On Feb. 13, 2026, after three decades in the US—from PhD student to full professor—Dr. Bao Zhirong announced that in January he accepted a full-time Chair Professor position at the Southern University of Science and Technology (SUSTech) School of Life Sciences in Shenzhen. This young, dynamic institution, founded in 2012, emphasizes research excellence and innovation.

Zhirong Bao’s journey in computational biology exemplifies dedication to unraveling the mysteries of cellular development. Born and initially educated in China, he earned his Bachelor of Science and Master of Science degrees in biochemistry from Jilin University between 1989 and 1996. Bao then ventured to the United States, completing his PhD in genetics and computational biology at Washington University in St. Louis in 2002. Following his doctoral work, he conducted postdoctoral research at the University of Washington from 2003 to 2007.

In 2008, Bao joined the prestigious Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSKCC) in New York as an Assistant Member in the Developmental Biology Program. Over the next 17 years, he progressed to Associate Member and eventually Full Member, while simultaneously holding faculty positions as Assistant, Associate, and Full Professor at the Weill Cornell Graduate School of Medical Sciences. At MSKCC, one of the world’s foremost cancer research institutions, Bao oversaw multimillion-dollar projects funded by the US National Institutes of Health (NIH).

His tenure there solidified his reputation as a pioneer. Bao’s lab developed cutting-edge imaging technologies that capture high-resolution, three-dimensional images of entire nematode (C. elegans) embryos every minute during development. This breakthrough allowed scientists to track individual cell behaviors in real time, reconstructing how organs form from embryonic stages and identifying disruptions in processes linked to cancer and birth defects.

A key innovation was AceTree, a cell-tracking software that has become indispensable in developmental biology. It enables researchers to study birth defects, cancer cell hijacking of growth pathways, and stem cell applications for tissue repair. Bao’s accolades include the Basil O’Connor Starter Scholar Award in 2010 and the NIH Director’s Transformative Research Award in 2018, recognizing high-risk, high-reward ideas poised to transform biomedical science.

SUSTech exemplifies China’s higher education transformation. Ranked among Asia’s rising stars, it boasts 90% PhD-holding faculty, 60% with overseas experience, and numerous national awards. The university recruits aggressively via Shenzhen’s Peacock Plan, offering 1.6-3 million RMB (about $220,000-$420,000 USD) in subsidies, housing, and research funds.

Shenzhen’s Peacock Program, launched in 2011, targets hi-tech talents like Bao, fostering clusters in AI, biotech, and robotics. SUSTech has secured 57 Peacock Scholars, alongside national honors. This ecosystem provides returnees with state-of-the-art labs, generous funding, and proximity to industry giants like Huawei and Tencent.