A total of approximately one million in generous bonuses and honorary certifications will be awarded.
Finalists will be invited to Hong Kong, China,
to participate in the on-site exhibition
and
award ceremony.
Technology Drives Intelligent Mobility · Creativity Shapes Tomorrow’s Trains
Submission Deadline: September 30, 2026
Register →Organizer:
MTR Corporation、CHINA RAILWAY SOCIETY、CRRC、State Key Laboratory of High-speed Maglev Transportation
Technology、
National Engineering Research Center for High-speed EMU、National Industrial Design Center (CRRC
Sifang)
China-Thailand "Belt and Road" Joint Laboratory on Rail Transport
Participants are invited to propose visionary or practical design solutions under one or more of the following five key directions: sustainability, passenger experience, inclusiveness, intelligence, and efficiency.
Sustainability
Passenger Experience
Inclusiveness
Intelligence
Effectiveness
This competition sets up two independent tracks: Train Industrial Design and Intelligent Solutions, with separate evaluation and independent award systems for each track.
It focuses on the creative styling, functional layout, aesthetic expression and user experience of railway rolling stock, and highlights the originality and practicality of product design.
Focusing on the intelligent development needs of the entire lifecycle of rail vehicles, we will fully exploit the potential of existing vehicle systems, break through the barriers of existing system architectures, and achieve bidirectional empowerment and coordinated development between vehicles and various systems; we will create an intelligent solution for the integration of rail vehicles and the ground-vehicle system, and promote the engineering application of artificial intelligence technology in the field of rail transit.
A separate evaluation committee will be set up for each of the two tracks, which will score independently in accordance with the evaluation criteria of each track to determine the shortlist.
The committee is jointly formed by professors and experts from CRRC, MTR Corporation, leading domestic and international design firms, and renowned universities. The committee’s evaluation results shall be deemed final for the competition.
Track I: Focus on assessing the originality, functionality, commercial feasibility, artistry of the works and their potential to solve existing transportation problems.
Track II: Focus on assessing the innovation, practicality, implementation feasibility of the technologies and their value contribution to the rail transit field.
All entries will not be returned, and participants are required to keep backups by themselves.
The judges have the right to reject works that do not comply with the competition terms, and no changes are allowed to the works once received.
The organizing committee will notify the winners via email or phone, with the information subject to what the participants submitted during registration. Please ensure the authenticity and validity of the information.
Finalists will be invited to Hong Kong, China to participate in the on-site presentation. The competition organizers will cover travel and accommodation expenses for one member of each shortlisted individual or team.
Winners will receive cash prizes, certificates, and trophies jointly presented by the organizing
committee.
Note: All prize amounts are before tax; taxes will be withheld and paid by the organizer.
The gold award winners of the Train Industrial Design Track will be offered an internship opportunity at PULI Innovation, with the internship expenses borne by the winners themselves.
Winning participants and their works will be featured on the official competition website and in reports by more than ten partner media outlets. Outstanding entries may be included in CRRC’s product research and development reserve database.
To Keep Cities Moving, MTR makes encounters happen and rendezvous for a more connected tomorrow. As a
recognised worldclass operator of sustainable rail transport services, we are a leader in safety,
reliability, customer service and efficiency. MTR has extensive end-to-end railway expertise with over 45
years of railway projects experience from design to planning and construction through to commissioning,
maintenance and operations. Going beyond railway delivery and operation, MTR also creates and manages
dynamic communities around its network through seamless integration of rail, commercial and property
development. With more than 50,000 dedicated staff*, MTR carries over 10 million passenger journeys
worldwide every weekday in Hong Kong, Mainland China and beyond. Together, we Go Smart and Go Beyond.
*includes our subsidiaries, associates and joint ventures in Hong Kong and worldwide.
The China Railway Society (CRS) was founded on April 1, 1978. As a national scientific and technological mass organization in the railway sector, it is registered with the approval of the Ministry of Civil Affairs of the People's Republic of China and under the dual leadership of the China Association for Science and Technology (CAST) and China State Railway Group Co., Ltd. (China Railway).
Mission of the Society
As the only national-level scientific and technological society in the railway sector, the China Railway Society serves as a bridge and link connecting the Party and the government with railway science and technology workers. Under the guidance of Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era, the Society thoroughly implements General Secretary Xi Jinping's important instructions on building an open, hub-based and platform-oriented association for science and technology. It focuses on the main battlefield of railway construction and operation, the forefront of railway scientific and technological development, and the major scientific and technological needs of railway modernization. The Society unites and leads a large number of scientific and technological workers in the railway sector to actively engage in the cause of railway scientific and technological innovation, and strives to build a "Home for Railway Scientific and Technological Workers". It provides strong scientific and technological support for building a great modern socialist country and fulfilling the historical mission of "transportation power, railway priority".
CRRC, a global leader in the rail transit equipment industry with high-speed trains as its core, is dedicated to advancing sustainable and intelligent rail transportation worldwide with its world-leading technology and products.
The State Key Laboratory of High-speed Maglev Transportation Technology was approved for establishment by the Ministry of Science and Technology in November 2022. It is supervised by the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission of the State Council and jointly built by CRRC Qingdao Sifang Co., Ltd., Tongji University, and Shanghai Shentong Metro Group Co., Ltd.
The laboratory is dedicated to fundamental and frontier research on high-speed maglev applications, closely aligning with major national strategic goals and future societal and industrial development needs. Focusing on common fundamental issues, key core technologies, and critical scientific and engineering challenges in maglev development, it also explores diversified applications of magnetic technologies. Its goal is to establish a world-class research and source of original innovation, lead global advances in maglev technology, strengthen maglev's contribution to national sustainable development, and support the building of a strong, self-reliant transportation nation.
Approved by the Ministry of Science and Technology in April 2010, it is the first national-level major science and technology innovation platform in China's high-end rail equipment field.
National Industrial Design Center (CRRC Sifang) was approved by the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology in 2019. In order to facilitate the development of innovation activities, the Center has established and improved an efficient, mutual-coordinating, mutual-promoting, and complementary integrated operation and management mechanism of technical systems, continuously enhanced technological innovation capabilities, and built technological innovation systems and working mechanisms. The Center strives to build a technical management system that matches the development of scientific research management, product design and manufacturing-related technologies on the premise of meeting the requirements of national policies, in principle of making full use of unity, scientificality and professionalism. The Center has built a unified, efficient and collaborative technological innovation management system and working mechanism with clear positioning, clear responsibilities, and smooth interface and realized the integrated management of the technical system. The Center fully leverages its role of national platform, and provides strong technical support for the Company's transformation into a technological innovation enterprise, enhancement of core competitiveness and realization of sustainable development.
The China-Thailand "Belt and Road" Joint Laboratory on Rail Transport is a national-level joint laboratory in the rail transit domain along the "Belt and Road" route, approved by the Ministry of Science and Technology of the People's Republic of China. It is jointly planned and constructed by CRRC Qingdao Sifang Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as "CRRC Sifang"), the Thailand Institute of Scientific and Technological Research (hereinafter referred to as "TISTR"), and the National Science and Technology Development Agency (hereinafter referred to as "NSTDA"). Adhering to the principle of "joint consultation, co-building, and shared benefits", the Joint Laboratory promotes the "going global" of rail transit technology and standards in China through complementary advantages, cooperative R&D, technical services, talent training, and other means, and facilitates the high-quality development of the "Belt and Road" initiative.