HKSTP and Hitachi jointly build Smart City Data Platform to accelerate data-driven smart city innovation

Albert Wong, CEO of Hong Kong Science and Technology Parks Corporation (right) and Takahiko Nakae, Managing Director of Hitachi East Asia Ltd signed a Memorandum of Understanding today in Tokyo to jointly develop a Smart City Data Platform, accelerating the development of data-driven smart city innovation. 

(Hong Kong, 1 November, 2018) - Hong Kong Science and Technology Parks Corporation (HKSTP) and Hitachi East Asia Ltd (Hitachi) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) today to jointly develop a Smart City Data Platform. The multi-source data integration open platform owned by HKSTP is designed to provide neutral data sharing architecture with sound governance to accelerate data-driven innovation and leapfrog smart city development on Hong Kong’s innovation and technology (I&T) roadmap.

The MOU signing ceremony was held in Tokyo, during the Smart City ABCD (Artificial intelligence, Blockchain, Cloud and Data) session jointly organised by HKSTP and Hong Kong Trade Development Council to explore opportunities for Hong Kong’s I&T sector, as part of the annual ‘Think Global, Think Hong Kong’ trade mission from Hong Kong.

HKSTP Chief Executive Officer Albert Wong said: “HKSTP and Hitachi are embarking on an unprecedented partnership between the public and private sector in co-creating data architecture for data acquisition, engineering and sharing. The platform serves to enrich data sources to enable data-driven Smart City innovation in the areas of Smart Mobility, Smart Environment, Smart Living and Smart People. It also generates insights and solutions beyond proof of concept to derive a greater range of applications.”

“We are pleased to grow our Smart City ecosystem to establish a best-practice living lab by working closely with the private sector such as Hitachi to advance innovation by leveraging best-in-class technology from global leaders,” Mr Wong added.

With Hitachi’s cloud infrastructure, HKSTP will ensure the data in the Smart City Data Platform is neutral with good governance, and is an open, adaptable and extensive framework for building big data analytics platforms. It will serve as a data sandbox to engage city-wide data owners and the R&D community in solutions generation.

"I am pleased to see our partnership with HKSTP growing. With the recent launch of Hitachi Innovation Center at Hong Kong Science Park, we will bring global data science expertise and data analytics capabilities to work closely with the I&T ecosystem in Hong Kong," says Takahiko Nakae, Managing Director of Hitachi East Asia Ltd.

HKSTP has been taking the lead in enabling data sharing and collaboration between data owners and developers. It launched the Data Studio in February 2017 as a common platform where corporate data can be accessed and analysed to explore data applications with the choices of data platforms avail through such established partnerships. The HKSTP-Hitachi Smart City Data Platform provides another self-service and easy-to-use portal with trusted governance to make available efficient and backup-free cloud storage where partner companies’ data will be protected, preserved and easily retrieved.

This is another high-profile collaboration between HKSTP and the Hitachi Group of companies, coming hot on the heels of the launch of the Hitachi Innovation Center at Hong Kong Science Park on October 24. The centre was jointly launched by Hitachi Vantara and HKSTP to facilitate the co-creation of smart city solutions between the government, industry, academia and research sectors.

“HKSTP’s growing partnership with Hitachi demonstrates that by leveraging global expertise, we not only gain the positive brand association for Hong Kong as a global I&T player, but also help the local ecosystem access technological capabilities provided by leading enterprises, like Hitachi, to co-create many new possibilities for our smart city development and address urban challenges for a sustainable city. Moving forward, we will continue to increase our portfolio of technology partners to contribute to a buoyant Smart City data ecosystem,” Mr Wong said.

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