Six New Research Projects to Launch Under HUN-REN and CUHK Collaboration

The Chinese University of Hong Kong, which employs more than 8,000 researchers and academic staff, is one of Asia’s leading research-intensive higher education institutions. CUHK is internationally recognised for its excellence in medicine, artificial intelligence, engineering sciences, and translational biomedical research.

The call placed particular emphasis on joint projects in medical and health sciences, artificial intelligence, and energy research. The programme aims to strengthen collaboration between researchers working in HUN-REN research institutes, research groups, and affiliated companies, and their counterparts at CUHK.

A total of 13 eligible applications were submitted. Given the high quality of the proposals, six projects were selected for funding instead of the originally planned five. From within the HUN-REN network, six research institutes and two supported research groups submitted applications, providing a balanced coverage of the priority scientific areas.

The funded projects address issues including healthy ageing, applications of artificial intelligence, sustainable energy storage, and precision medicine, clearly reflecting the two institutions’ shared ambition to develop innovative solutions to major scientific and societal challenges through international collaboration.

Funded projects:

1. Dr Bálint Hartmann (HUN-REN Centre for Energy Research) and Prof. Jizhou Li (CUHK)
   Data-Driven Ageing Management and Grid Service Optimisation for Megawatt-Scale Na-S Batteries
   Funding: HUF 3,006,000                                                                                                                                                                                                    
2. Dr Bálint Kintses (HUN-REN Biological Research Centre) and Prof. Chuanbin Mao (CUHK)
   Integrating Genomic Surveillance and Phage Engineering to Establish a Cross-Regional Phage Therapy Platform in Europe and Asia
   Funding: HUF 3,000,000                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                             
3. Dr Ádám Madarász (HUN-REN Research Centre for Natural Sciences) and Prof. Oleksandr Savatieiev (CUHK)
   Machine Learning-Guided Design of PHI-Based Materials for Solar Energy Conversion and Storage, and H₂O₂ Production
   Funding: HUF 3,200,000                                                                                                                                                                                        
4. Dr Csilla Özvegy-Laczka (HUN-REN Research Centre for Natural Sciences) and Prof. Wing Hoi Cheung (CUHK)
   Precision miRNA Therapeutics for Sarcopenia: A CUHK–HUN-REN Collaborative Approach to Healthy Longevity
   Funding: HUF 3,000,000                                                                                                                                                                                       
5. Prof. László Pusztai (HUN-REN Wigner Research Centre for Physics) and Prof. Ying Lung Tse (CUHK)
   Integrated AI-Driven Molecular Dynamics, Diffraction, and Reverse Monte Carlo Modelling of Sodium-Ion Battery Electrolytes
   Funding: HUF 3,200,000                                                                                                                                                                                            
6. Dr Béla Weiss (HUN-REN Institute for Computer Science and Control) and Prof. Hanna Lu (CUHK)
   Harmonisation of Multi-site Neuroimaging Data for AI-Driven Downstream Analyses of Healthy and Pathological Brain Conditions Across Ethnic Populations
   Funding: HUF 3,200,000

The call was implemented as a co-funded scheme. Each project could apply for up to HKD 150,000 (approximately HUF 6.4 million) in total funding, split 50–50 between the partners—up to HKD 75,000 from CUHK and HUF 3.2 million from HUN-REN. The non-repayable funding provided by HUN-REN covers all eligible costs incurred on the Hungarian side. The funding source is the budgetary allocation provided under Act XCI of 2024 on the HUN-REN Hungarian Research Network.

The total funding requested by HUN-REN researchers amounted to HUF 18,606,000.

The supported projects represent the first tangible outcomes of the long-term strategic partnership between the two institutions and are expected to form the basis of enduring and fruitful scientific collaboration, demonstrating both organisations’ commitment to strengthening international research ties.