The article discusses the importance of alkaline water electrolysis for green hydrogen production and the challenges faced due to the sluggish kinetics of the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) in alkaline solutions. It highlights the role of adsorbed hydroxide ions in catalytic reactions and the impact of strain on catalytic activity. The researchers developed a method to synthesize biaxially strained MoSe2 catalysts and investigated their performance in alkaline HER. The biaxially strained MoSe2 catalysts demonstrated superior catalytic performance, advanced reaction kinetics, and long-term durability. Through operando Raman and density functional theory calculations, the study revealed that biaxial strain can stabilize OH on the MoSe2 surface, thereby promoting intrinsic HER performance. The research provides insights into optimizing the rate-determining step in complex chemical reactions and offers a new approach to tuning the activity of layered semiconductor catalysts and precious metal atoms.