QESS Chatbots

Thank you, Professor Benjamin Luke Moorhouse, Associate Professor in the Department of English at the City University of Hong Kong, for his inspiring presentation at our final QESS Chatbots event on the topic “GenAI and Academic Communication Tasks: Moving from Tools of Efficiency to Tools of Quality” on 5 Dec 2025.

In the 3-hour session, Professor Moorhouse started with a review of the evolving GenAI landscape and a critical look at the efficiency narrative from an academic perspective. He drew participants’ attention to what may be gained and, ultimately, what may be lost when GenAI is used only as a shortcut, including risks to trust, integrity, skills, autonomy and our sense of humanity in academic practices. He reminded us that, instead of focusing only on the “efficiency” brought about by GenAI, we should protect quality and meaningful engagement in communication, and use GenAI strategically while maintaining agency and responsibility.

Professor Moorhouse stressed the importance of designing learning opportunities that develop agentic students, who can act independently, make choices and influence outcomes rather than passively responding to circumstances. He also highlighted the importance of building students’ critical AI literacies, awareness, contextual reasoning, evaluation of AI outputs and the ability to “re-reason” instead of accepting responses unquestioningly.

All in all, Professor Moorhouse’s talk was a perfect conclusion to the series of QESS events.

Thank you everyone for your continued support! Together, we have explored a lot in the novel arena of Chatbots and GenAI.

If you have any questions, feel free to contact Yvonne Wong at [email protected].

Thank you, Dr Simon Wang, Lecturer and Innovation Officer at the Language Centre of Hong Kong Baptist University, for his engaging presentation at our 20th QESS Chatbots event on the topic ‘Leveraging AI Agents in Integrated Development Environments: A New Paradigm for Academic Research and Writing’, on 3 Dec 2025.

In this 3-hour session, Dr Wang introduced participants the IDE-embedded (Integrated Development Environments embedded) AI agents as a powerful alternative to browser-based AI interactions for academic research. The AI agents within the IDE can directly access, read, and edit project files, perform web searches, and generate code to automate research tasks. Apart from guiding the participants through the hands-on practices using the Trae IDE, he also introduced Lovable.dev (an AI‑powered software development platform) to them.

During the workshop, participants learnt about eliminating context-switching: AI agents work directly within your project environment, automating literature reviews: learn to use AI for systematic literature analysis and data collection, generating research tools: create web crawlers and analysis scripts without programming experience, streamlining workflows: Integrate AI assistance into existing research processes, and accessing advanced capabilities: leverage code generation for novel research methodologies. With Dr Wang’s sharing, participants gained the novel agentic AI technologies. We look forward to seeing our participants to apply these technologies in their future teaching and research.

If you have any questions, feel free to contact Yvonne Wong at [email protected].

Greetings from the QESS Chatbots Team!

We are excited to invite you to our final QESS seminar “GenAI and Academic Communication Tasks: Moving from Tools of Efficiency to Tools of Quality”, presented by Professor Benjamin Luke Moorhouse, Associate Professor in the Department of English at City University of Hong Kong. Professor Moorhouse’s latest book is called Generative Artificial Intelligence and Language Teaching (Cambridge University Press, 2025). According to Stanford University, he was in the top 2% of cited scholars worldwide in from 2022 to 2025.

In this 3-hour session, Professor Moorhouse will begin by problematizing the current discourse surrounding the use of GenAI and the focus on efficiency. He will then share essential knowledge, and skills learners should consider when integrating GenAI into their composing processes with a focus on quality. Professor Moorhouse will explore ways these essential knowledge and skills can be integrated into the curriculum and instruction.

Join us to explore more together!

Contact Yvonne Wong at [email protected] if you have any questions.

We are happy to invite you to the upcoming 20th QESS workshop “Leveraging AI Agents in Integrated Development Environments: A New Paradigm for Academic Research and Writing”, presented by Dr. Simon Wang, Lecturer and Innovation Officer at the Language Centre, Hong Kong Baptist University.​

This workshop introduces IDE‑embedded AI agents as an alternative to browser‑based AI, enabling agents to work directly in your project environment to access, read, edit files, perform web searches, and generate code to automate research tasks. Key takeaways include eliminating context‑switching, automating literature reviews and data collection, creating web crawlers and analysis scripts without prior programming, integrating AI into existing research workflows, and leveraging code generation for novel research methodologies.

Join us to explore more together!

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact Yvonne Wong at [email protected] .

Thank you, Dr. Catherine Cheng of CPCE, PolyU, for her inspiring presentation on the topic “Empowering Student-Staff Partnership through Customized AI Chatbots” on 18th November.

