From autonomous drones and interactive textiles to sustainable transport solutions and industry-connected technology projects, innovation took centre stage at The Australian National University (ANU) College of Systems and Society showcase.

Held at ANU Sport on 28 May, the Semester 1 2026 showcase brought together students, researchers, staff and industry partners to celebrate the breadth of work taking place across the College. 

The event attracted more than 600 attendees and featured 140 exhibitors, including student projects and research from The Australian National Centre for Public Awareness of Science (CPAS), School of Computing, School of Cybernetics, Fenner School of Environment and Society, Mathematical Sciences Institute, and School of Engineering. 

The showcase highlighted the creativity, collaboration and real-world impact of work being undertaken across the College, giving visitors the opportunity to explore prototypes, research posters, demonstrations and interactive exhibits.

 

Computing 

Computing students presented projects developed through the TechLauncher and Computing Internship programs, working with partner organisations to design and develop solutions to real-world challenges. Highlights included AI-generated 3D pet renders, interactive embroidery, cooperative cyber board games, music industry intelligence tools, and drone-based window detection systems. Early Career Researchers also shared emerging research that is helping shape the future of computing and digital technologies. 

Congratulations to our computing prize winners from the showcase: 

Higher Degree by Research (HDR) poster: 

  • First place: Hardik Jain for ‘CompReader: Comparative Close Reading of Regulatory Texts’
  • Second place: Yue Yin for ‘Refracting Reality: Generating Images with Realistic Transparent Objects’ 

TechLauncher poster prize: 

  • 'CausalGraphAI: An ESG Intelligence Platform Powered by RAG and Knowledge Graph’ by Chengcheng Zhu, Haonan Fan, Donghyeon Kim, Jingyu Cheng, Rui Gao, Siyuan Zhou, and Sonia Lin.

 

Engineering 

Engineering students showed their Capstone Design Projects, responding to complex challenges with social, humanitarian, and systems-focused applications. Our latest Capstone projects included a pedal-powered smoothie bike, drones for delivering medical supplies to rural communities, clean air systems, and guided robotic drawing systems. Higher Degree by Research students and Early Career Researchers also showcased research spanning a range of engineering disciplines. 

Congratulations to our engineering prize winners from the showcase: 

Engineering Higher Degree by Research (HDR) Prize. Supported by Vector Alliance

Joint first place: 

  • Ahmed Afifi for ‘Scalable Single-Channel Electric Thruster with Erosion Monitoring and Lifetime Modelling’
  • Priyanka Prakash for ‘Multifunctional polyimide siloxane hybrid coatings with enhanced atomic oxygen resistance, intrinsic self-healing and improved mechanical strength for next generation spacecraft materials’ 

Early Career Researcher (ECR) Prize. Supported by the School of Engineering 

  • Farid Attar
  • Janith Adikaram for 'Surface Degradation of Stainless‐Steel Thruster Components Under Iodine Plasma Exposure’

 

Environment 

The Fenner School of Environment & Society and ANU-Optus Bushfire Research Centre of Excellence showcased bushfire detection technology, including a vertical take-off and landing ‘Arace Phoenix’ drone capable of transitioning to efficient fixed-wing flight for up to six hours. Equipped with satellite communications and a thermal camera, the drone is designed to operate autonomously in remote terrain to detect lightning-ignited fires soon after thunderstorms, improving the chances of early response and containment.

 

Cybernetics 

The School of Cybernetics invited visitors to take part in its LLMs Unplugged workshop, exploring how large language models work through hands-on activities. They also featured work from student projects, showing wearable technologies and apps.

 

And more! 

Professional Practice computing and engineering students demonstrated projects focused on improving student experience and designing better learning spaces, developed in collaboration with industry expectations and professional standards.

Attendees interested in taking their idea to the next level could chat with representatives from the Canberra Innovation Network, ANU Entrepreneurship Club, and ANU Commercialisation team, or professional accreditation networks Engineers Australia and the Australian Computer Society.

Visitors also explored the work in mathematics, science communication, and environmental sustainability.

Many exhibits were developed in consultation with businesses, government, community organisations and industry partners – providing students and researchers a direct platform for new opportunities and collaboration. 

Professor Aaron Quigley, Dean of the ANU College of Systems and Society, said the event highlighted the impressive breadth of work underway by our students, researchers and partners. 

“As this was my first showcase, I was particularly impressed with the quality of the student presentations and the levels of engagement I saw,” said Professor Quigley. 

“Events like this are a strong reminder of the impact and vibrancy of our community.” 

 Thank you to everyone who visited our latest showcase and well done to all of students and researchers who presented their work from Semester 1 2026.