Alvin (Chairman of Hong Kong Electronics & Technologies Association, Mr Alvin Lee), Duncan (Legislative Council Member, Hon Mr Duncan Chiu), Sophia (Deputy Executive Director of Hong Kong Trade Development Council, Ms Sophia Chong), distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen,

Good morning. It is my great pleasure to join you all at the “Symposium on Innovation and Technology” – an annual flagship event of the Hong Kong Electronics & Technologies Association (HKETA).

As you would all agree, digitalisation is an inevitable trend in driving the economy towards high quality development. “Expediting the development of new quality productive forces” is also a major task as stated in the National “Government Work Report” this year. By making use of innovation and technology (I&T), emerging new industries and new development approaches will promote economic diversity, thereby enhancing Hong Kong’s overall competitiveness.

The Government has promulgated the Hong Kong I&T Development Blueprint in 2022 with an aim to promote the development of a comprehensive I&T ecosystem in Hong Kong. In light of the pivotal role of artificial intelligence (AI) in advancing I&T development and its transformative impact on various sectors, the Government has implemented a range of strategic initiatives to foster the growth and development of the AI industry in Hong Kong. Among which, Cyberport is proceeding at full speed for the establishment of an AI Supercomputing Centre to support the strong local demand for computing power and the first phase facility will start operating this year.

To further support the development of the local AI ecosystem, incentivise innovation, and stimulate industry growth, the Government has allocated $3 billion to launch a three-year AI Subsidy Scheme to support local universities, research institutes, and enterprises to make the best use of the computing power of the AI Supercomputing Centre, as well as to attract Mainland and overseas AI experts, enterprises and R&D projects to come to Hong Kong, thereby creating a robust ecosystem that supports innovation and attracts investment.

Innovative technologies such as AI, digital twin, deep learning, 5G, etc. are crucial elements for the advancement of I&T and the development of “new quality productive forces”. With the sharing of speakers from the academia and the industry on the latest developments on these fronts in the coming sessions, I am sure all of you will have a very fruitful symposium today.

In closing, I would like to extend my heartfelt thanks to HKETA for bringing together the experts and guests in the industry to this symposium. Let’s continue to push the boundaries of I&T and explore new possibilities for the future. Thank you.

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