On the international innovation stage, a cross-disciplinary team from Taiwan Tech once again shone brightly. At the 19th Poland International Invention Exhibition and Competition held in 2025, an innovative project titled “PlateSync Health Companion: A Smart AI Partner for Real-Time Monitoring of Healthy Diets”, developed by Taiwan Tech’s Graduate Institute of Digital Learning and Education and the Taiwan Tech Empower Vocational Education Research Center, brought together faculty and students including Tsai-Ju Lee, Cathy Weng, Ling-Hua Tien, and Yun-Chuan Chang, in collaboration with Sillin Chen, Director of the Department of Computer Science at New Taipei Municipal New Taipei Industrial Vocational High School, and student Shao-Chien Huang. The project stood out among 346 entries from 26 countries and was awarded the highest honor-the Gold Medal.

“PlateSync Health Companion: A Smart AI Partner for Real-Time Monitoring of Healthy Diets” won the Gold Medal at the Poland International Invention Exhibition.

The invention of PlateSync directly addresses a core global challenge in diabetes management: although there are now over 500 million people living with diabetes worldwide, nearly 40% of patients with Type 2 Diabetes struggle to consistently follow dietary guidelines, and about 45% have difficulty controlling portion sizes. Traditional methods such as manual logging or barcode scanning are time-consuming and inaccurate, making long-term adherence difficult.

The core technology of PlateSync lies in its unique “Teachable Machine Architecture”, which integrates a Web API, database, and web server. Users simply take a photo of their meal, and within less than two seconds, the system uses AI to perform real-time food recognition, nutritional analysis, and glycemic load (GL) estimation. This shift from “delayed review” to “real-time, contextualized feedback” significantly reduces the burden of dietary tracking and improves long-term adherence.Users only need to take a photo of their meal, and the system can complete real-time food recognition, nutritional analysis, and glycemic load (GL) estimation in under two seconds using AI technology.

Users only need to take a photo of their meal, and the system can complete real-time food recognition, nutritional analysis, and glycemic load (GL) estimation in under two seconds using AI technology.

Another major breakthrough is the creation of a multi-stakeholder digital ecosystem. PlateSync not only incorporates gamified challenges and reward points to motivate individuals to build healthy habits, but also securely transmits dietary records to medical institutions. This enables healthcare teams to access continuous data for personalized and long-term dietary consultation and treatment planning. In addition, the system integrates a community-based diabetes-friendly dining map and allows family members and patients to share records, forming a supportive network.

Professor Tsai-Ju Lee noted that the innovation of PlateSync Health Companion not only helps monitor blood glucose levels and enhance group-based support for people with diabetes, but also aligns closely with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDG 3: Good Health and Well-being). In a global digital healthcare market projected to exceed USD 100 billion, PlateSync demonstrates strong potential for commercialization and scalability across multiple conditions. In the future, it can be extended to the digital management of other diet-sensitive conditions such as obesity and hypertension, positioning it as a leading technology-assisted solution for healthy dietary management.

PlateSync establishes a collaborative digital ecosystem that not only motivates individuals to develop healthy habits through gamified challenges and rewards, but also securely transmits dietary records to medical institutions.