PolyU welcomes 2024-25 Budget initiatives promoting research commercialisation

The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU) welcomes the new initiatives announced by the Financial Secretary in the Government’s 2024-25 Budget that support local universities in pursuing innovative research and translating research outcomes. The Frontier Technology Research Infrastructure Support Scheme, in particular, will facilitate PolyU to make further breakthroughs and technology transfer in the fields of life and health, artificial intelligence, quantum technology, microelectronics and other frontier areas.

Prof. Jin-Guang TENG, President of PolyU, said, “PolyU is pleased to learn that the Budget dedicates resources to support universities’ research and knowledge transfer activities, which will enable our University to attract outstanding research talent from around the world to conduct impactful research. Aspiring to be an innovative world-class university, PolyU is committed to promoting interdisciplinary research and has gained recognition for its excellence across various cutting-edge research domains. The University will continue to support the Government’s initiative to enrich the I&T talent pool, and work seamlessly with the Government, industry and various stakeholders to strengthen Hong Kong’s I&T ecosystem, contributing to the city’s development as an international innovation and technology hub and advancing national technological self-reliance.”

PolyU is pleased that $6 billion will be used to provide subsidies for local universities to collaborate with Mainland and overseas organisations to set up life and health technology research institutes. PolyU was approved by the Ministry of Science and Technology to establish the State Key Laboratory of Chemical Biology and Drug Discovery which focuses on conducting world-class research in chemical biology and drug discovery. With research expertise spanning drug discovery, biomedicine, healthcare and more, PolyU has a robust research foundation to leverage Hong Kong’s strengths.

AI is an important driver of technological and industrial transformation. The launch of a $3 billion AI Subsidy Scheme will boost PolyU’s strength in this domain. PolyU’s Research Institute for Artificial Intelligence of Things focuses on four important application fields to pursue transformational and translational research, namely smart infrastructure and construction, smart connected health, smart connected vehicles and smart connected logistics. The University also continually advances its I&T curriculum, having introduced new MSc programmes in blockchain technology, AI and big data computing, microelectronics technology and materials, intelligent construction, metaverse technology and more to nurture talent that meet industrial needs.

To support green development, multiple research institutes and centres of the PolyU Academy for Interdisciplinary Research will continue to leverage their interdisciplinary research strengths in fields including smart cities, smart energy, sustainable urban development, carbon neutrality and resources engineering to drive innovation. The University has the largest number of projects approved by the Green Tech Fund, Environment and Conservation Fund and Smart Traffic Fund among the UGC-funded institutions, highlighting PolyU’s research capabilities in reducing carbon emissions and strengthening environmental protection in Hong Kong. The PolyU Policy Research Centre for Innovation and Technology provides strategic advice on promoting the development of carbon neutrality and has recently received support from the Chief Executive’s Policy Unit’s Public Policy Research Funding Scheme to assess and research promoting hydrogen fuel cell vehicles and electric vehicles in Hong Kong.

To support the Government’s carbon neutrality goals, PolyU has set short-term (2028), medium-term (2033) and long-term (2045) decarbonisation goals. The University also utilises its campus as a testbed to pilot research translation and has established a Campus Carbon Neutrality Committee.

PolyU will continue to pursue research excellence, accelerate technology transfer and commercialisation, promote closer industry-academia-research collaboration and leverage Hong Kong’s unique advantages as an international talent hub, contributing to the betterment of Hong Kong, the Nation and the world.

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