At the beginning of 2026, the Association of Intelligent Engineering and Technology (AIET), together with multiple partner institutions in the Asia-Pacific region, jointly initiated the first Asia-Pacific Intelligent Manufacturing Industry-Academia-Research Innovation Forum. The forum aims to build an in-depth dialogue platform between academic research and industrial practice, and to promote the transformation of technological achievements and cross-regional collaboration in intelligent manufacturing.

The forum is themed "From Laboratory to Production Line: Implementation Pathways and Innovation Challenges of Intelligent Manufacturing" and invites academic researchers, industrial technology experts, and policy researchers from Hong Kong, Singapore, Japan, Australia, and Mainland China to participate. The event adopts a combined online and offline format, with the main venue in Hong Kong and sub-venues in Singapore and Tokyo.

The forum sets up three core topic sections. The first section focuses on flexible design and optimization of intelligent production lines, discussing intelligent scheduling and quality assurance strategies under multi-variety, small-batch production models. The second section focuses on engineering deployment of industrial artificial intelligence, analyzing the data, computing power, and reliability challenges faced by AI models as they move from research and development to production line implementation. The third section discusses industry-academia-research collaborative innovation mechanisms and studies how to establish efficient pathways for transforming technological achievements and frameworks for sharing benefits.

In the opening address, the Chair of the AIET Academic Committee noted that the core challenge currently facing intelligent manufacturing has shifted from "technical feasibility" to "engineering implementability," and that the cognitive gap between academia and industry urgently needs to be bridged through sustained and in-depth dialogue. The Association will continue to promote such cross-boundary exchange activities and contribute academic strength to technological innovation and industrial upgrading in intelligent manufacturing.

The forum received more than 60 academic report abstracts from eight countries and regions. After screening by the Academic Committee, 28 reports were selected for formal exchange. During the forum, a young researcher poster presentation session was also held, providing young engineers in the Asia-Pacific region with a platform to display research outcomes and establish academic connections. The forum outcomes will be organized and edited by the Association and included in subsequent academic publications.