On 29 May 2026, the UNNC Autonomous Driving Forum was successfully held at the University of Nottingham Ningbo China. Co-organised by the Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering and the UNNC Association for Science and Technology, the forum brought together over 30 leading experts from top universities and research institutions across China, including Tsinghua University, Beihang University, Zhejiang University, Tongji University, Shandong University, the University of Macau, the China Academy of Transportation Sciences, and Geely Automotive Research Institute.
The forum opened with welcome addresses from Professor John Zhou, Dean of the Faculty of Science and Engineering, and Associate Professor Chiew Foong Kwong, Head of the Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering. They highlighted UNNC’s commitment to fostering high-level academic exchange and thanked industry partners for their continued support.
Keynote presentations covered a wide range of topics. Professor Li Li (IEEE Fellow) from Tsinghua University spoke on explainable decision-making for autonomous vehicles, while Professor Haiyang Yu from Beihang University discussed interoperability technologies for autonomous transportation systems. Other distinguished speakers addressed channel cognition, end-to-end autonomous driving, and industrial trends. A roundtable discussion followed, generating lively debate on technology frontiers and industrial transformation.
After the presentations, participants toured several key research facilities at UNNC, including the Digital Port Technology Laboratory, where they learned about smart port scheduling solutions developed in partnership with Ningbo Port; the Sir Peter Mansfield MRI Centre, featuring a multi-position, cryogen-free MRI device co-developed by UNNC; and the Zhejiang Aviation Electrification Technology Engineering Research Centre, which has contributed to the development of integrated starter-generator systems for China’s domestically produced large aircraft.
Participants spoke highly of UNNC’s research environment. Ms Liqing Shao from CATARC commented, “UNNC has a very good environment with excellent hardware and software. I learned many new concepts and models at this forum, and I hope industry-university exchange will continue to be strengthened.” Professor Jie Sun from Tongji University added, “The forum combined cutting-edge academic reports with real-world industrial applications. I was deeply impressed by UNNC’s international atmosphere and research strength.” Professor Siyuan Gong fromChang’an University remarked, “This forum has built a direct bridge betweenindustry and cutting-edge research. UNNC’s scientific achievements, driven byinternational collaboration, provide a valuable model for domestic universities.”
UNNC has built strong research capabilities in intelligent transportation and autonomous driving. Its Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering has established multiple provincial-level key laboratories and research centres, achieving internationally recognised results in connected vehicles, traffic big data, and multi-agent control.
The forum organiser, Professor Zhengbing He, is a world-renowned scholar in the interdisciplinary field of AI and intelligent transportation. He served as a professor at Beijing University of Technology and a research scientist at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). He has led major national research projects, including key R&D programmes of the Ministry of Science and Technology and General Programmes of the National Natural Science Foundation of China, with cumulative research funding exceeding 10 million RMB. Professor He has published over 180 papers, including more than 50 in prestigious journals such as Transportation Research Part A/B/C/D/E/F, IEEE Transactions, and Nature. His work has garnered over 8,000 citations, with an H‑index of 42. He is listed as a World’s Top 2% Scientist, ranking 67th among over 30,000 scholars in logistics and transportation worldwide. His research outcomes have been featured by MIT News and other domestic and international media.
The forum successfully showcased UNNC’s growing research influence in autonomous driving and intelligent transportation. Moving forward, UNNC will continue to leverage its international platform to deepen collaboration with leading institutions and contribute to cutting-edge research and talent development.
