A Scientist's Journey to Right Place at Right Time

For years, brain-computer interface belonged to the realm of science fiction, a distant fantasy of minds communicating directly with machines. But for Professor Mohamad Sawan, a fellow of the Royal Society of Canada and the Canadian Academy of Engineering, this vision has been the focus of a lifetime of research.

In 2018, he made a decision that surprised many: he left his established career in Canada to join Westlake University in Hangzhou in Zhejiang province, east China, as a chair professor of microsystems and bioengineering and the founding director of the CenBRAIN Neurotech Center of Excellence. Eight years on, he sees that move as an inevitable step toward the future.

Sawan's path to China was not impulsive. Born in Lebanon and educated in Canada, he brought a naturally cross-cultural outlook to his work. For more than two decades, he visited China frequently for academic exchanges, yet those trips always felt too brief. Beneath his professional curiosity lay a deeper question: How is this ancient civilization now reclaiming its global standing with such speed?

When the invitation from Westlake University arrived, he felt it was almost destined. He had long dreamed of coming to China, and the offer struck him as tailor-made for his ambitions. He believed sci-tech innovation was growing very fast everywhere in China, and the future belonged to it. He wanted to be part of that future.

A university built for speed

That future, as Sawan soon discovered, was not an abstraction but a tangible reality, written in the explosive growth of Westlake University itself. As the second foreign professor recruited by the institution, he has witnessed it compress what typically takes two decades into just five years.

The university now hosts over 287 professors, all recruited globally, each a recognized leader in their field. There are also thousands of PhD students and postdoctoral fellows, hundreds of undergraduate students and thousands of other staff members. For Sawan, this is not incremental progress but a systemic leap, engineered by a society that knows how to prioritize.

But what has truly convinced him is the research infrastructure. His field, brain-computer interfaces, is inherently interdisciplinary, straddling biology and engineering. He finds the working conditions exceptional, and he credits China's high prioritization of brain-computer research for making it possible. In his view, he arrived at precisely the right moment and in precisely the right place.

Indeed, in certain fields such as bio-circuit and biochip design, Sawan has witnessed a remarkable transformation over the past decade. What once lagged has now caught up, and in some areas, pulled ahead. He attributes this not to individual genius but to a broader systemic force.

From lab to life

Sawan's team focuses on seven major brain disorders, from stroke and epilepsy to Alzheimer's, Parkinson's and depression, with a single mission: to detect problems early, treat when possible, and use AI to predict disease progression.

At the core of their work are custom-built biochips, tiny devices no larger than a few square millimeters, that power wearable and implantable systems. "The heart of every system is a custom-built chip," he says. These chips record neural signals, identify biomarkers, analyze data through brain-inspired controllers, and deliver targeted stimulation to slow or stop disease. Several of these biochips have won international recognition, as reflected in the group's steady stream of top-tier publications and awards over the past two years.

The cross-disciplinary model at Westlake University has given Sawan unusual autonomy, the ability to follow an idea from fundamental science all the way to engineering outcome. It also speeds up innovation and opens pathways to industry partnerships and clinical collaborations. This pipeline has already produced three startups, including Neuralicorn, a venture focused on language decoding that is now growing quickly.

A new home

In 2023, Sawan became one of the first foreign experts in Zhejiang to receive China's new version of the permanent residency card. The document did more than simplify travel. It deepened his sense of belonging. "My permanent resident status increases my motivation to integrate in China," he said.

What strikes him most about the China he has witnessed over these eight years is not any single policy or number, but three qualities woven into the fabric of daily life. "Equity, determination and confidence."

Equity means talent is judged on achievement alone. Gender and nationality do not matter. Everyone has the same chance to innovate. Determination is visible in everyone around him, from his graduate students to his senior colleagues, all driven to contribute not just to their personal growth but to the university they are building together. And confidence, which he finds the most striking. "It is amazing to witness that Westlake University is inspiring confidence in every member to work hard, maximizing efforts to show a difference in the magnitude of innovative contribution."

Source: Science and Technology Daily