News

Prof. LUO Xiapu and His Team Bag Two Awards at ACM CCS 2024 in Recognition of Groundbreaking Blockchain Security Research

We are excited to announce that our professor, Prof. LUO Xiapu Daniel, and his research team have recently received the “Distinguished Paper Award” and the “Best DeFi Papers Award” from ACM Conference on Computer and Communications Security (CCS 2024), in recognition of their groundbreaking contributions to the field of blockchain security.   Distinguished Paper Award at CCS 2024 The research paper “DoubleUp Roll: Double-spending in Arbitrum by Rolling It Back”, authored by Prof. LUO and Mr Zhiyuan SUN, our PhD student, won the Distinguished Paper Award at CCS 2024. Other collaborator of this paper comes from Southern University of Science and Technology.   This research paper identifies critical vulnerabilities in widely-used optimistic rollup protocols, specifically Arbitrum and Optimism. It reveals three novel double-spending attacks, including overtime attack, queuecut attack, and zip-bomb attack, which could allow attackers to steal funds from cross-chain applications at no cost. These severe vulnerabilities were promptly reported to the Arbitrum and Optimism teams, who recognised the contributions with significant bug bounties and resolved the issues. This research prevented potential damages that could have escalated to billions.   The ACM Conference on Computer and Communications Security (CCS) is the flagship annual conference of ACM’s Special Interest Group on Security, Audit and Control (SIGSAC), underscoring the significance of this recognition. Read more: https://www.sigsac.org/ccs/CCS2024   Best DeFi Papers Award 2023 at ACM CCS Workshop on Decentralized Finance and Security 2024 (DeFi’24) In addition to the Distinguished Paper Award, Prof. LUO and Mr Zihao LI, our PhD student, also won the “Best DeFi Papers Award 2023” from the DeFi’24, which was co-located with CCS 2024. This award-winning paper entitled “Demystifying DeFi MEV Activities in Flashbots Bundle” was published at CCS 2023.This award is presented to authors whose published work in 2023 represents outstanding and groundbreaking research in all essential aspects of DeFi. Other collaborators of this paper come from Xi'an Jiaotong University, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, and Pennsylvania State University.   This work presents an innovative methodology for discovering previously unknown DeFi miner extractable value (MEV) activities, featuring two new tools: ActLifter and ActCluster. ActLifter excels in identifying DeFi actions in transactions of each bundle with nearly 100% precision and recall, outperforming existing technologies. ActCluster uses iterative clustering to help analysts discover DeFi MEV activities. The team has discovered 17 new types of DeFi MEV activities, which occur in over 53% of bundles. This work also demonstrates how their new approach can enhance existing MEV studies, like improving MEV countermeasures, assessing forking and reorganisation risks posed by bundle MEV activities, and evaluating the impact of bundle MEV activities on the economic security of blockchain.   The ACM CCS Workshop on Decentralized Finance and Security (DeFi) stands as the premier research symposium in Decentralized Finance, aimed at fostering the development of a secure and trustworthy DeFi ecosystem. Read More: https://defi.security/#best-papers

PolyU Info Day 2024 Showcased Interactive Navigation Application Designed by COMP UG Students

PolyU Info Day 2024, organised on 12 October, achieved remarkable success with a record-breaking visitor number of over 40,000. The event catered to secondary school students, parents, and individuals interested in further studies, providing them with the latest information about admission and academic programmes.   Our department showcased a variety of engaging activities during Info Day, highlighted by the launch of an interactive navigation application developed by our undergraduate students in less than a month. With guidance from academic staff, this application features an interactive map that helps visitors navigate various campus locations and engage in different activities such as info seminars and on-site consultation. Over 2,300 visitors used the application on the event day. This application effectively demonstrates how our students apply techniques learned in class, including 3D modelling, database integration, and user interface design.      

