Christophe D. M. Coupé

Christophe Coupé is an assistant professor in the Department of Linguistics at the University of Hong Kong and was previously a CNRS researcher in France. With an educational background in computer science and cognitive science, he conducts research on language and communication across linguistics, bioacoustics, psychology, and phenomenology.
Christophe has published on the origins of language(s) and the complexity of sound systems, before delving into statistics and machine learning to investigate how information is encoded into linguistic units and animal vocal calls. His most noted contributions regard the trade-off between how much information is encoded into syllables and how fast these syllables are produced, showing that despite their differences, languages adopt similar rates for the transmission of information. He has also highlighted the impact of the natural environment on languages, specifically how temperature and vegetation impact the use of high-frequency sounds.
Christophe is deeply committed to teaching and developing innovative educative practices. As the director of the Bachelor of Arts in Humanities and Digital Technologies at The University of Hong Kong, he strives for a sensible, human-centered adoption of generative AI in education.