Lebanese International University LIU School of Engineering LIU Engineering Club BEEhive Lab
How to join

Can your team explain the future in 8 minutes?

LIUminate: 2nd Annual — The University-Wide Student Showcase

One stage. One team. One shot. A joint presentation by a team of two.

  • Teams due
  • Event
  • VenueLIU Bekaa Campus
How to join Explore the topics
How it works

5 schools. 5 teams. 1 winner.

Each team of two delivers one powerful 8-minute joint presentation on a world-changing topic that fascinates them.

  1. Team up

    Pair up with a classmate from your school and contact your school's Dean's Office.

  2. Get selected

    Each school picks its most inspiring team of two and submits it by November 30.

  3. Get trained

    All 10 finalists attend an expert-led workshop on public speaking and storytelling.

  4. Present & vote

    One stage, 8 minutes per team. The audience and faculty vote live for the winning team.

  • Artificial Intelligence
  • Biotech
  • Sustainable Business
  • Future-Proof Education
  • …and beyond
Official timeline

Key milestones

  1. Phase 1: Nomination & Selection

    Identifying one outstanding team of two presenters from each of the five schools.

    Official call for nominations is sent to the Deans and Representatives of all schools.
    November 9 – 30, 2026
    Each school runs its internal selection to identify its most inspiring student team.
    Deadline
    All five schools submit the names and topics of their selected team of two to the Organizing Committee.

  2. Phase 2: Finalist Preparation

    Equipping the 5 finalist teams (10 students) with the skills to deliver a high-impact presentation.

    Early / mid December 2026
    All 10 finalists attend a mandatory, expert-led professional training workshop on public speaking and storytelling.

  3. Phase 3: The Main Event

    The final showcase where our students take the main stage.

    The 2nd Annual LIUminate Showcase in the main auditorium. Finalist teams present live and the audience and faculty vote for the winning team.
Inspiring topics

Suggested topics

Four topics per school to spark your team's talk. Split your topic into two complementary perspectives (for example, the engineering mechanics and the ethical implications) and present it together in your joint 8-minute talk.

See last year's topics and watch the first edition videos

School of Engineering

Building the systems that will define the next decade.

  1. The Humanoid Workforce: Engineering AI Robots That Can Learn on the Job

    Inspiration: Very recent

    Breakthroughs from companies like Figure AI (partnered with OpenAI) and Tesla's Optimus, focusing on general-purpose robots that learn by watching humans to solve labor shortages and dangerous jobs.

  2. Designing the Post-Screen World with Spatial Computing

    Inspiration: Very recent

    The launch of devices like the Apple Vision Pro, exploring the engineering challenge of blending digital information with physical reality to revolutionize surgery, manufacturing, and collaboration.

  3. Engineering the Bridge Between Mind and Machine

    Inspiration: Very recent

    The first successful human trials of brain-computer interfaces (BCIs) by companies like Neuralink, exploring the future of restoring mobility and communication for paralyzed individuals.

  4. Solid-State Batteries: Powering the Next Revolution in Electric Vehicles

    Inspiration: Current tech race

    The global race to commercialize solid-state batteries, which promise longer range, 10-minute charging for EVs, and greater safety than current lithium-ion technology.

School of Arts & Sciences

Exploring the frontiers of human knowledge and ethics in an age of AI and discovery.

  1. Cosmic Dawn: What the James Webb Space Telescope Is Teaching Us About Our Origins

    Inspiration: Ongoing discoveries

    The constant stream of breathtaking data from the JWST, discovering the universe's earliest galaxies and challenging our fundamental models of cosmic evolution.

  2. AI as a Scientist: Accelerating Humanity's Next Great Discoveries

    Inspiration: Recent AI applications

    Google DeepMind using AI to discover new materials and predict protein structures (AlphaFold), creating a new human-AI partnership to solve humanity's greatest challenges.

  3. Neuro-Rights: Defining Human Freedom in the Age of Brain-Computer Interfaces

    Inspiration: Urgent ethical need

    The emergence of BCI technology requires establishing new human rights—the right to mental privacy, personal identity, and free will—to protect our inner worlds.

  4. The Attosecond Frontier: Creating “Slow Motion” for Electrons

    Inspiration: Nobel Prize 2023 · Physics

    The prize for generating attosecond light pulses allows us to observe electron movement for the first time, unlocking the potential for ultra-fast electronics and new forms of energy.

School of Pharmacy & Health Sciences

The era of programmable, personalized, and AI-driven medicine is here.

  1. The First Cure: How CRISPR Moved from Lab to Lifesaving Medicine

    Inspiration: Landmark FDA approval, late 2023

    The approval of the first-ever CRISPR-based therapy (for sickle cell disease), marking a monumental turning point toward a future where we can correct the source code of genetic diseases.

  2. AI as a Biologist: Discovering Novel Antibiotics to Fight Superbugs

    Inspiration: Recent AI breakthroughs, 2023

    Researchers using AI to discover a completely new class of antibiotics, highlighting how AI can find life-saving molecules that humans would have never found on their own.

