SEE Alumnus Professor Martin Chu Honoured as Young Entrepreneur Winner at the Leader of the Year Awards 2025
The School of Energy and Environment (SEE) at City University of Hong Kong (CityUHK) warmly congratulates distinguished alumnus, Professor Martin Chu, a distinguished SEE alumnus and PhD graduate who completed his doctoral studies under the supervision of Professor Edwin Tso, one being named the Young Entrepreneur Winner at the prestigious Leader of the Year 2025 Awards, organised by Sing Tao News Corporation.
The award presentation ceremony was held on 9 July 2026 and officiated by The Hon. John Lee Ka-chiu, Chief Executive of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region. In his opening address, Chief Executive Lee highlighted the theme of this year's awards—"Smart Global, Extraordinary Innovation"—emphasizing the importance of innovation, technology and visionary leadership in driving high-quality development as Hong Kong aligns with the nation's 15th Five-Year Plan. He also commended the award recipients across various sectors for exemplifying the resilience, creativity and entrepreneurial spirit that continue to strengthen Hong Kong’s international competitiveness.
Established in 1994, the Leader of the Year Awards are among Hong Kong's most respected and influential recognition programmes, honouring outstanding leaders whose achievements have made significant contributions to the city's economic development, innovation ecosystem and social progress.
This remarkable recognition reflects Professor Chu's visionary leadership and entrepreneurial accomplishments in transforming i2Cool Limited—a climate-tec start-up incubated under the CityUHK HK Tech 300 programme—from a university research project into a globally recognized technology enterprise. Rooted in pioneering research on passive radiative cooling technologies, i2Cool is committed to translating scientific innovation into practical, electricity-free cool solutions that improve sustainability and energy efficiency.
Under Professor Martin’s leadership, the company has successfully expanded beyond Hong Kong into international markets, including the Middle East, demonstrating the global potential of home-grown climate technologies. By bridging academic research with real-world applications, i2Cool continues to address pressing environmental challenges while contributing to carbon reduction and sustainable urban development.
Professor Martin’s achievement is a testament to the impact of SEE’s research excellence, innovation-driven mindset and commitment to nurturing future leaders. His success serves as an inspiration to our students, alumni and the wider community, showcasing how cutting-edge research can be transformed into meaningful solutions that create positive societal and environmental impact.
SEE extends its heartfelt congratulations to Professor Martin Chu on this well-deserved honour and wishes him continued success in advancing sustainable innovation on the global stage.
