80-year-old Miss Universe entrant inspires seniors to pursue dreams

An 80-year-old South Korean Miss Universe contestant has showed senior citizens a new way to pursue their dreams and embrace a colorful way of living in their later years, giving new hope and a new lease of life to the increasingly aging population.

In a groundbreaking move, the Miss Universe competition has shattered its age restrictions and focus on superficial beauty, opening the door for the unprecedented entrant, Choi Soon-hwa.

Beauty knows no age. That's the message at this year's Miss Universe competition, which features the event's oldest-ever competitor.

"After seeing that the Miss Universe competition has no age limit, I said I am participating in this. Then my son said, 'Mom, are you going that far? Okay, mom, go for it if you want.' So, I sent them photos yesterday, and then they said, 'Our mother is amazing, our grandmother is great.' So, I feel very happy," said Choi Soon-hwa.

Long criticized for being out of step with the times, Miss Universe organizers lifted many restrictions on age, marriage, and motherhood as of this year.

"Since many restrictions such as the age limit have been lifted, as of this year, more participants can enter the competition, and more standards for women's beauty now have been applied," said Kim Sung-shin, a Miss Universe contestant.

Promoter Yang Sun-mook, also CEO of DQ Communications, has been working with pageant organizers in South Korea to ensure the event represents the country's rapidly aging society.

"[South] Korea is having a very fashionable moment with old age. You see it in advertisements, on TV shows, fashion shows and even in international beauty competitions," Yang said.

As a mother and grandmother who is now pursuing her modeling career and who recently ran as a candidate for the National Assembly, Choi, with her action, has given a message to other seniors -- follow your dreams.

"With your talent, go to the place where you can find confidence, go outside home to anywhere as you like to participate in social activities, so that the senior society can be more active," Choi said.

80-year-old Miss Universe entrant inspires seniors to pursue dreams

The two-day 2025 Brain-Computer Interface (BCI) Conference concluded on Friday in Shanghai, where multiple globally leading "China solutions" took center stage.

Under the theme "Brain connects the world, wisdom gathers in Shanghai," the event gathered research teams from major universities, leading industry developers, and experts across the BCI sector to strengthen the connection between research, application, and policy.

As part of the event, the first BCI competition featured four categories—fatigue detection, emotion recognition, brain-controlled robotic cars, and brain-controlled robotic arms - with 40 out of nearly 100 teams from across China received prizes.

In the BCI Industry Innovation Exhibition Zone, more than a dozen frontier-tech companies presented cutting-edge technologies ranging from key components to comprehensive system-level solutions.

Exhibits spanned the entire technology chain, from underlying hardware to clinical applications, covering fields such as sleep intervention, mental illness treatment, and rehabilitation for degenerative diseases—highlighting the latest trends in BCI development.

"We completed the first domestic clinical trial this March, and next year we will launch large-scale clinical trials," said an exhibitor named Chen Yaoxu.

Shanghai has established China's first future industry cluster dedicated to BCI technologies. During the conference, several new innovation platforms—including a BCI service platform and a joint laboratory for digital neuromedicine - were inaugurated.

"We are guided by clinical needs and clinical scenarios. At the same time, we are opening high-quality EEG datasets for enterprises to support their algorithm research and guide them in developing concrete products that truly address real-world needs," said Wang Zhuoyao, BCI Project manager of Shanghai Municipal Science and Technology Commission.

Shanghai conference highlights China's cutting-edge brain-computer interface innovations