PolyU’s new InnoHub is a focal point for promoting partnerships and developing the entrepreneurship community region-wide.

Recently, the University has established the PolyU InnoHub, a new creative collaboration and co-working space located in the Jockey Club Innovation Tower. The facility enables the PolyU community and its partners to further promote innovation and entrepreneurship throughout the region.

The InnoHub is set to contribute significantly to the achievement of the University’s “4 Cs”: the convergence of talents and technologies; the connection of students, academia, entrepreneurs and industry; collaboration on multi-disciplinary, cross-sector projects; and the creation of a community of practice and regional networks.

PolyU-supported start-ups, partnering organisations and start-up investors all have access to the InnoHub; and student teams and start-ups can take advantage of the vital resources, business mentorship support and preincubation services that the co-working space provides.

   

An excellent example of InnoHub in action is the “Beyond Vision Projects”, developed by a PhD student at the School of Design. The project seeks to enhance the quality of life of the visually impaired and the elderly with low vision through art and culture appreciation. Paintings, photographs and sculptures are converted into tactile displays or 3D models and then paired with touch activation and synchronised audio description to vastly improve accessibility.

Another InnoHub highlight is “Easiread”, developed by a School of Design student with trouble reading. A customisable online typographic generator, Easiread enables users to choose their font size, line spacing and background colour, and to follow the text line by line via a tracking tool. This is a particularly promising solution for those with dyslexia and other reading difficulties.

Fittingly given these two successes, PolyU also recently implemented a Student Entrepreneurial Proof-of-Concept Funding Scheme, which complements classroom entrepreneurial education with resources, training and business mentorship to bridge the gap between classroom learning and practice. With funding of HK$1.4 million per year, the programme can support up to 42 teams. PolyU has also developed a micro-funding platform that has thus far supported nearly 200 start-ups and trained over 7,600 people in entrepreneurship.

In a related effort to further strengthen its collaboration in knowledge transfer and entrepreneurship, PolyU has signed collaborative agreements with regional and local organisations including Fudan University, National Cheng Kung University, National Taiwan University, National University of Singapore, start-up accelerator Techcode, Hong Kong Science and Technology Parks Corporation and Hong Kong Business Angel Network. ♦