The COMP retreat in 2026 was held from 6 to 8 Jul
2026. This time included the PolyU COMP – HIT (SZ) CST Research Student
Conference on 7-8 Jul 2026. The theme is “The Future in an AI-Revolutionised World”.
In day 2, we had breakfast together in the hotel.
In the beginning of retreat day 2, Prof. Hongxia Yang
shared her successful story from RAISE+ and her topic named “Reallm –
World-leading Enterprise GenAI Infrastructure Solution”.
She shared some tips on presenting project to funding
committee and showed us her presentation methods.
Prof. Allen Au had also shared his experience on
RAISE+ preparation. He made proposal in the sequence from problem, to solution,
market need, team capability to commercialization path.
Prof. Fiona Liu introduced the Departmental Entrepreneurship Fund 2026 and encouraged colleague to join this funding.
Finally, Prof. Li Qing summarized the retreat
activities.
Many colleagues studied together.
Afterwards, we went to the Harbin Institute of
Technology (Shenzhen) (HIT). Prof. Andy Chun, Dr. Raymond Pang, Dr. Jeff Tang
and I took a photo in front of the banner.
We had lunch at the campus restaurant.
After lunch, we waited for the conference to begin.
Prof. Andy Chun and I took a photo in front of the conference banner.
HIT representative introduced all guests including COMP
Prof. Li and so on.
In the beginning of the conference, Prof. Bing Li
(Vice President, HIT(SZ)) gave welcome speech.
Then Prof. Qing Li presented the
representatives of Harbin Institute of Technology (Shenzhen) (HIT(SZ)) with
souvenirs from Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU) and took a group photo
with them to express his gratitude for their support of the conference.
And then Prof. Xutao Li (Vice Dean of School of CST,
HIT(SZ)) gave an opening speech.
Prof. Qing Li gave opening remark and appreciated all
supporter and participants.
After that Prof. Lei Yang presented the TPC report.
The total paper submission was up to 356 and PolyU COMP
had 256 and HIT(SZ) CST had 100.
Prof. Yi Pan (Dean and Chair Professor, School of
Computer Science and Control Engineering, Shenzhen University of Technology) was
the keynote speaker and his topic entitled “Current Development Status and
Future Breakthrough Directions of Artificial General Intelligence (AGI) Large
Language Models” (通用人工智能大模型的发展现状与未来突破方向).
He then said six key elements for successful AI Implementation
including Big Data, Optimized Algorithms, Strong Computing Power, Knowledge
Integration, Interpretability and Low Energy Consumption.
After that he mentioned the nature of AI LLM including
Data is the fuel, Model is the engine, Computing power is the driving force, Knowledge
is the capital, Interpretability is the root and Energy is the physical
foundation.
Finally, Prof. Yi Pan outlines eleven strategic
directions for future AI breakthroughs, offering a comprehensive theoretical
guide for industrial and technological innovation across three core dimensions:
embodiment, cognition, and computational paradigms. First, AI will advance
toward true Artificial General Intelligence (AGI) through humanoid robots
possessing both cognitive and emotional intelligence (IQ and EQ), guided by
clear implementation pathways and evaluated by a redesigned Turing Test.
Second, cognitive architectures will increasingly mimic biological systems,
incorporating brain-inspired intelligence, spatial intelligence, world models,
high-dimensional intelligence, and coordinated left/right-brain cooperative
processing. Finally, to power these advanced systems, computing paradigms must
fundamentally evolve. This transformation requires novel computing frameworks,
a balance between general-purpose systems and specialized chips (ASICs), and
the integration of hybrid digital-analog, mixed-precision, and probabilistic
computing. Ultimately, these architectures will transition beyond traditional
silicon toward frontier hardware platforms, including quantum, optical, and
biological computing.
After the keynote, we went to the H block. Dr. Raymond
Pang, Dr. Jeff Tang and I took a photo in front of the building.
Prof. Andy Chun and I took a photo inside the hall and
it is the 20th anniversary of HIT in Shenzhen.
And then we had a tea in Luckin coffee in the campus.
When I went to the parallel session, I saw the tea arrangement.
Then I participated the session 4 – AI for Science.
Mr. Hua Haowei presented “Local-Global Associative
Frames for Symmetry-Preserving Crystal Structure Modelling” that he could like
to seek acceleration of crystal material design.
Mr. Zhang Wengyu presented “GraphATC: advancing
multilevel and multi-label anatomical therapeutic chemical classification via
atom-level graph learning”.
After the parallel session, we all come back to hotel
for dinner.
Prof. Li gave a speech.
At night, we had happy hour in Walters’ room again.
We went to the bar on our way out and asked if they
were open during the World Cup for Walter. Then we back room for preparing the
next morning conference.
