Announcement of 2026 AYS Fellows

On September 4, 2026, Asian Young Scientist Fellowship (AYSF) is pleased to officially announce the new cohort of twelve AYS Fellows as recipients of the fellowship in the 2026 Selection Round. These accomplished early-career scientists from China (Mainland, Hong Kong SAR, and Taiwan Region), Japan, Korea, Singapore and India have been chosen for their exceptional scientific contributions and potential in their respective fields.

Supports Young Scientists: This year's AYS Fellows are all within 10 years of completing their doctorates. They are at a critical starting point in their independent research careers, a golden period for scientists to develop creative ideas and pioneer new directions.

Supports Creative and Transformative Research: The AYS Fellows’ research encompasses computational neuroscience of sleep and cognition; neural mechanisms of social, affective, and innate behaviors and AI for neuroscience; reproductive biology, fertility, and early embryonic development; evolutionary biology, population genomics, ancient DNA, and applied mathematics; biomaterials and biointerfaces for tissue, nerve, and muscle regeneration; electrochemistry, electrolyte design, and energy storage; topological semimetals, charge density waves, and topological quantum computing; high-energy theory, gravitational waves, black holes, and effective field theory; gauge theory and four-dimensional topology; ergodic theory, dynamical systems, harmonic analysis, and random walks; computer vision, video understanding, and multimodal learning; and communication complexity, mechanism design, graph streaming, and complexity theory. Collectively, their work advances the frontiers of science and drives transformative scientific and technological progress.

Encourages Interdisciplinary Innovation: In addition to supporting young scientists across Life Sciences, Physical Sciences, and Mathematics & Computer Science, the Asian Young Scientist Fellowship fosters research that transcends traditional disciplinary boundaries. This commitment is reflected in the 2026 AYS Fellows: Dr. Aditya Nair integrates neuroscience, neural imaging, machine learning, and AI to study social and affective behaviors; Dr. Leo Speidel combines evolutionary biology, population genomics, statistics, and applied mathematics to investigate human ancestry; and Dr. Mikyung Shin brings together materials science, bioengineering, and regenerative medicine to develop biomaterials for tissue, nerve, and muscle repair. They build on the interdisciplinary contributions of previous AYS Fellows in neurotechnology, bioelectronics, AI-driven drug discovery, DNA biophysics, and single-molecule imaging. By supporting such cross-disciplinary research, the AYSF empowers young scientists to open transformative directions for the future of science.

2026 Life Sciences Fellows

From left to right:

- Jaekyung Kim, Assistant Professor Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology;

- Aditya Nair, Assistant Professor Nanyang Technological University, Singapore;

- Chun So, Associate Professor National Institute of Biological Sciences, Beijing;

- Leo Speidel, Principal Investigator RIKEN.

2026 Physical Sciences Fellows

From left to right:

- Mikyung Shin, Associate Professor Sungkyunkwan University;

- Jijian Xu, Assistant Professor City University of Hong Kong;

- Baiqing Lyu, Associate Professor Shanghai Jiao Tong University;

- Chia-Hsien Shen, Assistant Professor Taiwan University.

2026 Mathematics and Computer Science Fellows

From left to right:

- Hokuto Konno, Associate Professor The University of Tokyo;

- Jialun Li, Associate Professor Fudan University;

- Mike Zheng Shou, Assistant Professor National University of Singapore;

- Raghuvansh Saxena, Assistant Professor Tata Institute of Fundamental Research.

The Asian Young Scientist Fellowship will hold the 2026 AYSF Annual Conference on November 9, 2026, at the University of Hong Kong. The new cohort of twelve 2026 AYS Fellows will gather at the Annual Conference to showcase their research work and innovative ideas. The Annual Conference aims to highlight the achievements of young scientists in the Asian region and to promote interdisciplinary and international exchanges to stimulate innovation and collaboration.

About Us

Asian Young Scientist Fellowship (AYSF) is a privately funded research fellowship in the Asian region. It aims to encourage and support young scientists in Asia to carry out creative and transformative research.

The AYSF annually selects 12 early-career researchers in fundamental science disciplines: 1) Life Sciences, 2) Physical Sciences, and 3) Mathematics and Computer Science. Each fellow receives $100,000 USD over two years to support their research, along with benefits from participating in the AYSF annual conference, academic activities, and access to a network of young scientists across Asia and globally.

The selection process is based on nomination. Eligible candidates must be within 10 years of completing their terminal degree (Ph.D./MD) and hold a full-time academic position in Asia, currently covering China (mainland, Hong Kong, Macao, Taiwan), India, Japan, Korea, and Singapore. Nominated candidates are required to submit a complete application for review. The Selection Committee, consisting of esteemed scientists from Asia and around the world, conducts a comprehensive review to assess the candidate’s past research achievements and future research potential.

Reference Links:

• About AYSF: https://www.aysfellowship.org/about

• About Eligibility and Selection Process: https://www.aysfellowship.org/selection-process

• About Asian Young Scientist Webinar: https://www.aysfellowship.org/ayswebinar