COMP Graduates shine in the IEEE (HK) Computational Intelligence Chapter Final Year Project Competition

We are pleased to announce that two of our graduates, JIANG Yiyang and YANG Zhanpeng, achieved outstanding results in the Final Year Project Competition 2023-2024, organised by the IEEE (Hong Kong) Computational Intelligence Chapter. This competition is open to all tertiary institutions in Hong Kong, with participants submitting their final-year undergraduate projects for evaluation.   JIANG Yiyang won the Champion award for his project, "Video Moment Retrieval Using Deep Learning Models." This project enhances video moment retrieval (VMR) by integrating large language models (LLMs) to address challenges in generating continuous outputs for inter-frame relations, such as salience scores and inter-frame embeddings. His approach refines inter-concept relations in multimodal embeddings, enabling effective retrieval without relying on textual training. “Winning this award has been an incredibly rewarding experience that has taught me valuable lessons about independent research, exploration, and the application of academic research to real-world scenarios,” Yiyang said. He extends his gratitude to his supervisor, Prof. CHEN Changwen, Chair Professor of Visual Computing, as well as Prof. LI Qing, Chair Professor of Data Science and Head, Prof. WEI Xiaoyong, Visiting Professor of COMP, for their guidance and invaluable support.   YANG Zhanpeng received the Merit award for his project, "Generating Attributes for Knowledge Graphs with ChatGPT - Distant Supervision for Sentence Classification", supervised by Dr HUANG Xiao, Assistant Professor. This project explores sentence classification using distant supervision methods to aid knowledge graph construction. It classifies sentences into categories like definitions and examples, utilising ChatGPT to generate noisy labels for training. The project shows promising results in improving classification accuracy. Zhanpeng supplemented that future work could focus on improving data diversity and classification robustness, and addressing ethical considerations, such as cultural differences and information integrity. This research contributes to automating knowledge graph enrichment, with potential applications in educational technology and content organisation.

MSc in Metaverse Technology Graduates showcased Outstanding Projects to the Financial Secretary at the Digital Entertainment Leadership Forum (DELF) 2024

On 16 August 2024, we are honour to receive Mr Paul CHAN, Financial Secretary; Ms Lillian CHEONG, Under-Secretary for Innovation; Mr ZHANG Guolai, Second-class Inspector of Youth Department of the Liaison Office of the Central People's Government in the HKSAR; Mr Simon CHAN, Chairman of Cyberport; Dr Rocky CHENG, CEO of Cyberport; and Prof. Christopher CHAO, Vice President (Research and Innovation) of PolyU, at COMP’s exhibition booth at the Digital Entertainment Leadership Forum (DELF). Dr Peter NG, Assistant Professor and programme leader of our MSc in Metaverse Technology programme (MScMT), introduced this groundbreaking postgraduate course to the honourable guests. This programme’s graduates also presented their impressive Metaverse projects to the guests. Mr Paul CHAN engaged in meaningful conversations with our staff members and graduates, encouraging them to continue to excel in the field. Prof. LI Qing, Chair Professor of Data Science and Head and Dr Korris CHUNG, Associate Professor, witnessed this meaningful moment. In addition to the exhibition, Dr Peter NG joined hands with Dr Jeff TANG, Lecturer, to deliver an insightful talk titled "Nurturing Visionary Leaders in Web 3.0 Technology." This session provided an overview of Web 3.0 technologies, with a focus on artificial intelligence (AI), virtual reality (VR), and blockchain. They highlighted the importance of these technologies in shaping the current and future digital landscape. Through showcasing notable student projects, they demonstrated the practical applications and innovations driven by these emerging technologies and the possible impact on students' careers and industry advancements. This workshop attracted dozens of industry experts to attend. The Digital Entertainment Leadership Forum (DELF) was held from 16 – 18 August 2024 with the theme"Imaginary Fairground: AI-Powered Entertainment in the Web 3.0 Era." The event showcased the latest advancements in digital entertainment and provided a platform for industry leaders to share insights and innovations.

