CNCC 2026 Forum to Examine RF Computing and AI Integration in Chengdu

The forum takes RF computing as its core theme. The organizers describe RF computing as the transformation of RF signals in RF space to complete information processing and conversion, a definition that is expanding as AI penetrates the field. Building on the previous two editions’ discussions of RF signals as information carriers, integrated sensing and intelligence, and spatial computing reconstruction, this year’s forum adds perspectives from large models, embodied intelligence and edge computing.

The agenda covers theory, technology and applications. Organizers say the forum will deepen the scientific content of RF computing and improve its theoretical system; focus on information metasurfaces, intelligent reflecting surfaces, passive IoT and intelligent computing in the RF domain; and extend scenarios including low-altitude economy, digital twins, smart cities and AI-enabled communications.

Cheng Qiang, a professor at Southeast University’s School of Information Science and Engineering and deputy director of the State Key Laboratory of Millimeter Waves, will speak on new progress in integrated sensing, communication and computing for intelligent metasurfaces. His abstract says intelligent metasurfaces can reprogram electromagnetic waves to reconstruct wireless propagation environments and simultaneously support high-speed communication, high-precision target sensing and edge collaborative computing scheduling. The talk will cover spatiotemporal coding metasurfaces, adaptive channel regulation, beamforming, RF computing and AI-driven phase adaptive optimization, and a framework for communication-sensing-computing coordination.

He Yuan, a tenured professor at Tsinghua University and deputy director of the Institute of Trustworthy Networks and Systems in the School of Software, will discuss progress and reflections on RF computing. According to the abstract, RF computing treats RF signals as computing objects and transforms them in RF space to complete information transmission, processing and conversion. It expands the development path of IoT technology and may provide solutions to bottlenecks in the field.

Lu Li, a professor and CCF Distinguished Member, will present on networked spatial embodied intelligence. The abstract says embodied intelligence is moving from single-agent capability breakthroughs to networked collaboration among multiple agents, with the core shifting from single-machine intelligence to cross-node, cross-modal and cross-space system intelligence. Existing systems that separate sensing, computing and communication face high connection energy consumption, fragile communications in complex environments, difficulty in unified multimodal representation and high data movement and computing overhead. The talk will introduce high-reliability low-power communication, multimodal spatiotemporal sensing, end-side intelligent computing and heterogeneous integration, and a sensing-computing-communication system foundation.

Gong Wei, a professor at the University of Science and Technology of China, will speak on mobile passive IoT for 6G. The abstract says mobile passive IoT uses wide-area cellular signals to provide energy and communication support for terminals, aiming to serve massive green connections at low cost and with low maintenance. It focuses on maintaining reachability under extreme energy constraints and adapting to dynamic cellular downlink signals. The talk will introduce the energy-efficient paging mechanism PScatter and the load-independent synchronization system SyncSSB.

Yu Jihong, a tenured professor at Beijing Institute of Technology, will discuss backscatter communication for 6G passive IoT. The abstract says 6G passive IoT is emerging as demand grows for massive device connectivity and real-time data exchange in industrial monitoring, smart cities and other sectors, with challenges in power consumption, cost and deployment. The talk will analyze principles, bottlenecks such as spectrum reuse, commercial compatibility and long-distance transmission, and possible innovation paths.

The forum is co-chaired by Wang Wei, a professor at Wuhan University’s School of Computer Science, and Guo Xiuzhen, a researcher at Zhejiang University. Wang’s research covers IoT, and Guo’s work includes IoT, passive communication and intelligent sensing.