Professor Li’s research has focused on the molecular genetics of growth, development, and metabolism in higher plants, with particular emphasis on the molecular basis of plant architecture and metabolic pathways influencing important agronomic traits. Using rice, rubber dandelion, and Arabidopsis as model systems, his work has addressed the molecular mechanisms underlying plant height, tiller number, and grain yield, as well as approaches to molecular design breeding in rice and rubber dandelion. His research on the rapid domestication of allotetraploid wild rice has explored the use of wild germplasm for crop improvement. He has authored more than 200 peer-reviewed publications in journals including Nature, Cell, Science, Nature Genetics, Cell Research, PNAS, The Plant Cell, and Molecular Plant. His representative research achievements were selected among China’s Top Ten Scientific Advances in 2003, 2010, 2014, and 2018. Through sustained research, leadership of national scientific programmes, and international collaboration, Professor Li has contributed to connecting advances in plant molecular genetics with the development of crop improvement strategies, molecular breeding, and research related to food security and sustainable agriculture.