Hong Kong Science Park on track to attract top-notch research institutes as part of tech push, CEO says

The city is competing for talent, capital and start-ups with other hi-tech hubs like Singapore, Israel and Silicon Valley

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View of the Hong Kong Science Park, with the Charles K Kao Auditorium at the centre, in Sha Tin. Photo: Sam Tsang

Published: 6:45am, 10 Jul 2019Updated: 6:45am, 10 Jul 2019

The Hong Kong Science and Technology Parks Corp is on track to achieve its goal of attracting the first batch of research institutes to the city in health care, artificial intelligence and robotics, as part of a broader push by the city to build itself into a hub for innovation and technology, according to chief executive Albert Wong Hak-keung.

The government-run company, which manages the Hong Kong Science Park in Sha Tin, has vetted and is poised to award successful applicants in the next few weeks, Wong said in an interview on the sidelines of the RISE conference in the city on Tuesday.

It has also disbursed financial support to its tenants, revamped its incubation programme for start-ups and is getting approval to support promising companies with strong core technology with grants to help them with capital and operating expenditure, he said.

“I can assure you that every one of them is really, really good,” Wong said, referring to the successful applicants. “My biggest challenge is to help them come out. They can’t just stay in the labs and work on white papers”, but must look at how to commercialise their technology in two to three years, he said.

Albert Wong Hak-keung, chief executive at the Hong Kong Science and Technology Parks Corp, says the first batch of research institutes that will locate in the city’s Science Park in Sha Tin will be announced in the next few weeks. Photo: Felix Wong

Hong Kong is competing for talent, capital and start-ups with other hi-tech hubs like Singapore, Israel and Silicon Valley, as governments worldwide look at tapping the opportunities thrown up by the array of new technologies while trying to minimise the impact that these disruptive forces may have on current jobs and industries.

In October last year, the Science Park announced a wide array of new initiatives as well as enhanced programmes and support services aimed at strengthening and accelerating the growth of Hong Kong’s innovation and technology sector and start-ups.