Faculty Awards for Outstanding Achievement 2024

We are proud to announce that two of our professors, Prof. LUO Xiapu and Prof. XIAO Bin, have been honoured with the Faculty Awards for Outstanding Achievement 2024 in the category of Research and Scholarly Activities: Outstanding Researcher. Prof. LUO Xiapu has received the Outstanding Award. His pioneering research spans across Mobile/IoT/System Security and Privacy, Blockchain/Smart Contract, Software Engineering, Network Security and Privacy, and Internet Measurement. Prof. Luo's exceptional contributions to the field were also recognised with the prestigious BOCHK Science and Technology Innovation Prize 2023 in FinTech last year. Prof. XIAO Bin has been awarded the Merit Award. His significant research focuses on AI Security, Data Privacy, Web3 and Blockchain Systems. Prof. Xiao's dedication to advancing these fields earned him the Faculty of Engineering (FENG) Research Grant Achievement Award for 2022, and he was elected as an IEEE Fellow for 2024. The winners of the Faculty Awards for Outstanding Achievement are chosen by a Faculty Assessment Panel, comprising the Heads (or their delegates) and chaired by the Dean of Faculty of Engineering (FENG), from amongst a pool of well-qualified nominees put forward by individual departments under FENG. The selection is made with reference to the indicative criteria for assessment as laid down by the University for the exercise.

BlockSec Blockchain Security Award Presentation Ceremony 2023/2024

The BlockSec Blockchain Security Award Presentation Ceremony 2023/2024, organised by COMP, took place on 2 August 2024. Generously funded by BlockSec, this recognition celebrates the remarkable achievements of students in the MSc in Blockchain Technology programme. It particularly honours those who have made significant strides in the COMP5566 Blockchain and Smart Contract Security course, demonstrating outstanding academic abilities and a commitment to blockchain security.   Prof. Yajin ZHOU, co-founder and CEO of BlockSec, emphasised the importance of blockchain security and BlockSec’s role in supporting future leaders in this field. He stated, “At BlockSec, we are deeply committed to advancing the field of blockchain security. This award is a testament to our dedication to fostering the next generation of blockchain security experts.” He also highlighted the significance of supporting talented individuals at PolyU, aiming to empower innovators and leaders who will drive the advancement of blockchain technology and security.   Prof. Ken YIU, Professor and Associate Head (Teaching and Learning) of COMP, recognised the awardees for their dedication and effort, emphasising that the Department of Computing at PolyU is a pioneer in new technologies and committed to excellence in teaching and learning. Building on this vision, Prof. Daniel LUO, Professor of COMP and Programme Leader of the MSc in Blockchain Technology, thanked BlockSec for their support of the programme, which highlighted the integration of cutting-edge technology with real-world applications, ensuring that students gain practical experience alongside theoretical knowledge.   This year, COMP conferred the award on ten extraordinary students. Two of the awardees, LI Zitong and CAO Zhikun, shared their academic journey in the MSc in Blockchain Technology programme. They reflected on the fulfilling journey they embarked on as well as the experience and knowledge they gained from the programme.   LI Zitong conveyed appreciation to BlockSec and the programme, “receiving the BlockSec Blockchain Security Award Scholarship is not just a personal milestone but a beacon of encouragement that drives me to push the boundaries of knowledge and contribute meaningfully to the field of blockchain security. I am also deeply grateful to my school for providing an environment that nurtures curiosity, critical thinking, and innovation. The resources, facilities, and opportunities available here have played a crucial role in my academic journey.”   CAO Zhikun expressed his gratitude, “my study under the MSc in Blockchain Technology programme has been an unforgettable journey of exploration, and I am grateful to have been a part of it. This scholarship provided by BlockSec is not only a financial aid but also a recognition of our ability, which will encourage us to continue exploring the promising field of blockchain security and dedicating our strength to the community.”   COMP would like to express sincerest congratulations to all awardees of the BlockSec Blockchain Security Award. Their dedication and perseverance are admirable and will inspire their peers and future students. We are excited to witness their contributions to the blockchain field in the years ahead.   BlockSec was founded in 2021 and has been instrumental in advancing blockchain security infrastructure. Their research work and implementation have empowered countless individuals and organizations worldwide. Their dedication to fostering new talent and innovation in blockchain security is embodied in their sponsorship of this award.  