In the workshop, Dr Catherine Cheng walked through end-to-end AI workflow design and demonstrated building chatbots with accessible no code tools, including Coze, Genspark, Manus, Base44 and Capcut, with examples spanning podcast creation, photo editing, social media content surveys, web apps and mobile course apps creation, programme promotion materials creation, and simple game prototypes. Key takeaways included comparing platform strengths and limitations, practical tips for deployment. Dr Cheng also discussed cost considerations and language capabilities across mainland and global versions of popular platforms.

Participants have certainly expanded their repertoire of teaching tools, gaining fresh insights that may enrich their educational practices.

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact Yvonne’s Wong at [email protected].

In the resourceful and inspiring 3-hour QESS workshop on 7 Nov 2025, “Impacts of AI Chatbot on Assessment Practices in Higher Education”, Dr. Edmund Wut started with reviewing relevant literatures on applying AI in tertiary education assessment. This was followed by a hands-on demonstration of creating a chatbot using Botpress for student assessment and support. At the end of the session, Dr. Wut and the participants discussed potential research opportunities in this area.

Greetings from the QESS Chatbots Team!​

We are delighted to invite you to our upcoming QESS workshop, “Empowering Student–Staff Partnership (SSP) Through Customized AI Chatbots”, conducted by Dr Catherine Cheng, Lecturer in the Division of Languages and Communication at the College of Professional and Continuing Education, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University.

In this 3-hour session, participants will explore how chatbots and other AI applications can be co-created with accessible no‑code platforms, and learn core concepts of AI workflow design to plan, link, and automate processes for teaching and creative work. Dr Cheng will compare capabilities and pedagogical potential of emerging AI tools. The session will also include a hands‑on demonstration for a podcast workflow. Dr Cheng will share practical insights and tips for preparing AI‑based pedagogical materials that foster creativity, collaboration, and critical thinking in higher education contexts.​

Join us and explore more together!

For any inquiries, please contact Yvonne Wong at [email protected].

Greetings from the QESS Chatbot Team!

Our upcoming QESS workshop, “Impacts of AI Chatbot on Assessment Practices in Higher Education”, will be conducted by Dr Edmund Wut, Senior Lecturer of the Division of Business and Hospitality Management, at the College of Professional and Continuing Education, of The Hong Kong Polytechnic University.

In this 3-hour session, participants will learn how AI chatbots enhance teaching, learning, and assessment in higher education. The seminar will discuss their role in supporting students, automating feedback, and assisting with assessment preparation and marking. It will cover best practices; possible solutions will be presented. Emerging research trends and further applications of chatbots in improving educational quality and engagement will also be suggested. Join us to explore more together!

Thank you, Mr Keith Li, for his insightful and forward-thinking presentation at the QESS Seminar. His clear introduction to the latest AI advances, along with an overview of the current top AI models, was both informative and engaging for all participants. By explaining the concepts of AI Agents and Multimodal Models, he helped everyone gain a better understanding of the foundations and future directions of AI technology. His detailed comparison of four leading AI models provided invaluable perspective.

We greatly appreciated his demonstration of GenAI in education, particularly through the Three-Tier Assessment Redesign Framework. He reviewed Tier-1 with the participants and placed greater focus on Tier-2, highlighting practical strategies for academic staff in rethinking summative tasks such as writing, problem sets, research proposals, and case studies. He then showcased his Multi-Agent Lab and guided us through the phases of presentation content preparation, content critique, AI image generation using AI image models, and PowerPoint creation using Gamma, which was especially helpful. His views on AI detection tools for student assessments were thought-provoking. Thank you to Mr Li for sharing his expertise and for inspiring us to embrace innovation in teaching and learning.

Anyone who would like to contact him can do so at https://www.linkedin.com/in/keithlihk.

We are excited to invite you to the upcoming QESS seminar, “Practical Strategies for Leveraging GenAI in Teaching and Learning,” led by Mr. Keith Li, Chairman of the Hong Kong Wireless Technology Industry Association (WTIA). Discover effective methods to integrate Generative AI tools into educational settings that enhance teaching and learning experiences. Mr. Li will also explore practical examples and strategies for using GenAI to support personalized instruction and student engagement. Join us and explore more together!

Thank you, Dr Edmund Wut, for delivering an inspiring QESS workshop, “Chatbots in Language Classrooms.” His engaging presentation and practical demonstrations gave participants valuable insights into how chatbots can enhance language teaching and learning. We also extend our gratitude to all the teachers and aspiring educators who joined us onsite and online. Their enthusiasm and participation made the session truly enriching. Together, we continue to explore innovative ways to integrate Chatbots into education and create more interactive and meaningful teaching and learning experiences.

Chatbots have been rapidly adopted by educators over the past few years, and this seminar introduces various classroom applications of chatbots. The main features of a selected software will be explained. Participants will then be guided through a step-by-step process for setting up an interactive chatbot in a detailed manner. Join us and explore more!