Professor Tang Xiaoou was a visionary Chinese computer scientist and academic leader who profoundly shaped the field of artificial intelligence during his distinguished career. He served as Professor of Information Engineering and Associate Dean (Research) at the Chinese University of Hong Kong, where he established the influential Multimedia Laboratory in 2001. Educated at the University of Science and Technology of China, University of Rochester, and Massachusetts Institute of Technology where he earned his PhD in Ocean Engineering, Tang bridged academic excellence with technological innovation throughout his professional journey. His career included significant roles at Microsoft Research Asia from 2005 to 2008 before he co-founded SenseTime in 2014, which grew to become one of Asia's most valuable artificial intelligence companies.
Tang's research fundamentally advanced computer vision, pattern recognition, and video processing, earning him international recognition including the Best Paper Award at the 2009 IEEE Conference on Computer Vision and Pattern Recognition. His pioneering work spearheaded the development of facial recognition technology that surpassed human accuracy in 2014, establishing a critical milestone in artificial intelligence capabilities. With an impressive scholarly impact reflected in over 171,800 Google Scholar citations, Tang's contributions extended beyond publications as he served in leadership roles including program chair for the 2009 IEEE International Conference on Computer Vision and general chair for the 2019 conference. His editorial work as Associate Editor for IEEE Transactions on Pattern Analysis and Machine Intelligence further cemented his influence in shaping the field's research standards.
Professor Tang's legacy includes mentoring over 100 students who became prominent AI researchers across Hong Kong and mainland China, earning him recognition as the architect who developed CUHK into a 'modern-day Whampoa Military Academy' for computer vision in China. His early vision for deep learning in 2012, years before its global recognition, demonstrated exceptional foresight that guided his research direction and influenced the broader AI community. Tang received numerous professional honors including IEEE Fellowship for his significant contributions to computer vision and pattern recognition. Though his passing on December 15, 2023, at age 55 cut short a remarkable career, his intellectual legacy continues through SenseTime's innovations and the generations of AI talent he cultivated, ensuring his enduring impact on artificial intelligence research and application worldwide.
