News

The School of Architecture became a place of remembrance on September 19 as students, colleagues and friends gathered to celebrate the life of Elder William (Bill) Woodworth. Stories shared that afternoon spoke of an architect, professor and Elder whose presence helped people feel seen and whose teachings continue to shape lives.

Woodworth, Raweno:kwas in his Haudenosaunee name, was a member of the Lower Mohawk Kanien’kehá:ka Nation of Six Nations of the Grand River. As the Faculty of Engineering’s first Elder-in-Residence and a long-time faculty member in Architecture, he created space for meaningful conversations and a deeper understanding of Indigenous knowledge.

Waterloo Rocketry, a student design team from the University of Waterloo, launched Aurora, a liquid bi-propellant rocket, at this year’s Launch Canada competition and placed second in the Advanced Launch category.  

Aurora reached an altitude of 38,000 feet, approximately commercial cruising altitude, making it the second highest amateur liquid rocket in the world. This record-breaking feat is double that of Borealis — the first Canadian-built liquid bipropellant rocket, successfully launched by the team at last year’s competition. 

An organization created to help Canadian startup and scaleup companies commercialize their products is expanding its services to include access to a leading robotics facility at Waterloo Engineering.

Access to RoboHub and other facilities for testing and development is part of a new partnership involving the Centre of Excellence in Next Generation Networks (CENGN), the University of Waterloo and Rogers Communications to advance Canadian innovation.

Dr. Mary Wells, the Dean of Waterloo Engineering, has been named to a 26-member task force of prominent leaders in technology, business and academia to help shape Canada’s strategy on artificial intelligence (AI).

Evan Solomon, the Minister of Artificial Intelligence and Digital Innovation for the federal Liberal government, announced the launch of the influential group at an event today in Toronto, stressing there is an urgent need to refresh the country’s national AI strategy.

A new artificial intelligence (AI) tool developed by Waterloo Engineering researchers could improve the diagnosis and treatment of eye diseases by enhancing the clarity and detail of medical images doctors rely on.

The AI model reverses quality loss and reconstructs reliable images of the cornea, the transparent tissue in the front of the eye, after researchers taught it the physics behind the imaging process.

Mary Wells, the dean of engineering at the University of Waterloo, has worked for years to understand and address the gender gap in her field.

She has focused on boosting the number of women in engineering, one of the academic disciplines where men still consistently outnumber women by about three to one.

But over the past decade or so, she has observed two new and important trends.

A Waterloo Engineering professor was recognized internationally for advancing ultrasound technology used in medical imaging and therapeutic applications.

Dr. Alfred Yu, a professor of electrical and computer engineering and the University of Waterloo's associate vice-president of partnerships, entrepreneurship and commercialization, received the 2025 Carl Hellmuth Hertz Award for his extensive contributions to ultrasound imaging technology and therapeutic ultrasound.

The Pearl Sullivan Engineering IDEAs Clinic, a Waterloo Engineering program that complements classroom learning with hands-on design experiences, has earned international recognition.

The Clinic was named to the shortlist for the 2025 QS Reimagine Education Award in the Power of Partnerships category, placing among the top 20 per cent of more than 1,600 submissions worldwide for its collaborative, interdisciplinary approach.

A group of 30 students participated in this year’s Sustainability and Social Entrepreneurship Fellowship (SSEF) program, hosted by the University of Waterloo's Pearl Sullivan Engineering Ideas Clinic and developed in partnership with Halton Region.  

The students, from Waterloo and abroad, were tasked to develop ideas for improved urban development in Halton that could help the Region achieve its goal of net-zero carbon emissions by 2045.

Hack the North, Canada’s largest student-led hackathon, welcomed more than 1000 student hackers to the University of Waterloo's Faculty of Engineering for its annual event of intense innovation. 

A marquee event on any serious hackers' calendar, Hack the North 2025 pulled out all the stops to deliver a memorable experience of 36 hours of playful, creative and collaborative builds. And they broke a Guinness World Record!