Prof. Cao Jiannong’s Project Received the Gold Medal at the 2024 Silicon Valley International Inventions Festival

PolyU research teams have achieved remarkable success at the 2024 Silicon Valley International Inventions Festival (SVIIF), garnering a total of nine prestigious awards. One of the gold medals goes to the project titled "Edge AI-Empowered Smart Devices and Robotics for AIoT Applications," led by our Chair Professor, Prof. Cao Jiannong, Dean of the Graduate School, Otto Poon Charitable Foundation Professor in Data Science, Chair Professor of Distributed and Mobile Computing, Director of RIAIoT, and Director of UBDA. Edge AI is an innovative technology that combines edge computing and artificial intelligence to enable real-time data processing and intelligent decision-making on IoT devices and robots. The research team has developed an edge AI platform that supports faster and collaborative model training and inference. Specifically, they have developed an edge-native task scheduling system to manage large-scale, geographically distributed, and heterogeneous edge resources. Atop this system, they have designed various resource-aware scheduling algorithms to optimise AI model training and inference, taking into account both AI model characteristics and underlying resources. Additionally, they offer easy-to-use programming APIs to streamline the development of edge-native AI applications. To further demonstrate the advantages of edge AI, the team has also designed and developed an edge AI robot to inspect pipelines. This robot stands out due to its three key features: its real-time AI-based defect detection, its deformable design, and its autonomous control. It uses advanced edge AI technology to enable compressed, optimised AI models, enabling it to detect pipeline defects in real time. This feature makes the robot effective in challenging environments, such as underground or underwater pipelines. The robot’s unique deformable design and self-control algorithm also enables it to adapt and navigate through various pipe structures. SVIIF is the largest event of its kind in the United States and drew participation from approximately 30 countries and regions this year. The event represented a wide array of academic institutions, research institutes, and enterprises. It was supported and attended by multinational corporations, investors, and entrepreneurs. SVIIF is a crucial platform for inventors and the business community to explore commercialization opportunities and seek partnerships.

PhD students HAO Xiang and MA Chenxiang received the Best Paper Award of IEEE CAI 2024

We are proud to announce that the paper titled "When Audio Denoising Meets Spiking Neural Network", authored by our PhD students, Mr HAO Xiang and Mr MA Chenxiang, and collaborated with Miss Qu YANG, National University of Singapore; Prof. Tan Kay Chen, Interim Head and Chair Professor of Computational Intelligence, DSAI, PolyU; and Dr Wu Jibin, Assistant Professor, COMP, received the Best Paper Award at the 2024 IEEE Conference on Artificial Intelligence (IEEE CAI 2024) held in Singapore from June 25 - 27, 2024.   The award-winning paper explores the application of spiking neural networks (SNNs) in audio denoising, leveraging brain-inspired architectures and computational principles to efficiently process and analyse audio signals. The paper introduces Spiking-FullSubNet, a cutting-edge, real-time audio denoising model based on SNN. The model incorporates a novel gated spiking neuron model (GSN) to effectively capture multi-scale temporal information, which is essential for achieving high-fidelity audio denoising. In addition to the architectural advancements, the authors propose the integration of GSNs within an optimised FullSubNet neural architecture, enabling efficient processing of full-band and sub-band frequencies while significantly reducing computational overhead. The paper also introduces a metric discriminator-based loss function that selectively enhances the desired performance metrics without compromising others. Empirical evaluations demonstrate the superior performance of Spiking-FullSubNet, which ranked as the winner of Track 1 (Algorithmic) of the Intel Neuromorphic Deep Noise Suppression Challenge.   The IEEE CAI 2024 is a prominent industry-organized event dedicated to artificial intelligence and its applications in various industries. The conference serves as a platform for connecting AI enterprise leaders, innovators, and stakeholders from industry, government, and start-ups, showcasing the latest advancements in AI research and applications.

