AI empowers legal services: leading the future of digital rule of law, PolyU hosts legal technology forum and innovation showcase

28 Apr 2025

Events Policy Research Centre for Innovation and Technology & Knowledge Transfer and Entrepreneurship Office

The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU) held the “Envision The Future of AI-Powered Legal Services” forum on 26 April.

Key figures in attendance included Mr Liu Chunhua, Director-General of Legal Affairs Department of the Liaison Office of the Central People’s Government in the HKSAR (4th from right); Barrister Ambrose Lam, Member of the Legislative Council and former President of the Hong Kong Law Society (2nd from left); The Hon Duncan Chiu, Member of the Legislative Council and President of the Hong Kong Information Technology Joint Council (4th from left); Mr Cai Yi, Deputy to the National People’s Congress and Managing Director of Hong Kong Chengsheng Co., Ltd (3rd from left); Mr Yao Maolong, member of the National Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference and President of the Hong Kong Jiangsu Federation of Community Organisations (2nd from left); and Mr Wong Kai-yi, former Privacy Commissioner for Personal Data (1st from left); Prof. Miranda Lou, PolyU Executive Vice President (centre); Prof. Christopher Chao, Vice President (Research and Innovation) and Director of PReCIT (3rd from right); and Prof. Lu Haitian, Hong Kong Sustaintech Foundation Professor in Accounting and Finance, and core member of PReCIT (1st from left) .

Mr Liu Chunhua, Director-General of Legal Affairs Department of the Liaison Office of the Central People’s Government in the HKSAR delivered a speech.

Prof. Christopher Chao, Vice President (Research and Innovation) and Director of PReCIT delivered the welcoming remarks.

Prof. Lu Haitian, Hong Kong Sustaintech Foundation Professor in Accounting and Finance, and core member of PReCIT, delivered a keynote speech titled “Al and the Future of Legal Services”.

A wave of digitalisation has swept across the globe in recent years. Artificial intelligence (AI) is not only bringing disruptive changes to various industries but also creating a new ecosystem for legal services. The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU) hosted the “Envision the Future of AI-Powered Legal Services” forum on campus last Saturday (26 April), jointly organised by the University’s Policy Research Centre for Innovation and Technology (PReCIT) and the Knowledge Transfer and Entrepreneurship Office (KTEO).

Key figures in attendance included Mr LIU Chunhua, Director-General of Legal Affairs Department of the Liaison Office of the Central People’s Government in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region; Barrister Ambrose LAM, Member of the Legislative Council and former President of the Hong Kong Law Society; The Hon Duncan CHIU, Member of the Legislative Council and President of the Hong Kong Information Technology Joint Council; Mr CAI Yi, Deputy to the National People’s Congress and Managing Director of Hong Kong Chengsheng Co., Ltd.; Mr YAO Maolong, member of the National Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference and President of the Hong Kong Jiangsu Federation of Community Organisations; Mr WONG Kai-yi, former Privacy Commissioner for Personal Data of the HKSAR; Prof. Miranda LOU, PolyU Executive Vice President; and Prof. Christopher CHAO, Vice President (Research and Innovation) and Director of PReCIT. Over 150 representatives, including legal scholars from Hong Kong institutions, partners from major law firms in the Greater Bay Area, leaders from the compliance sectors and entrepreneurs, gathered to explore innovative AI applications and developments in law and compliance. The forum attracted 190,000 online participants via PolyU’s new media platform. The event also showcased the latest technological advancements developed by PolyU-incubated company Wiselaw Digital Technology.

Serving National Strategies: Modernising Legal Services with AI

PolyU is committed to advancing world-class innovative research and contributing to national development, particularly in the integration of academia and industry in the legal technology sector. Under the national strategy of “Digital Rule of Law”, PolyU leverages the advantages of institutional innovation in the Greater Bay Area to actively explore new pathways for the integration of AI and law, setting new paradigms for reconstructing legal services.

In his welcoming remarks, Prof. Christopher Chao, Vice President (Research and Innovation) and Director of PReCIT said, “Hong Kong greatly benefits from ‘One Country, Two Systems’ and plays an important role as the bridge connecting the Mainland and the rest of the world. With the power of technology, Hong Kong has the potential to play a larger role in promoting cross-border cooperation and legal technology innovation. The innovative results showcased at this forum, which deeply integrate AI technology with legal and compliance expertise, are outstanding examples of our PolyVentures ecosystem nurturing exceptional enterprises and reflect PolyU’s innovative culture. Additionally, PolyU PReCIT actively participates in local policy research and formulation, providing forward-looking strategic recommendations to help Hong Kong establish itself as a sustainable international innovation and technology hub.”

Mr Liu Chunhua, Director-General of Legal Affairs Department of the Liaison Office of the Central People’s Government in the HKSAR, pointed out that this year’s “Government Work Report” clearly outlines the need to develop new productivity tailored to local conditions, promote technological and industrial innovation, and continuously advance the “Artificial Intelligence +” initiative. This approach aims to enhance the innovation capabilities and outreach of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, providing clear guidance for empowering various industries with AI and bringing broad opportunities for Hong Kong’s innovative development.

