An American multinational information technology company officially opened its Innovation Center in the Hong Kong Science and Technology Parks Corporation (HKSTP).
The centre will connect the company’s global research and development resources to the city, and enable collaboration and co-innovation with the innovation community of partners, clients, government and academia.
Located in HKSTP, the city’s largest innovation, R&D and incubator ecosystem, the Center signifies the tech company’s ongoing commitment to facilitating digital transformation in Hong Kong and supporting the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area’s (Greater Bay Area) emergence as an international innovation and technology hub.
The official opening ceremony was attended the Secretary for Innovation and Technology of the HKSAR; the CEO of HKSTP as well as industry and business leaders.
Congratulating the tech company on reaching another business milestone, the Secretary for Innovation and Technology of the HKSAR said he was delighted to see the firm’s investment in setting up Innovation Center in Hong Kong, at a time when Hong Kong is actively participating and leading in the development of an international innovation and technology hub in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area.
It was noted that this new set-up is a strong indication of the firm’s confidence in Hong Kong’s innovation and technology development and will further fuel the thriving innovation and technology ecosystem here in Hong Kong.
The IBM Innovation Center provides linkage to 12 of the tech company’s Research Labs on six continents and a worldwide network of Client Innovation Centers in over 33 countries, providing global and local access to high technical skills, expertise and advanced technologies.
Staffed with industry and solution experts, including consultants from the company, the Center aims to enable digital reinvention of five major industries, including: banking and financial services; insurance; retail, distribution and trading; manufacturing; and travel and transportation.
These industries are aligned with the Hong Kong government’s innovation and technology agenda, as well as the outline development Plan for the Greater Bay Area.
Areas of innovation will focus on Fintech, InsurTech, Smart Retail, IoT, Video Analytics, Blockchain, AI and robotics, among others.
The General Manager of the firm’s China/Hong Kong arm noted that in order to stay competitive amidst digital transformation, it’s critical for Hong Kong companies to gain quicker access to more advanced technologies, industry expertise and resources to help them realize their digital transformation.
Hence, the Innovation Center will serve as a connection hub for Hong Kong to access the tech firm’s leading-edge global capabilities, enabling co-creation together with the wider industry.
The Center is a major milestone in the firm’s vision of supporting Hong Kong’s innovation agenda by nurturing the local innovation and technology ecosystem.
The establishment of the R&D base at Hong Kong Science Park is welcomed as the Innovation Center will enable innovation in the fields of artificial intelligence and robotics, big data analytics, fintech and smart city, which are also focus areas of HKSTP.
It is believed that the presence of a multinational technology company of the tech firm’s calibre will help HKSTP’s tight-knit community to grow by leveraging its technology, expertise and global networks.
The clustering effect of attracting more talent and companies to Science Park will make its innovation and technology ecosystem greater than the sum of its parts, delivering more opportunities for everyone in the ecosystem to flourish.
To enable co-innovation, the Center is designed as a studio setting to facilitate design thinking workshops or Garage methodologies for ideation and co-creation, as well as realization of concepts.
The Center will also accelerate local adoption of IBM’s global initiatives and technologies, such as application of blockchain to fintech and supply chain.
In addition, the Center will serve as a platform for partnership programs to generate ideas to facilitate Hong Kong’s innovation and technology evolution, such as collaboration with HKSTP on ecosystem development programs, client innovation partnership programs, and talent nurturing programs.