Lassonde School of Engineering

08/31/2026

York’s Indigenous Pathways Program helps Indigenous learners build connections, explore academic opportunities, and find community before starting university.

Participants got hands-on experience with engineering and AI at Lassonde through interactive workshops designed to spark curiosity and showcase pathways in STEM.

Learn more: https://bit.ly/4gE2kdt

Discover how York’s Indigenous Pathways Program helps prospective students build confidence, community and clarity before entering post-secondary education.

08/27/2026

The future of emergency preparedness is taking shape at Lassonde. Professor Maleknaz Nayebi is working with disaster and emergency management expert Ali Asgary to combine AI, drones and digital twins to help airports and major events detect risks before they become crises.

From extreme weather and cyberattacks to global events like the FIFA World Cup, their work uses real-time data to build safer, smarter and more resilient public spaces.

Read more in the York University Ascend Magazine: https://bit.ly/4cO9Xf9

When the Delta plane hit hard, skidding along the runway, flames shooting out before flipping over on a blustery, snowy afternoon at Toronto Pearson airport, I was already in the air on a different weather-delayed flight, completely unaware of the chaos below. It was only upon landing that the flurr...

08/26/2026

Software engineering student Nikunj Thakur is putting what he’s learning into practice while growing a startup of his own. As the founding engineer and CTO of Tally Rewards, he’s helping small and medium-sized businesses create customer loyalty programs.

At Lassonde, Nikunj has been able to apply what he’s learning in engineering while gaining experience as an entrepreneur. Along the way, he’s learned how to develop reliable technology, understand what customers actually need and turn an idea into a growing business.

Learn more: https://bit.ly/46nlEG1

From software design to startup strategy, York student Nikunj Thakur is applying lessons from the classroom to the real world as co-founder and CTO of a growing tech company.

08/25/2026

Research led by PhD alum Elham Heydari Gharaei and Professor Mehdi Nourinejad suggests cities can collect critical urban data using vehicles already on the road, from bike shares to municipal fleets.

In Toronto, researchers found that just one quarter of the Bike Share fleet could monitor the city’s entire permit parking network when equipped with sensors and optimally routed. A smarter city doesn't always require more infrastructure. Sometimes it means making better use of what already exists.

Read more: https://bit.ly/4y6EEEJ

York-led research shows how vehicles already travelling through cities could collect critical urban data, potentially reducing the need for costly sensing infrastructure.

08/24/2026

Through C4: The Cross Campus Capstone Classroom, Computer Science student Maryam Tabatabaei worked with TD Bank's Human-Centred Design Research team to build and test a browser extension that helps users create more effective AI prompts, reducing costs and resources.

The project took students from idea to deployment, including user testing at TD's downtown head office. A second C4 team also worked with TD to develop a framework for safer, more privacy-conscious AI decisions.

Watch the video to see how C4 connects students and industry partners to tackle real-world challenges.

Learn more about C4: https://bit.ly/3WZovQA

08/20/2026

08/20/2026

More than $5 million has been secured to help bring a promising Lassonde innovation closer to market.

Professor Razieh (Neda) Salahandish is developing an AI-powered wearable biosensor that analyzes sweat in real time, offering a continuous, non-invasive way to monitor health. The technology could help reshape preventive medicine by making health insights more accessible and proactive.

Learn more: https://bit.ly/4g8LN15

Sweat, often dismissed as a nuisance, could soon become a vital tool for monitoring health. Learn how a York University researcher’s work to make this happen is gaining momentum.

08/19/2026

Last week, 70 undergraduate students showcased research ranging from tracking microplastics in wastewater to developing CubeSat architecture to making AI more understandable and trustworthy for users

Special thanks to our guest speakers Ninad Joshi and keynote speaker Lucas Santaguida (MDA), for sharing your insights with our students.

The students’ research was funded through the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council Undergraduate Student Research Awards (USRA) and the Lassonde Undergraduate Research Awards, with support from Pratt & Whitney and York University – Research & Innovation.

Congratulations to all the researchers!

08/18/2026

Imagine 3D-printing large structures in space. Lassonde PhD candidate Fuhzen Yao and Professor George Zhu have developed computer models that reveal how vibrations created during in-space additive manufacturing can affect both a growing structure and the spacecraft building it.

The findings offer new insight into how engineers can build larger, more complex structures in space while keeping spacecraft stable.

Learn more: https://bit.ly/4xQLSws

Building large structures in orbit could unlock new possibilities for space exploration. New research by York researcher Fuhzen Yao examines an overlooked engineering challenge that could shape the success of future space-manufacturing missions.

08/12/2026

Professors Hossein Kassiri and James Elder have each received $1.5 million of funding through York University's Connected Minds Team Grants.

Professor Kassiri is developing a wearable headset that could help people monitor epilepsy from home in real time, while Professor Elder is creating AI-powered technologies to support the health, independence and social well-being of older adults.

Together, their work is helping shape a healthier and more inclusive future.

Read more in York University's Ascend Magazine: https://bit.ly/4g417Lg

THROUGH THE YORK-LED CONNECTED MINDS: Neural and Machine Systems for a Healthy, Just Society initiative, five teams from York University and Queen’s University received $1.5 million each to tackle everything from artificial intelligence- (AI) driven communication technologies for Canadians with sp...