In considering how Hong Kong can contribute to the process of advancing Chinese-style modernisation and achieve better development through accelerated innovation, Mr Liu shared three key insights: Seize Opportunities: Capitalise on the momentum by actively adapting to the transformative upgrades in legal technology, enhancing core competitiveness and integrating into the national development framework. Innovate While Upholding Integrity: Promote the tradition of patriotism and love for Hong Kong, demonstrate professional rationality, embrace exploration, and try new approaches to drive AI in continuously empowering and adding value to the innovation and development of the legal industry. Leverage Advantages: Leverage the advantages of “One Country, Two Systems”, the connectivity of an international legal hub, and the platform advantages of world-class universities and research institutions in Hong Kong. Additionally, harness the talent pool of legal and innovation elites. In particular, capitalise on the unique strengths of Hong Kong’s common law system to meet the needs of the Nation.

Cross-Disciplinary Development: AI Driving a New Paradigm in Legal Services

With over 20 years of experience in law and finance, Prof. LU Haitian, Hong Kong Sustaintech Foundation Professor in Accounting and Finance, and core member of PReCIT, delivered a keynote speech titled “Al and the Future of Legal Services”. He discussed the innovative prospects of AI in global legal services, including applications in legal intelligent retrieval and reasoning, and showcased the groundbreaking research results from the PolyU team in AI-powered legal services. Prof. Lu emphasised, “AI is not meant to replace lawyers but to empower legal professionals, making legal services more efficient and precise.”

During the event, top legal technology experts and industry leaders from the Greater Bay Area engaged in two panel discussions on the opportunities and developments of AI in legal services. Panel participants included Ms ZHANG Yunyan, Senior Partner of Jincheng Tongda & Neal Law Firm; Barrister Ambrose LAM, Member of the Legislative Council and former President of the Hong Kong Law Society; Ms ZHAO Tong, Chief Compliance Officer and Head of Legal and Compliance of Guotai Junan International Holdings Limited; Mr HUANG Haifeng, Partner at Jones Day; Ms YU Su, Partner of JunHe LLP’s Guangzhou office, The Executive Director of Guangdong Lawyers Association; and Mr Anthony Siu, Founder of Anthony Siu & Company Solicitors & Notaries, engaged in an in-depth discussion on the topic of “Envisioning a New Paradigm for Legal Services”. Additionally, Mr Kelvin WONG, Director of KTEO at PolyU; Prof. YANG Hongxia, Associate Dean (Global Engagement) of the Faculty of Computer and Mathematical Sciences; Ms Winnie HAN, former Senior Vice President of the Hong Kong Stock Exchange; Dr SHEN Peng, Founder and CEO of Waterdrop Inc. and a recipient of the Outstanding PolyUAlumni Award; and Mr LI Xihuan, CEO, Global Business Group at DCG, shared their insights on “The Infinite Future of AI+Industry Based on Large Models”, providing forward-thinking directions for the collaborative development of legal technology and industry.

(from left to right) Ms Zhang Yunyan, Senior Partner of Jincheng Tongda & Neal Law Firm; Barrister Ambrose Lam, Member of the Legislative Council and former President of the Hong Kong Law Society; Ms Zhao Tong, Chief Compliance Officer and Head of Legal and Compliance of Guotai Junan International Holdings Limited; Mr Huang Haifeng, Partner at Jones Day; and Ms Yu Su, Partner of JunHe LLP’s Guangzhou office, The Executive Director of Guangdong Lawyers Association; and Mr Anthony Siu, Founder of Anthony Siu & Co. Solicitors & Notaries, engaged in an in-depth discussion on the topic of “Envisioning a New Paradigm for Legal Services”.

Mr Kelvin Wong, Director of KTEO at PolyU (1^st from left); Prof. Yang Hongxia, Associate Dean (Global Engagement) of the Faculty of Computer and Mathematical Sciences (online); Ms Winnie Han, former Senior Vice President of the Hong Kong Stock Exchange (2^nd from left); Dr Shen Peng, Founder and CEO of Waterdrop Inc. and a recipient of the Outstanding PolyU Alumni Award (2^nd from right); and Mr Li Xihuan, CEO, Global Business Group at DCG (1^st from right), shared their insights on “The Infinite Future of AI+Industry Based on Large Models”.

Breakthroughs from 0 to 1: Launch of an Innovative Smart Legal Platform

During the event, Wiselaw Digital Technology, a start-up nurtured under PolyVentures, made its debut with its groundbreaking innovations in legal services. Its core products include four major modules: legal AI agents, a deep-search, a toolbox and a legal library, marking the first release of AI-powered innovations in legal academia and industry.

Founded in September 2024 by Prof. Lu Haitan, Wiselaw Digital Technology is Hong Kong’s first innovative tech company applying cross-border legal and compliance large-model intelligent agents. It aims to deeply integrate AI technology with expert knowledge in the legal compliance field to provide legal compliance solutions and services for Chinese enterprises going global, international financial institutions and foreign-related law firms. Wiselaw Digital Technology has received funding from PolyU’s Angel Fund (TSSSU+) and support from the PolyVentures startup ecosystem, successfully entering programmes such as the Cyberport Incubation Programme, Qianhai Shenzhen-Hong Kong Youth Innovation and Entrepreneurship Base, and NVIDIA’s Startup Acceleration Program.

Looking forward, PolyU will further promote the innovative development of AI in legal services, leveraging Hong Kong’s position as an international legal centre to provide valuable innovative solutions for global legal technology development and contribute to the national “Digital Rule of Law” initiative.