The PhD student Jiaqi Yang, and Prof. Hao received two Best Paper Awards at the Council for Hospitality Management Education (CHME) 2026 Annual Conference, hosted by the University of Surrey.
Prof. Hao attended the THI Congress 2026 – Tourism and Hospitality Industry: Trends and Challenges. She was invited as a panelist for the Meet the Editors session, thoughtfully moderated by Prof. Sara Dolnicar.
Prof. Hao was pleasure to share insights on AI-powered hospitality transformation.
On the panel discussion, Prof. Hao was invited to exchange views on how AI is reshaping hospitality through more personalized guest experiences, greater operational efficiency, and stronger sustainability outcomes.
Prof. Hao was invited to visit the University of Macau and exchange ideas with colleagues and students on recent work around age-friendly virtual travel.
On 5 Jan 2026, Prof. Hao gave lecture on AI in Hospitality and Tourism at the 2026 Hong Kong PolyU Winter School. It was a wonderful experience engaging with a diverse group of participants and discussing how AI is reshaping hospitality and tourism — from customer intelligence and service design to analytics-driven decision making and responsible innovation.
The forum gathered over 100 MICE experts, association representatives and industry leaders from Hong Kong, Macau, Shenzhen and other Greater Bay Area cities. Prof. Hao’s keynote delved into AI-driven interactive models for redefining MICE experiences—it was a privilege to exchange ideas on global MICE trends and AI applications, and explore new opportunities for the sector’s growth with fellow professionals.
Recently, Prof. Hao is recognized among the Stanford Top 2% Scientists—a prestigious list that benchmarks researchers based on standardized citation metrics and scientific impact.
Prof. Hao was invited by Malaysia Convention & Exhibition Bureau (MyCEB) as a speaker for “Ethical AI: You Are the Data. Are You Okay with That?” at Malaysia Business Events Week 2025 .
The session explored practical AI tools and ethical frameworks tailored for the business events sector, sparking engaging discussions with industry professionals, association executives, policymakers, and media representatives.
Prof. Hao was invited to be the keynote speaker at Connect Marketplace Hong Kong, sharing insights on the transformative power of AI in hospitality.
As part of the session “From Graduate to Scholar: Insights from Early-Career Academics”, Prof. Hao has the pleasure of sharing her research journey, career milestones, and lessons learned transitioning from graduate student to academic.
