APU’s interdisciplinary Eco Raya team earned the Best Creativity Award for an AI-powered urban air purification solution addressing sustainability and public health challenges.

A multidisciplinary student team from Asia Pacific University of Technology & Innovation (APU) has demonstrated how technology, engineering and design can converge to solve complex urban challenges, securing the Best Creativity Award at the Southeast Asia Regional Finals of the 9th Global Competition on Design for Futures (GCD4F) 2026. 

Competing against bright young innovators from Malaysia, China and Vietnam, Team “Eco Raya” impressed judges with “Eco Raya: An AI-Powered Urban Air Purification & Bio- Filtration Tower for Cities”, a concept designed to improve urban air quality through intelligent monitoring and environmentally responsible filtration.

The team comprised Thiriidev Kumar Murlidaran, Gregory Raven Andrew Selian, and Muhammad Hassan Bin Mohd Nasir from Mechatronic Engineering; Sarah Manisha Oorjitham from Information Technology with a specialism in Software Engineering; and Krithika Sree Devi from Industrial Design. 

Together, they created an integrated solution, combining engineering systems, software intelligence, environmental thinking and user-centred design. Their achievement reflects APU’s technology-focused interdisciplinary learning environment, where students apply expertise across disciplinary boundaries to real-world problems. 

AI for Cleaner, More Liveable Cities

Amid rapid urbanisation and environmental pressure, Eco Raya was conceived as a practical response to air pollution and sustainability challenges affecting modern cities. 

The proposed tower combines AI-powered environmental monitoring with bio-filtration to support cleaner urban environments. Using real-time environmental data and AI-driven analytics, the system is designed to monitor air quality, identify pollution patterns and provide insights that can support more proactive environmental management. 

Rather than positioning AI as a standalone technology, the project demonstrates its value as part of a wider problem-solving ecosystem. By connecting data, physical infrastructure and sustainable filtration, the students explored how intelligent systems can be designed around public and environmental needs. 

Their creativity and ability to translate AI into a socially relevant application earned the team the Best Creativity Award and an RM200 cash prize. 

From Campus Hackathon to Regional Recognition 

The team’s journey began at the APU Sustainability Hackathon, where students were challenged to develop technology-driven ideas aligned with sustainability goals. 

Through research and continuous refinement, their initial concept evolved from a campus innovation project into a stronger proposition with technical, environmental and user considerations. 

That progression culminated at GCD4F 2026, held on 20–21 July at Menara Open University Malaysia in Kelana Jaya. The Southeast Asia Regional Finals brought together 17 teams to develop future-oriented AI solutions across the themes of AI for Science, Education and Society. 

Co-hosted by Open University Malaysia, Beijing Normal University and the UNESCO Institute for Information Technologies in Education, the competition encouraged innovation, cross-cultural collaboration and sustainable responses to global challenges. Teams competed for the Gold Award as well as recognition, including Best Design, Best Presentation, Best Creativity, Best Practice and Most Technologically Impressive. 

Mentorship Strengthens Innovation

Team Eco Raya was mentored by Ts Suresh Gobee, Senior Lecturer at the School of Engineering and Head of the Asia Pacific Centre of Robotics Engineering; Ms Harjinder Kaur, Senior Lecturer and Industry Advisory Panel Coordinator at the School of Marketing & Management; and Ts T. Tulasi Sathyabama Appalasamy, Senior Lecturer at the School of Computing. 

The students also benefited from mentorship by experts from MIMOS Academy, Beijing Normal University and Open University Malaysia. 

Drawing on expertise from multiple disciplines and institutions, the mentors helped strengthen the project’s technical foundation, sustainability strategy, market relevance and value proposition. Their guidance challenged the students to think not only about whether a technology could work, but also whom it would serve, how it could create value and how it might contribute responsibly to society. 

Building Technology with Purpose

The Best Creativity Award marks a milestone for APU and reinforces the value of interdisciplinary education in preparing students for complex, technology-driven industries. 

Congratulating the team, Professor Dr Ho Chin Kuan, Vice-Chancellor of APU, said the achievement demonstrated the importance of applying AI with purpose.

“Winning the Best Creativity Award against strong regional competition is a significant achievement. More importantly, Eco Raya shows how AI can move beyond automation and prediction to become an enabler of sustainable, human-centred solutions.” 

“When students combine AI with engineering, design, environmental awareness and responsible decision-making, they are adopting emerging technologies and at the same time learning to create meaningful innovations that can improve urban life and deliver long-term value to society. We congratulate our students and mentors on this outstanding achievement.”