030, which defines our new directions to align with institutional aspirations, national strategies and global trends for the coming five years. The inauguration of the four JC STEM Labs today will enable us to take a leap forward towards our goals, adding to the vibrancy of CUHK’s innovation ecosystem. I hope the four new labs will live up to their promise to yield impactful discoveries and innovative outcomes so as to bring heightened benefits for the community at large.”

Trust representative Ms Tsang said: “The launch of four new JC STEM Labs today is a powerful symbol of the deep and productive partnership between The Hong Kong Jockey Club Charities Trust and The Chinese University of Hong Kong. Education is at the heart of the Trust’s mission, and STEM is a key driver of our future. Our commitment to these efforts underscores the Club’s purpose: to strive continuously for the betterment of society.

The four labs specialise in the following distinctive fields:

JC STEM Lab of Advanced Wireless Networks for Mission-Critical Automation and Intelligence, led by Professor Lin Xiaojun for the Department of Information Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, is dedicated to advancing next-generation wireless technologies. The Lab focuses on developing low-latency and high-reliability wireless networks to meet the stringent demands of industrial automation and collaborative AI, enabling seamless and efficient connectivity for critical tasks.

JC STEM Lab of AI for Science and Engineering, led by Professor Ouyang Wanli from the Department of Information Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, is dedicated to driving AI breakthroughs in scientific research, enhancing research efficiency and helping to break new ground in scientific research. It will also focus on AI applications in the industrial sector and promote implementation of AI technologies.

JC STEM Lab of Computational Genomics, led by Professor Sung Wing-kin from the Department of Chemical Pathology, Faculty of Medicine, is dedicated to utilising computational and genomic technologies to create an accurate and cost-effective platform for identifying genomic mutations in individuals. The platform also aims to identify disease-causing genomic variations and their corresponding treatment options.

JC STEM Lab of Integration of Machine Learning and Symbolic Reasoning, led by Professor Pan Jialin from the Department of Computer Science and Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, is dedicated to advancing a new AI paradigm through the deep integration of data-driven machine learning models and knowledge-driven symbolic reasoning techniques.

In 2021, The Hong Kong Jockey Club approved a total donation of HK$500 million through its Charities Trust for the JC STEM Lab Initiative to support the establishment of laboratories for scholars under the Government-initiated Global STEM Professorship Scheme. The scheme aims to nurture STEM talent in Hong Kong, translate of new scientific research and technologies into social impact and expand Hong Kong’s innovation and technology talent pool over the long run.

Under this initiative, CUHK established five Trust-funded JC STEM Labs in 2023, the JC STEM Lab of Intelligent Design Automation; the JC STEM Lab of Astronomical Instrumentation; the JC STEM Lab of Stem Cells and Regenerative Medicine; the JC STEM Lab of Nature-inspired Precision Medical Engineering; and the JC STEM Lab of Personalised Cancer Medicine. The four new labs take the total number of JC STEM Labs established by CUHK with Trust funding to nine.