  3. The “Ozempic Era”: How GLP-1 Drugs Are Redefining Chronic Disease

    Inspiration: Massive societal impact, 2023–2024

    Beyond weight loss, drugs like Ozempic are showing profound benefits for heart and kidney disease, fundamentally reshaping public health on a global scale.

  4. Personalized Cancer Vaccines: Teaching Your Body to Kill Tumors

    Inspiration: Ongoing clinical trials

    Using mRNA technology from the COVID vaccines, companies are in late-stage trials for vaccines customized to a patient's specific tumor, turning the immune system into a powerful oncology drug.

School of Business

Adapting to a world where AI, data, and sustainability are the new currencies.

  1. The Autonomous Enterprise: Hiring AI Agents as Your Next Employees

    Inspiration: Next wave of AI

    The shift from chatbots to autonomous AI “agents” that can be hired to perform complex business workflows, creating a new model for a hybrid human-AI workforce.

  2. The Fractional Future: How Tokenization Will Democratize Trillion-Dollar Markets

    Inspiration: Hot topic in fintech

    Using blockchain to turn “Real-World Assets” like real estate and fine art into divisible digital tokens, making high-value investments accessible to everyone.

  3. The Longevity Dividend: Investing in the Multi-Trillion Dollar Market of Healthy Aging

    Inspiration: Emerging investment sector

    As biotech extends human healthspan, it is creating one of the largest market opportunities in history, built around a world where people are healthy and productive for longer.

  4. Climate Intelligence: Using Satellite Data and AI to De-Risk the Global Economy

    Inspiration: Growing industry

    Companies using AI and satellite data to predict the financial risk of climate change on specific assets, turning climate data into an essential, bankable business intelligence tool.

School of Education

Rethinking learning for a generation that will work alongside AI.

  1. The End of the Major: Designing Your Degree with an AI Co-Pilot

    Inspiration: Personalized AI tutors

    The vision of an AI platform that helps a student build a completely personalized, interdisciplinary curriculum based on their unique passions and career goals, creating a truly bespoke education.

  2. Human 2.0: The Skills That Matter When AI Can Do Everything Else

    Inspiration: Future of work discussions

    Proposing a new curriculum built around the “un-automatable” skills: deep critical thinking, creative problem-solving, collaborative leadership, and ethical reasoning.

  3. From Prompt Engineering to AI Orchestration: The New Digital Literacy

    Inspiration: Rapidly evolving skill sets

    Teaching the future-proof skill of orchestrating teams of specialized AI agents to solve complex problems—a role that is part manager, strategist, and creative director.

  4. The Emotionally-Aware Classroom: Using Ethical Biosensors to Optimize Learning

    Inspiration: Emerging EdTech

    Exploring non-invasive tech that gives teachers real-time feedback on student engagement and cognitive load, allowing them to adapt their teaching methods on the fly for maximum impact.

Call for participation

Ready to LIUminate?

We're looking for one team of two outstanding students to represent each of our five schools. Contact your school's Dean's Office today to learn about the internal selection process and how you can apply to become a finalist.

Why participate

  • Share a vision that inspires others
  • Master the art of compelling storytelling
  • Get professional speaker training
  • Compete for a valuable prize
Internal deadline 2026
  • School ofArts & SciencesTeam of 2
  • School ofBusinessTeam of 2
  • School ofEducationTeam of 2
  • School ofEngineeringTeam of 2
  • School ofPharmacyTeam of 2

For questions, please contact the LIUminate Organizing Committee.

The people behind the second edition

Organizing team LIU Engineering Club

  • Yousef Younis

    Host

  • Moayad Salloum

    Voting system design & development

  • Tala Taktak

  • Hamza Jbara

  • Ranim Abou Yassin

  • Line Jamal

  • Fatima Al Rajab

  • Karim Abdelrazzak

  • Adnan Shahin

School representatives

  • Dr. Mohammad Salla

    Arts & Sciences

  • Dr. Tarek Hachem

    Business

  • Dr. Kholoud Ghoneim

    Education

  • Prof. Nisreen Mourad

    Pharmacy

Organizing committee

Prof. Abdel-Mehsen Ahmad

Head of the Organizing Committee

  • Dr. Ali Cherry

    Member

  • Dr. Hassan Karaki

    Member

  • Dr. Khaireldin Faraj

    Member

  • Dr. Mohammad Abou Shahin

    Member

  • Dr. Omair Faraj

    Member

With the support of

Prof. Mahmoud Khaled

DeanSchool of Engineering

Prof. Ahmad Muhieddine

Acting DeanSchool of EngineeringBekaa Campus

  • Dr. Ahmad Faraj

    Academic DirectorBekaa Campus

  • Mr. Basem Hazimah

    Administrative Director

  • Dr. Ayman Dahrouj

    Public Relations Manager