Illinois Institute of Technology computer science researchers honored by IEEE Chicago Chapter

CHICAGO—Binghui Wang, assistant professor of computer science at Illinois Institute of Technology, has received the 2025 Outstanding Junior Research and Development Award from the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers Chicago Chapter for his work in artificial intelligence and cybersecurity.

“This recognition reflects not only my accomplishments, but also the support of my students, collaborators, and colleagues at Illinois Institute of Technology and other universities,” Wang said. “This was a meaningful recognition of the work we have done and a strong motivation to continue our impactful research. We were extremely honored and grateful.”

The IEEE Chicago Chapter welcomed the 2025 award winners at its annual awards dinner on March 24, 2026. The Junior R&D Award recognizes IEEE members with less than 10 years of experience who have made significant progress in research and development.

The awards committee cited Wang’s impactful work in AI security and trusted machine learning as setting it apart from his peers. Wang’s catalog of 114 published papers and a career award from the National Science Foundation also caught the committee’s attention.

“My current research focuses on developing AI systems that have proven safety and reliability, especially in the context of large-scale models and real-world deployment,” Wang says. “This includes understanding and mitigating emerging risks such as backdoor attacks, data leaks, and unreliable model behavior, as well as designing new frameworks for privacy protection and robust learning. More broadly, we are interested in bridging rigorous theoretical guarantees with practical, deployable systems that can be trusted in critical applications.”

The IEEE Chicago Section recognized 10 researchers and educators for their work in areas such as quantum computing and cybersecurity, as well as their volunteer leadership and community partnerships to advance STEM education.

The IEEE Chicago Division Awards Committee said the winners represent the best the local engineering community has to offer.

“This award is particularly meaningful to me because it is given to one recipient each year,” Wang said. “I was surprised and very honored to receive the award. This is a strong motivation to advance my research and continue mentoring students.”