Corporate News

UAE Delegation visits Hong Kong Science Park during Belt and Road Summit to Unlock New Cooperation and Development Opportunities in I&T

Marked a milestone in the Golden Age for Middle East and Hong Kong relations

15 Sep 2023

Key Takeaways

The UAE Minister of Economy led a delegation to the Hong Kong Science Park as part of his itinerary in Hong Kong for the Eighth Belt and Road Summit.
10 companies met with the delegation which included meetings with Emirati corporations that have expressed an interest in potential partnerships.
HKSTP hosted a thematic session on Green Technology Development as part of the Belt and Road Summit.

(Hong Kong, 15 September 2023) - The Hong Kong Science and Technology Parks Corporation (HKSTP) welcomed an official United Arab Emirates (UAE) delegation led by the Minister of Economy marking a milestone in the Golden Age for Middle East and Hong Kong relations and further deepening the collaboration between Hong Kong Innovation and Technology ecosystem with Middle East.

H.E. Abdulla Bin Touq Al Marri, UAE Minister of Economy, was in Hong Kong to attend the two-day Belt and Road Summit and visited the Science Park as part of his itinerary. The visit follows an earlier delegation in February to the UAE led by Hong Kong Chief Executive, John Lee and attended by HKSTP Chairman, Dr Sunny Chai.

The accompanying delegation, which includes representatives of the UAE’s private sector, visited InnoHK’s Multi Scale Medical Robotics Center, as well as the Science Park’s Experience Centre. They met with senior executives from HKSTP including Dr Chai and CEO, Albert Wong to discuss how new doors can be opened for tech ventures as well as explore mutually beneficial development opportunities.

The delegation met with companies from the Science Park and its alumni network with interest in expanding into the UAE. The companies include Cornerstone Robotics, FJ Dynamics, Floship, FreeD, Lalamove, Meat the Next, Prenetics, Rice Robotics, SenseTime and Smartmore. Selected companies also had separate discussions with Emirati corporates that have expressed interest in potential partnerships.

Ir Dr HL Yiu, Chief Corporate Development Officer at HKSTP, said, “Innovation and technology is relentless. This is why HKSTP is committed to harnessing its resources to build bridges for tech ventures to pave way to blue ocean opportunities and long-term success. The UAE is a cosmopolitan and digitally progressive market that offers incredible expansion opportunities, while Hong Kong is an international innovation and finance hub that can help accelerate the journey from start-up to scale-up. I am confident that we will see further opportunities for collaboration and mutually beneficial partnerships.”

H.E. Abdulla Bin Touq Al Marri, Minister of Economy of the United Arab Emirates, said, “The Belt and Road is one of the most important economic development corridors in the world right now and we are humbled that Hong Kong has welcomed the UAE with open arms. As Asia’s global innovation and financial hub, Hong Kong is an attractive destination for tech ventures where they can incubate, thrive and scale. At the heart of this is HKSTP and by connecting Hong Kong’s I&T ecosystem with the UAE’s, it is opening doors to new opportunities between our markets and beyond.”

A major national strategy, the Belt and Road Initiative (B&RI) has driven significant economic collaborations in over 150 countries. As Hong Kong’s I&T flagship, HKSTP is supporting its ecosystem of tech ventures to take advantage of the economic corridor by helping them scale into new markets, as well assisting overseas tech ventures landing in Hong Kong, and Mainland China.

This year marks the 10th anniversary of the B&RI, and with its increasing emphasis on sustainable development, the need for green adoption has never been greater. As part of its commitment to champion and drive sustainability from within the I&T ecosystem, HKSTP hosted a thematic session at the Belt and Road Summit under the theme “Green Technology Development for Belt and Road” in the Belt and Road Summit. The panel covered global trends, latest developments and applications of green and climate technology.

Photo 1: H.E. Abdulla Bin Touq Al Marri, UAE Minister of Economy, led an official delegation on a visit to the Hong Kong Science Park including the Multi Scale Medical Robotics Center under InnoHK. (from left) H.E. Abdulla Bin Touq Al Marri, UAE Minister of Economy, H.E. Shaikh Saoud Ali Almualla, Consul General of UAE Hong Kong, Prof Samuel Au, Director of Multi Scale Medical Robotics Center, Dr Sunny Chai, Chairman, Albert Wong, CEO and Ir Dr HL Yiu, Chief Corporate Development Officer of HKSTP.

Photo 2: H.E. Abdulla Bin Touq Al Marri, Minister of Economy of United Arab Emirates (UAE) (front row, 8th from left), H.E. Shaikh Saoud Ali Almualla, Consul General of UAE Hong Kong (front row, 9th from left) led the UAE delegation to meet Ir Dr HL Yiu, Chief Corporate Development Officer of HKSTP (front row, 7th from left) and representatives of companies from the Science Park and its alumni network with interest in expanding into the UAE and discussed how new doors can be opened for tech ventures as well as explore mutually beneficial development opportunities.

Photo 3: As part of its commitment to champion and drive sustainability from within the I&T ecosystem, HKSTP hosted a thematic session at the Belt and Road Summit under the theme “Green Technology Development for Belt and Road” in the Belt and Road Summit. Mr Tony Ho, Chief Project Development Officer of HKSTP delivered the welcome remarks at the forum.

Appendix – List of Companies

Cornerstone Robotics	Cornerstone Robotics develops medical robotic devices to build a safe and efficient surgical robotics platform. It focuses on research and development of medical robotic devices and equipment, enabling physicians to improve the accuracy and efficiency of surgical operations.
FJ Dynamics International Limited	FJ Dynamics is a robotic company focusing on digitisation, automation and new energy for construction, agriculture and property management applications.
Floship	Floship excels at global e-commerce logistics & fulfillment solutions through an extensive circular supply chain ecosystem powered by intelligent technology that accelerates business growth.
FreeD Group Limited	FreeD is an AI digital solution provider to enhance customer engagement in lifestyle, smart city, eCommerce and travel industries with event management and merchant network from the globe.
Lalamove	Lalamove is an on-demand delivery platform born with a mission to empower communities by making delivery fast, simple and affordable. Powered by technology, the Lalamove connects people, vehicles, freights and roads, moving things that matter and bringing benefits to local communities in 11 markets across Asia and Latin America.
Meat The Next	Meat The Next is a food technology company which aims to solve food shortages and combat climate change by creating New Generation Food.
Prenetics	Prenetics, a leading genomics-driven health sciences company, is revolutionising prevention, early detection, and treatment.
Rice Robotics	Rice Robotics is a fully autonomous indoor delivery robots. The company's delivery robots are able to operate elevators and navigate around obstacles, and they work alongside people in diverse and dynamic environments such as logistics, hotels, hospitals, and high rise residential and commercial area, enabling customers to have their items delivered quickly, safely and reliably.
SenseTime	SenseTime is a leading AI software company focused on creating a better AI-empowered future through innovation.
SmartMore	SmartMore corporation is a fast-growing high-tech company specialised in providing comprehensive products & solutions for smart manufacturing and digital innovation. It is pioneering in the research of cutting-edge technologies such as manufacturing optimisation and machine vision, creating platforms with greater scalability and broader applications.