Tom Chau

Tom Chau (b.1970) was born to Hong Kong immigrant parents and grew up in Toronto, Canada as the eldest of 5 children. His father was a civil engineer turned successful entrepreneur and his mother, originally a school teacher, devoted her energies to palliative patients and nursing home residents. Chau received a bachelor's in engineering science and a master's in electrical engineering from the University of Toronto and a doctorate in systems design engineering from the University of Waterloo. After a brief stint in industry with the likes of KPMG and IBM, Chau trained in pediatric rehabilitation engineering, completing a 3-year post-doctoral fellowship in the area. In 2004, he became a scientist in the Bloorview Research Institute and a faculty member of the University of Toronto, where he directed the Clinical Engineering graduate program (2006-2011). His research interests revolve around innovations in alternative access, dynamics of movement, and virtual, augmented and mediated environments for rehabilitation. Currently, he is VP Research and Director of the Bloorview Research Institute, Holland Bloorview Kids Rehabilitation Hospital. Chau was recognized among Canada's Top 40 Under 40 (2006) and holds a Canada Research Chair in Pediatric Rehabilitation Engineering (since 2004).