PeopleofSuperintelligence

Researcher

Xinyu Liu

Xinyu Liu is a mechanical engineer whose microfluidic robotics research automates biological manipulation; a March 2022 lab update reported that he had accepted an invitation to serve as Specialty Chief Editor at Frontiers in Robotics and AI. He earned engineering degrees at Harbin Institute of Technology and the University of Toronto, completed an NSERC postdoctoral fellowship at Harvard, and moved from McGill to Toronto in 2017. At McGill, he developed an automated microfluidic device for DNA injection into nematodes. He won the MINE Young Scientist Award in 2018, became a fellow of the Canadian Academy of Engineering in 2023, and coauthored a faster robotic microinjection system for C. elegans in 2024. As of October 2026, he is Professor of Mechanical Engineering at the University of Toronto.

Works
222
Citations
7,644
h-index
41
Badges

Publication numbers from OpenAlex, as of 27 October 2026.

Timeline

  1. 2002–2009

    Mechanical engineering degrees

    He earns a B.Eng. and M.Eng. in mechanical engineering at Harbin Institute of Technology in 2002 and 2004. He completes a Ph.D. in mechanical engineering at the University of Toronto in 2009.

  2. 2009–2011

    A Harvard postdoc

    During 2009–2011, he completes an NSERC Postdoctoral Fellowship in Harvard University's Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology.

  3. 2012

    A Colton Award

    In 2012, he wins the Colton Award for developing microbotic and bioMEMS technologies that enable automated, high-throughput manipulation and characterization of single cells.

  4. September 2017

    From McGill to Toronto

    In September 2017, he moves from his Associate Professor and Canada Research Chair roles in Microfluidics and BioMEMS at McGill's Department of Mechanical Engineering to the Department of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering at the University of Toronto.

  5. 2018

    A microfluidic DNA injector

    By 2018, he develops an automated, high-throughput microfluidic device at McGill for DNA microinjection into nematodes. At the 2018 Microsystems & Nanoengineering Summit in Beijing, he wins the MINE Young Scientist Award.

  6. 2019

    A Hart professorship

    In August 2019, he becomes Senior Editor of IEEE Robotics & Automation Letters. In October 2019, he receives the Percy Edward Hart Professorship from the University of Toronto.

  7. March 2022

    Editor in robotics and AI

    A March 2022 lab update reports that he has accepted an invitation to serve as Specialty Chief Editor of Frontiers in Robotics and AI and lead a new specialty section on micro and nanorobotics.

  8. 2023

    Canadian Academy election

    In 2023, the Canadian Academy of Engineering elects him as a fellow.

  9. October 2024

    Robotic microinjection in worms

    In October 2024, he coauthors a robotic microinjection system that integrates a microfluidic device for reliable immobilization, transfer, and rotation of C. elegans. The system injects 2–3 times faster than experts.

  10. As of October 2026

    Professor at Toronto

    As of October 2026, he is Professor of Mechanical Engineering in the University of Toronto's Department of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering. The Robotics Institute lists him among active members in Mechanical and Industrial Engineering. He is also the Percy Edward Hart Professor of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering.

Career

  1. NowUniversity of TorontoProfessor of Mechanical Engineering
  2. NowUniversity of TorontoMember of the Robotics Institute
  3. NowUniversity of TorontoPercy Edward Hart Professor of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering
  4. 2024–2026Dalian University of Technology
  5. 2024–2026Beihang University
  6. From 2019University of TorontoPercy Edward Hart Professor of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering
  7. Until 2017McGill UniversityAssociate Professor and Canada Research Chair in Microfluidics and BioMEMS
  8. From 2017University of Toronto
  9. 2009–2011Harvard UniversityPostdoctoral Fellow
  10. 2009–2025Chinese Academy of Sciences

Education

  1. 2009University of TorontoPhD in mechanical engineering
  2. 2004Harbin Institute of TechnologyMEng in mechanical engineering
  3. 2002Harbin Institute of TechnologyBEng in mechanical engineering

From the biography and OpenAlex affiliations (the years of papers that list the organization), so some years are approximate.

Checked career sources: liulab.mie.utoronto.ca, mie.utoronto.ca.

Colleagues

People with dated positions at the same organization in the same years.

Sources and credits

Photo: We have no published photo of Xinyu Liu yet. Send us a free-licensed photo.

  1. Xinyu Liu - Department of Mechanical & Industrial Engineering mie.utoronto.ca. Checked 27 October 2026.
  2. 2012 Colton Award Winner – CMC Microsystems cmc.ca. Checked 27 October 2026.
  3. Microfluidics and BioMEMS Laboratory (MBL) News liulab.mie.utoronto.ca. Checked 27 October 2026.
  4. CMC celebrates 500th prototype developed in university-based MNT labs mcgill.ca. Checked 27 October 2026.
  5. Ali Dolatabadi and Xinyu Liu elected to the Canadian Academy of Engineering mie.utoronto.ca. Checked 27 October 2026.
  6. Robotic microinjection enables large-scale transgenic studies of Caenorhabditis elegans nature.com. Checked 27 October 2026.
  7. People - University of Toronto Robotics Institute robotics.utoronto.ca. Checked 27 October 2026.