Speakers 2025
Prof. Qing Li
Hong Kong Polytechnic University, China
Fellow of IEEE, AAIA, and IET/IEE
Biography: Qing Li is a Chair Professor and Head of the Department of Computing, the Hong Kong Polytechnic University. He received his B.Eng. from Hunan University (Changsha), and M.Sc. and Ph.D. degrees from the University of Southern California (Los Angeles), all in computer science. His research interests include multi-modal data management, conceptual data modeling, social media, Web services, and e-learning systems. He has authored/co-authored over 500 publications in these areas, with over 42,000 citations and H-index of 84 (source: Google Scholars). He is actively involved in the research community and has served as Editor-in-Chief of Computer & Education: X Realitty (CEXR) by Elsevier, associate editor of IEEE Transactions on Artificial Intelligence (TAI), IEEE Transactions on Cognitive and Developmental Systems (TCDS), IEEE Transactions on Knowledge and Data Engineering (TKDE), ACM Transactions on Internet Technology (TOIT), Data Science and Engineering (DSE), and World Wide Web (WWW) Journal, in addition to being a Conference and Program Chair/Co-Chair of numerous major international conferences. He also sits/sat in the Steering Committees of DASFAA, ER, ACM RecSys, IEEE U-MEDIA, and ICWL. Prof. Li is a Fellow of IEEE, AAIA, and IET/IEE.
Speech Title: KCUBE - A Knowledge Graph University Curriculum Framework for Student Advising and Career Planning
Abstract: Knowledge representations and interactions are at the forefront of teaching, learning, and career planning activities in all endeavors of education and career development. University students are increasingly faced with a myriad of interdisciplinary topics that are seemingly unrelated when unstructured knowledge representations are presented, especially during advising and career orientation sessions. This is especially challenging in fast-changing technical domains such as Computer and Data Science where university curricula are reviewed on an annual basis. This makes it increasingly difficult for instructors and administrators to present both the big picture as well as the detailed knowledge components of degree programs to students when choosing a career or establishing a plan of study and assessment. This paper introduces the KCUBE project, a virtual reality knowledge graph framework for structuring and presenting both the overall view of the Computer Science curriculum taught in the Department of Computing at the Hong Kong Polytechnic University as well as the scheduling alternatives in managing course content and presentation views by instructors and students. We employ computational information storage and retrieval methods, machine learning, and interactive virtual reality to better understand, manipulate, and visualize abstract concepts and relationships in the development of teaching and learning activities in our department.
Prof. Tie Qiu
Tianjin University, China
Biography: Dr. Tie Qiu (M'12-SM'16) is currently a Full Professor at School of Computer Science and Technology, Tianjin University, China. He was a visiting professor at department of electrical and computer engineering of Iowa State University in U.S. (2014-2015). He serves as an associate editor of IEEE/ACM Transactions on Networking (ToN), IEEE Transactions on Network Science and Engineering (TNSE) and IEEE Transactions on Systems, Man, and Cybernetics: Systems, area editor of Ad Hoc Networks (Elsevier), associate editor of Computers and Electrical Engineering (Elsevier), Human-centric Computing and Information Sciences (Springer), a guest editor of Future Generation Computer Systems. He serves as General Chair, Program Chair, Workshop Chair, Publicity Chair, Publication Chair or TPC Member of a number of international conferences. He has authored/co-authored 10 books, over 200 scientific papers in international journals and conference proceedings, such as IEEE/ACM Transactions on Networking, IEEE Transactions on Mobile Computing, IEEE Transactions on Knowledge and Data Engineering, IEEE Transactions on Industrial Informatics, IEEE Communications Surveys & Tutorials, IEEE Communications, INFOCOM, GLOBECOM etc. There are 18 papers listed as ESI highly cited papers. He has contributed to the development of 6 copyrighted software systems and invented 20 patents. He is a distinguished member of China Computer Federation (CCF) and a Senior Member of IEEE and ACM.
Prof. Vladan Devedzic
University of Belgrade, Serbia
Biography: Vladan Devedzic is a Professor of Computer Science and Software Engineering at the University of Belgrade, Faculty of Organizational Sciences. He is the founder and head of the research group focused on Artificial Intelligence (GOOD OLD AI research network). He is also the founder of the Artificial Intelligence Laboratory at his home faculty. Since 2021, he has been a corresponding member of the Serbian Academy of Sciences and Arts (SASA) at the Department of Technical Sciences. Vladan Devedžić's continuous professional goal is to bring together ideas from the field of Artificial Intelligence / Intelligent Systems and Software Engineering. His current interests include artificial intelligence, programming education, software engineering, intelligent software systems, and technology-enhanced learning. He has authored/co-authored numerous research papers, published in international and national journals and edited books, or presented at international and national conferences. He has also authored/co-authored six books on intelligent systems and software engineering. He has also given more than 20 invited talks, keynote talks and plenary talks at international conferences, as well as more than 20 tutorials. His international research cooperation and collaboration record includes universities and research institutes from EU, USA, Canada, Japan, Australia, New Zealand, India and China. He received the Annual Award of the University of Belgrade for an outstanding research contribution (2006) and the award for one of the three best projects in the field of educational technologies at the annual Online Educa Berlin meeting, Berlin (2015).
Speech Title: "We don't need no education"? Careful with this when it comes to AI!
Abstract: Today’s industry is hungry for AI skills. This industry is fast-paced and is more and more data-driven, hence a strong grasp of AI technologies is vital for career success. Moreover, the extremely high dynamics of AI technologies brings the need for new AI skills and for professionals to fill new AI jobs, skills and jobs that did not exist until very recently; here we are talking about months, not years. Examples include LLMOps (Large Language Model Operations, i.e. the practices and processes involved in managing and operating LLMs); creating synthetic content – text, images, video, audio and data – using generative AI tools; AI ethics and governance (ensuring that AI technology is used ethically, focusing on accountability, fairness, transparency, and compliance with new regulations); LMM engineering (Large Multimodal Model development and deployment, combining multiple data modalities (text, images, audio, video); and many more.
This rapidly evolving landscape of new AI skills and jobs demands a fundamental shift in educational approaches across all levels. This talk contributes to the ongoing debate on how to effectively integrate AI in education at schools and universities. Key considerations include:
• Defining the essential foundational knowledge required for students at each educational stage to grasp AI concepts.
• Determining the optimal balance between theoretical instruction, practical applications (including real-world AI examples and student-led AI projects), and critical discussions on the potential misuse and abuse of AI.
• Addressing the broader societal implications of AI's rapid advancement, with a focus on identifying and mitigating the most significant risks and threats.
It is important to stress that the talk raises many open questions. There are no definite answers, and all answers are typically short-lived. The attendees are welcome to actively participate in the talk.
More speakers will be announced soon...