Speech by the Chief Executive Officer at HKU Innovation Week Main Event (English version only) (14 October 2025)
Prof. Zhang, Dr. Wong, Lillian, Prof. Shen, Distinguished Guests, Ladies and Gentlemen,
As an HKU alumnus, I am very glad to return to the campus today and be part of the HKU Innovation Week 2025, a great initiative that aligns perfectly with the HKIC’s mandate to invest for the future of Hong Kong.
Today’s theme, “Dreams Unbounded”, is so well articulated. It describes the exact point of spark where innovation and entrepreneurship start. Not only innovators and entrepreneurs, but also the HKIC has our dream. Our dream is to be the bridge to transform “Dreams Unbounded” in innovation and entrepreneurship to “Dreams Come True” by leveraging the power of investment capital and partnership in and beyond Hong Kong.
In our dream, financial return of course counts. But what matters most are touchpoints and impacts of our investments on the society. For example, by investing in hard and core tech as well as deep tech, are we making people’s lives better and happier with the use of artificial intelligence and robotics at home and at work; by investing in biotech and health-tech, are we creating better but cheaper diagnostics, drugs and treatments so that we could all live longer and healthier; and by investing in new energy/green technology, are we slowing down and alleviating the risk of climate change, which is having increasingly drastic impacts on our daily lives.
If we look around the world, innovation is an “all-in” game for all jurisdictions noting the power of innovation to redefine economic competitiveness and influence. Innovation is also the key to a better future socially because it is solving many long-standing pain points bothering us every day, and at the same time, opening up new frontiers of what is possible.
Therefore, from both the macro and micro levels, we at the HKIC have the burning passion to support innovation in Hong Kong by way of investment. And we have been moving full steam ahead to have other stars aligned to enable real progress. Since our establishment 3 years ago, we have invested in over 130 projects, of which two companies are already listed in Hong Kong with promising performance. In addition, more than 10 companies have either submitted or planned to submit their applications for listing in Hong Kong this year. Among these 10-ish names and before listing, 5 companies have already become unicorns. Regarding our invested capital, more than 60% has been on early and growth stage companies. We also achieved a capital multiplier effect of five, meaning that every Hong Kong dollar invested by the HKIC has attracted over five Hong Kong dollars from long-term capital in the market.
This also explains why we accord importance to the event and various initiatives today, for example, the partnership between the HKU and Gobi Partners. This partnership is not only an extension of the “Patient Capital Strategic Fund” that the HKIC announced in May 2025, but also a great example of how we could bring together best-in-class, like-minded but multi-disciplinary partners in our ecosystem to support innovation by accelerating the flywheel effect of the 3 key elements for innovation, namely capital, talents and opportunities, which are the respective strengths of the HKIC, HKU and Gobi Partners.
On that note, let me close by saying that at the HKU Innovation Week 2026 next year, I am sure we will see good progress of the HKU, Gobi Partners and all of our attendees here in furthering innovation. We assure you that the HKIC will always be in your cheering team. Similar to what we have been doing for our other partners, we also stand ready to showcase your achievements and stories locally, regionally and internationally. Thank you for having me today!