A research team led by Professor Li Xitong, a faculty member of the Institute of Artificial Intelligence and director of the Guangdong Engineering Technology Research Center of Social Computing and Mental Health, has published a pioneering paper titled “Empirical evidence of air pollution reduction from electric vehicle usage across Chinese cities” in Nature Cities. Launched in 2024, Nature Cities is a premier flagship journal under the Nature portfolio.

Professor Li serves as the corresponding author of the paper, while Ma Yuanhong, a co-trained doctoral student under Professor Li’s supervision, is the first author. SMBU is designated as the primary completing institution. The research also features collaborative contributions from Professor Gu Fu of Hangzhou-based Zhejiang University and Professor Guo Jianfeng of the Institutes of Science and Development under the Chinese Academy of Sciences, who serve as co-corresponding authors.