Senior Secondary Python Programming Contest

From 4 – 6 July 2024, COMP successfully organised the Senior Secondary Python Programming Contest ("Contest"). The Contest received an overwhelming response, with applications from over 210 secondary schools. To accommodate more students, we increased the participant quota from 35 to 48 teams.   The Contest consists of three training sessions conducted by Dr LEONG Hong Va, our Senior Lecturer, followed by a 3-hour coding contest. The format of the Contest draws inspiration from the ACM International Collegiate Programming Contest (ACM ICPC), a renowned annual global programming competition for university students.   The contest was conducted in a team-based format, with each team comprising three members. Participating teams were tasked with solving a series of programming problems by developing Python programs from scratch within a 3-hour time limit, using a single shared computer. This format challenged the participants' problem-solving abilities, as well as their teamwork and collaboration skills.   The contest was so intense and dramatic that some teams had very close scores, with the ranking of the teams constantly changing until the last moment. We were deeply impressed by the passion and hard work displayed by the participants.   The top seven teams that solved the highest number of problems were declared the winners. However, to recognize the exceptional talents of the students, we decided to add 10 additional Merit awards to the contest. The award ceremony was held right after the contest. We are honoured to have the following COMP Staff and distinguished guests present the awards: Prof. AU Man Ho Allen, Professor and Associate Head (Research and Development), COMP Mr LEE Hoi Chun, Vice Chairman, The Hong Kong Association for Computer Education (HKACE) Dr LEONG Hong Va, Senior Lecturer, COMP Mr Albert WONG, Chairman, Association of I.T. Leaders in Education (AiTLE) (In alphabetical order of surnames)   The full award list is as follows: Champion ($12,000) Buddhist Sin Tak College Luo Tsz Fung, Chin Ka Wang and Chan Sing Yu 1st Runner-up ($6,000) Wah Yan College, Kowloon Lau Pok Man, Siu Lok Yin and Chang Tsz Fung 2nd Runner-up ($3,000) Diocesan Girls' School Ma Hei Wun Apple, Lam Elizabeth and Cheung Alice Hiu Yu Distinction Award ($1,000) N.T. Heung Yee Kuk Yuen Long District Secondary School Lam Chi Hang, Kwok Chun Hang And Louie Chun Hin NLSI Peace Evangelical Secondary School Qi Gongfu, Yang Man Kit and Ngai Ming Hang Kwun Tong Maryknoll College Lee Luca, Wong Sai Kwan and Lau Vic Earthy Heep Yunn School Chan Tsz Ching, Ma Tsin Chin and Fung Wan Wai Merit Award Kau Yan College Shek Man Kin, Tam King Yeung Oscar and Li Wang The Hong Kong Management Association K S Lo College Chen Yee Fung, Lo King Shan and Li Zizhang Tsuen Wan Government Secondary School Lo Chap Hin, Chen Bai-An and Chow Hoi Chun, Adrian Chiu Chow Association Secondary School Yeung King Him, Chow Tsz Chun, Kwan Cheuk Nam Maryknoll Fathers' School Tse Hang Man, Yu Liu Laam and Tang Tsz Ho HKSYCIA Wong Tai Shan Memorial College Lam Chak Kuen, Szeto Tsz Hin and Lau Hoi Chun Shun Lee Catholic Secondary School Chee King Hei, Shing Wai Chuen and Chan Sheung Yeung S.K.H. Leung Kwai Yee Secondary School Lin Shao Bo, Cheng Chun Hei and Yang Kam Yan Anita Heung To Middle School (Tin Shui Wai) Kwok Ka Him, Wu Kin Long and Yu Tsun Hin PLK Wu Chung College Wong Chi Hin, Tse Cheuk Hang and Chan Kwun Man James

