NTU AI expert honoured with prestigious global award
Professor Miao Chunyan from NTU Singapore, has been conferred the Super AI Leader (SAIL) Award at the 2025 World Artificial Intelligence Conference (WAIC) and the High-Level Meeting on Global AI Governance, held in Shanghai, China.
Widely regarded as the “Oscars of Artificial Intelligence,” the SAIL Award is one of the highest international honours in the field. It recognises individuals and organisations for groundbreaking innovations and impactful real-world applications in AI. Past recipients include global technology leaders such as IBM, Amazon Web Services, Tesla, and Huawei.
An annual flagship event, WAIC is a premier platform for showcasing global AI leadership, strengthening international cooperation, and shaping global conversations on AI governance.
Professor Miao, who leads several major research collaborations, including the NTU-UBC Joint Research Centre of Excellence (Lily), the Alibaba-NTU Joint Research Institute, and the Alibaba-NTU Global e-Sustainability CorpLab (ANGEL), was recognised for her pioneering work in applying AI to support healthy ageing. Her research highlights how artificial intelligence can revolutionise dementia care and ageing support by providing scalable, personalised, and dignified solutions.
Together with her collaborators – Professor Chin Jing Jih, Deputy Chief of the National Healthcare Group and Founding Director of the Geriatric Centre at Tan Tock Seng Hospital, and Professor Cyril Leung from the University of British Columbia – Professor Miao led the development of ADL+, an AI-powered cognitive care platform designed for deployment in both home and community settings.
The platform brings together several important functions into one system: it can screen for early signs of cognitive decline, recommend personalised activities or exercises, keep track of a person’s progress over time, and even offer friendly interaction through an AI companion.
By using different types of sensors and combining insights from various ‘AI experts’, ADL+ can provide smarter assessments and tailor the support required for each individual.
In real-world trials, ADL+ achieved outcomes equivalent to a two-year traditional cognitive intervention programme within just six months.
Image: NTU Prof Miao Chunyan at the World AI Conference 2025.
Deployed in nine community centres across Singapore, the platform has supported over 10,000 seniors, empowering them to age actively and independently. It has also attracted more than S$100 million in industry partnerships, underscoring strong confidence in its transformative potential.
“We are humbled and honoured to receive the SAIL Award for our work on AI for Cognitive Wellbeing,” said Professor Miao. “ADL+ demonstrates how AI can help seniors age successfully with dignity in the comfort of their home, where care is most effectively delivered.”
With global demand for ageing support on the rise, the team is now working to scale and adapt Singapore’s successful model to benefit ageing societies around the world.
NTU Singapore is internationally recognised for its leadership in artificial intelligence research, with over 300 faculty members engaged in interdisciplinary AI projects across healthcare, sustainability, education, and industry. The University continues to drive innovation through strategic collaborations with leading institutions and companies worldwide.
