Over 150 participants attend the first day of the First Sub-Conference of the Third Young Academy of Sciences Summit Focuses on Cutting-Edge Technologies for Cardiovascular Disease

The two-day event - the First Sub-Conference of the Third Young Academy of Sciences Summit (YASS) -kicked off today (20 March). The event brings together internationally renowned scientists, scholars, and professionals for in-depth discussions on three themes related to cardiovascular disease: "Cutting-edge Technologies," "Vascular Diseases," and "Cardiac Disease". The first day of the Sub-Conference attracted over 150 scholars, researchers, and students, with many more participating via online streaming.

The First Sub-Conference of the Third Young Academy of Sciences Summit kicked off today (20 March) with nearly 150 participants joining in person. Professor Philip CHIU, Dean of Medicine at The Chinese University of Hong Kong (Sixth Right); Mr. David FOSTER, Executive Director of the Croucher Foundation (Fifth Left); and Professor Kathy LUI, Founding Member of the Hong Kong Young Academy of Sciences (YASHK) and Professor in the Department of Chemical Pathology at CUHK (Sixth Left) officiated the opening ceremony. (Photo provided by the organiser)

Titled "The Second Croucher Symposium and Seventh YASS Sub-Conference", this event is jointly organised by the CAS CEMCS – CUHK Joint Laboratory for Cardiovascular Sciences, The Chinese University of Hong Kong and Center for Excellence in Molecular Cell Science, the Chinese Academy of Sciences, the Hong Kong Young Academy of Sciences (YASHK), the Croucher Foundation and the Tencent Foundation. Professor Philip CHIU, Dean of the Faculty of Medicine at The Chinese University of Hong Kong; Mr David FOSTER, Executive Director of the Croucher Foundation; and Professor Kathy LUI, Founding Member of the YASHK and Professor of the Department of Chemical Pathology Faculty of Medicine at CUHK, attended the officiating ceremony and delivered opening speeches to kick off the event.

In her speech, Professor Kathy LUI emphasised the significance of collaboration and stated that this event marks the first time that YASS has partnered with the Croucher Foundation. She noted that it provides an invaluable opportunity for leading international experts in cardiovascular and related diseases to convene in Hong Kong for in-depth exchanges, while also enabling emerging young scientists to participate.

Professor Kathy LUI, Founding Member of YASHK, expressed her hope that cross-disciplinary and cross-regional collaboration will drive medical breakthroughs to benefit patients. (Photo provided by the organiser)

In addition, Professor LUI said that local researchers should fully leverage Hong Kong’s international advantages and strong scientific foundation to contribute to national development and social welfare, aligning with the national "15th Five-Year Plan" and the growing support for Hong Kong's scientific research from the national and the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region. She underscored that safeguarding lives and public health through medical innovation is the mission and responsibility of young researchers, and expressed her hope that cross-disciplinary and cross-regional collaboration will drive medical breakthroughs, bringing hope to patients with cardiovascular diseases.

The first day of the Sub-Conference featured a number of distinguished international scholars, followed by interactive exchanges with attendees. Speakers included Professor Stefanie DIMMELER, Professor of Experimental Medicine and Director of Institute for Cardiovascular Regeneration at University of Frankfurt;Professor Thomas BRUAN, Director of Max Planck Institute for Heart and Lung Research; Professor Sean M.WU, Associate Director of the Cardiovascular Institute at Stanford University; and Professor Hellmut AUGUSTIN, Professor of the Department of Vascular Biology at Heidelberg University.

The first day of the YASS Sub-Conference featured discussion sessions on "Cutting-edge Technologies," "Vascular Diseases," and "Cardiac Disease." The first session was moderated by Professor Thomas BRAUN, Director of the Max Planck Institute for Heart and Lung Research (Second Right). Speakers included Professor Bin ZHOU, Professor of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and Co-Director of the CAS-CUHK Joint Laboratory for Cardiovascular Sciences (First Right); Professor Ralf ADAMS, Director of the Max Planck Institute for Molecular Biomedicine (Second Left); and Professor Qingbo XU, Qiushi Professor and Chair of the Department of Cardiology at Zhejiang University Medical School (First Left). (Photo provided by the organiser)

The second day of the Sub-Conference (21 March) will continue with explorations into "Vascular Disease Across Organs". It will also feature the "Young Investigator Awards" academic presentations and an announcement on the results of the cardiovascular disease research poster competition. Professor Bin ZHOU, Professor of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and Co-Director of the CAS-CUHK Joint Laboratory for Cardiovascular Sciences, and Professor Anderson SHUM, President of YASHK, will deliver the closing remarks.

