Four distinguished scholars at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST) were honored by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE). On top of three newly-named IEEE Fellows, Prof. Khaled B. LETAIEF, New Bright Professor of Engineering and Chair Professor of Electronic and Computer Engineering, became the first in Hong Kong and one of the first few in Asia to receive IEEE Communications Society (ComSoc) Edwin Howard Armstrong Achievement Award since the award was established in 1958.
Named in honor of Edwin H. Armstrong, inventor and father of the complete FM radio system, the award is a major career honor given annually to one individual who demonstrates persistent outstanding contributions in the field of communications and networking. Prof. Letaief was awarded for his pioneering and sustained contributions to adaptive OFDMA and wireless system design.
Meanwhile, HKUST Provost and concurrently Chair Professor of Computer Science and Engineering Prof. GUO Yike, Prof. CHEUNG Shing-Chi, Professor of Computer Science and Engineering, and Prof. SHI Ling, Professor of Electronic and Computer Engineering, became class of 2023 IEEE Fellows, bringing the total number of IEEE Fellows among the University's faculty members to 44.
Prof. Guo was cited for his contributions to data mining and its applications. Prof. Cheung was recognized for his contributions to testing methodologies and bug management for software, while Prof. Shi was elected for contributions to cyber-physical system optimization and security.
Prof. Khaled B. Letaief is an internationally recognized leader in wireless communications and networks with research interests in AI and machine learning, mobile cloud and edge computing, tactile internet, and 6G systems. He is a member of the US National Academy of Engineering as well as a Fellow of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE), Hong Kong Institution of Engineers, and Hong Kong Academy of Engineering Sciences. He was recognized by Clarivate as a Highly Cited Researcher and listed among the 2020 top 30 of AI 2000 Most Influential Scholars in Internet of Things.
Prof. Letaief received many distinguished awards and honors, including the most recent Honorary Doctorate in Engineering by University of Johannesburg in 2022, IEEE Technical Committee on Cognitive Networks Recognition Award 2021 and Tunisia's national accolade for the Best Tunisian Researcher or Inventor Abroad in 2020. He is also dedicated to serving professional societies - in particular IEEE where he has held many leadership positions, notably IEEE ComSoc President (2018-2019) and founding editor-in-chief of the prestigious IEEE Transactions on Wireless Communications. He is currently serving as an elected member of the IEEE Board of Directors.
About The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology
The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST) (https://hkust.edu.hk/) is a world-class research intensive university that focuses on science, technology and business as well as humanities and social science. HKUST offers an international campus, and a holistic and interdisciplinary pedagogy to nurture well-rounded graduates with global vision, a strong entrepreneurial spirit and innovative thinking. Over 80% of our research work were rated "Internationally excellent" or "world leading" in the Research Assessment Exercise 2020 of Hong Kong's University Grants Committee. We were ranked 3rd in Times Higher Education's Young University Rankings 2022, and our graduates were ranked 30th worldwide and among the best from universities from Asia in Global Employability University Ranking and Survey 2022. As of 2022, HKUST members have founded 1,645 active start-ups, including 8 Unicorns and 7 IPO companies, generating economic impact worth over HK$400billion. InvestHK cited QS World University Rankings by Subject 2021 to demonstrate the performance of five world's top 100 local universities in several innovation-centric areas, among which HKUST ranked top in four engineering and materials science subjects.