COMP 50th Anniversary Research Student Conference: Fostering Academic Excellence

COMP 50th Anniversary Research Student Conference was successfully held on 24 June 2024 at the New World Millennium Hong Kong Hotel. The event, themed "Fostering Academic Excellence," brought together an impressive array of speakers, academics, and research students for a day of knowledge-sharing and recognition of outstanding scholarly work.   The conference was inaugurated with a warm welcome speech and opening speech from Prof. LI Qing, Chair Professor of Data Science and Head of COMP and Prof. Christopher CHAO, Vice President (Research and Innovation), respectively.   The first highlight of the conference was the keynote speech delivered by Prof. LI Baochun from the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering at the University of Toronto. His speech, titled "Writing Great Papers in the Era of Generative AI," provided attendees with invaluable insights into the evolving trend of academic publishing and how to conduct impactful research with the aid of generative AI.   The event also featured a thought-provoking panel discussion on "How to do good research and have a successful career in Research?" Esteemed panel members included Prof. DONG Guozhu (Wright State University), Prof. Sean WANG (Fudan University) and Prof. SU Jianwen (University of California, Santa Barbara). Their collective wisdom offered a deep exploration of the challenges and strategies for building a successful academic career and how researchers can deal with psychological changes and manage their emotions during challenges at different career stages.   In line with the conference's objectives to honour research students' hard work and facilitate the exchange of knowledge, there were eight oral presentation sessions featuring 48 students and 54 poster presentations, allowing COMP research students to showcase their research, engage in scholarly dialogue, and gain feedback from their peers and guests. Eight students have been selected for the Best Presentation Award by the panels, while 11 students have been voted by all the participants for the Best Poster Award. Below are the awardee lists.   Best Presentation Award (Cash prize of $5,000 for each awardee) Awardees Paper Title MA Chenxiang Scaling Supervised Local Learning with Augmented Auxiliary Networks HONG Zicong Optimus: Warming Serverless ML Inference via Inter-Function Model Transformation MEI Zhimin Repurposing Optical Mice for Acoustic Eavesdropping LI Yiran Efficient and Effective Attributed Networks Clustering via K-Nearest Neighbor Augmentation YU Shiming Revolutionizing LoRa Gateway with XGate: Scalable Concurrent Transmission across Massive Logical Channels ZHANG Qinggang KnowGPT: Black-Box Knowledge Injection for Large Language Models ZHENG Tianyu Leaking Arbitrarily Many Secrets: Any-out-of-Many Proofs and Applications to RingCT Protocols HU Xu Segment Anything in 3D Gaussians   Best Poster Award (Cash prize $2,000 for each awardee) Awardees Poster Title LI Ruibin Source Prompt Disentangled Inversion for Boosting Image Editability withDiffusion Models CAI Xuyuan Privacy-preserving even-oriented sybil-resistance decentralized identity scheme LIU Xun SnarkFold: Efficient Proof Aggregation from Incremental Verification and Applications WANG Fangxiao Fair Surveillance Assignment Problem DING Yunan Medical-SAM: SAM Adaptation for 3D Medical Image Segmentation QIAN Chen Enhancing Sigma Protocols Efficiency and Privacy with Sumcheck Protocol Optimization ZHOU Yu CausalBench: A Comprehensive Benchmark for Causal Learning Capability of Large Language Models CHEN Jingfan Diversify-and-Aggregate: Augmenting Replay with Generative Modeling Make Stronger Incremental Segmentation Models MA Yuxiao Noise-based Privacy Protection Assisted Homomorphic Encryption for Federated Learning ZHANG Jiahao Linear-Time Graph Neural Networks for Scalable Recommendations ZHENG Peirong Federated Learning with Neuron-wise Learning Rates   The conference concluded with a banquet in the evening, with a welcome speech by Prof. LI Qing followed by an open remark by Prof. CAO Jiannong, Dean of Graduate School and Chair Professor of Distributed and Mobile Computing. Participants enjoyed a sumptuous dinner and celebrated the achievements of their peers.