Representing excellence on the global stage

In 2026, Huijun Gao, professor at the School of Astronautics at Harbin Institute of Technology (HIT), became the first scholar from mainland China to be elected as president of the Industrial Electronics Society (IES), which is part of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE).

Tracing its history back to 1951, the IES is one of the oldest societies within IEEE. It is dedicated to advancing fields such as electronics, instruments, communications and computational intelligence in manufacturing. The role of IEEE is to act as a global community for technologists, helping them shape the systems and standards of tomorrow. The IES continually updates its programmes and activities to reflect developments in modern industry.

In January 2026, the IES held an executive committee meeting in Lisbon, Portugal, which Gao attended as the president-elect. Gao began his career as a factory worker, studied for his engineering degree in the evenings and has since become a leading talent in control science and engineering. In 2005, he received his doctorate in control science and engineering from HIT. He carried out his postdoctoral research with the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering at the University of Alberta in Canada.

His work centres around automatic control theory and its application in engineering, including the study of how communication networks affect the stability, performance and design of control systems. He focuses on aspects such as designing controls and filters that perform reliably; integrating intelligent controls into mechanical systems; and precision instrumentation in high-performance systems. In 2025, his team published a review on the physics and technologies behind micro and nano-manipulation systems, outlining future directions for sensing, actuation and biomedical applications.

Before being elected as president of the IES, Gao was an IEEE fellow, a member of the European Academy of Sciences and Arts and vice-president of the Chinese Association of Automation. He has published hundreds of scientific papers in top international journals, receiving tens of thousands of citations. He also serves as editor in chief of the journal IEEE Transactions on Systems, Man and Cybernetics, and was previously editor in chief of IEEE/ASME Transactions on Mechatronics. He has authored multiple monographs and holds several national and international patents.

In 2023, Gao won the IEEE’s Norbert Wiener Award, which recognises significant contributions to socially responsible computing or applied mathematics. This is regarded as the highest recognition in the field of cybernetics and one of the top technical awards offered by IEEE.

Gao’s pioneering research is a reflection of HIT’s commitment to advancing aerospace innovation and global technological leadership. By bridging theory with high-impact engineering applications, he strengthens the university’s mission to drive cutting-edge research while elevating China’s presence in international scientific communities.

Find out more about Harbin Institute of Technology.