Details of the second day of the First Sub-Conference of the Third YASS are as follows:
Date: 21 March 2026 (Saturday)
Time: 9:00 am to 12:50 pm
Media registration: Starts at 8:30 am
Venue: YIA Lecture Theatre 2, The Chinese University of Hong Kong
Programme rundown:

The Third Young Academy of Sciences Summit will also host two Sub-Conferences in June and September 2026, featuring various innovative science and technology topics and exploring future scientific development prospects.

The sub-conference of the Second Young Academy of Sciences Summit (YASS) 2024/25 was successfully held today (5 June) at InnoCentre. The event focused on one of the most significant areas of interest within the I&T industry — artificial intelligence (AI). Outstanding young scientists from different regions were invited to share their insights with more than 100 researchers, professionals,university students and members of the public at the event, with many more participating online.Together, they explored the development of AI in various fields of scientific research and engineering.

More than 100 participants attended today’s sub-conference of the Second Young Academy of Sciences Summit 2024-2025, themed AI for Science and Engineering. (Photo provided by YASS)

In his welcome speech, Professor Giulio CHIRIBELLA, Member of The Hong Kong Young Academy of Sciences (YASHK), Professor, Director of QICI Quantum Information and Computation Initiative,School of Computing and Data Science, The University of Hong Kong, noted that AI technologies have been advancing at a rapid pace in recent years. He added that in the “Hong Kong I&T Development Blueprint”, the Hong Kong Government clearly stated that the AI and data science industries are key areas for further development. Last year’s “Development Outline for the Hong Kong Park of the Hetao Shenzhen-Hong Kong Science and Technology Innovation Co-operation Zone” highlighted that Hong Kong Park will focus on developing cutting-edge technologies, including AI. All of these developments suggest that Hong Kong, like the Greater Bay Area and the global community, seeks to play an active role in exploring the applications of cutting-edge AI technologies.

Professor CHIRIBELLA emphasised that this sub-conference has brought together some of the finest young scientists from different regions, all specialising in AI technologies. He trusts that through the in-depth exchanges, innovative thinking would ensue, and just as importantly, participants would collectively promote the development and application of AI.

Professor Giulio CHIRIBELLA, Member of The Hong Kong Young Academy of Sciences (YASHK), said that he hoped this sub-conference would foster in-depth exchanges among young scientists, inspire innovative thinking, and encourage collaboration to advance the development and application of AI. (Photo provided by YASS)

The theme of this sub-conference was AI for Science and Engineering, with three discussion topics:"AI in Fundamental Science", "Challenges and Risks in Trustworthy AI", and “AI in Construction”.Renowned young scientists were invited to exchange ideas and insights, including Xingliang YUAN,Associate Professor, School of Computing and Information Systems, University of Melbourne; Hao SUN, Associate Professor with Tenure, Gaoling School of Artificial Intelligence, Renmin University of China; and Yuxuan DU, Assistant Professor, College of Computing and Data Science, Nanyang Technological University.

A number of topics were discussed at the YASS sub-conference, including "AI in Fundamental Science" and “Challenges and Risks in Trustworthy AI”. The event brought together many outstanding young scientists from different regions, all specialists in AI. (Photo provided by YASS)

Among the speakers, Professor Cheuk Lun CHOW, Associate Professor in the Department of Architecture and Civil Engineering of City University of Hong Kong, offered insights on “AI-driven Fire Engineering Design in Supertall Buildings”, explaining how AI can be integrated into construction.

Professor Shiqi WANG, Associate Professor of the Department of Computer Science of City University of Hong Kong, gave a talk on the subject “Towards Trustworthy Vision AI: Bridging Explanation,Security, Privacy, and Forensics”, in which he weighed the potential risks and challenges associated with AI.

More than 100 participants attended today’s sub-conference of the Second Young Academy of Sciences Summit 2024-2025, themed AI for Science and Engineering. (Photo provided by YASS)

This YASS sub-conference is organised by YASHK with the Greater Bay Area Homeland Investment Limited, the Greater Bay Area Homeland Youth Community Foundation and the World Association of Young Scientists serving as co-organisers.