With a generous donation from the Otto Poon Charitable Foundation, PolyU has established two research institutes under the PolyU Academy for Interdisciplinary Research to support its research endeavours on smart cities and sustainable energy.

Ir Dr Otto Poon, the founder of the Foundation, is an Outstanding PolyU Alumnus and successful entrepreneur who has been generously supporting the University’s vision in advancing emerging technologies. To recognise his significant contributions, the two institutes are named the Otto Poon Charitable Foundation Smart Cities Research Institute (SCRI), and the Otto Poon Charitable Foundation Research Institute for Smart Energy (RISE).

Officiating at the naming ceremony, Dr Lam Tai-fai, PolyU Council Chairman, and Professor Jin- Guang Teng, PolyU President, extended their heartfelt gratitude to Ir Dr Poon for his longstanding support.

During the ceremony, Dr David Chung, Under Secretary for Innovation and Technology, said that the Government had been collaborating with the two research institutes in a number of smart city projects, ranging from the application of urban informatics to smart and sustainable energy. “PolyU, with its outstanding research institutes and academics, will have a big role to play in building Hong Kong into an international I&T hub,” he said.

Ir Dr Otto Poon also remarked: “The establishment of SCRI will serve as a catalyst to blend the various elements of smart cities together in order to contribute to the success of Hong Kong’s Smart City Blue Print 2.0.” In addition, he appreciated PolyU researchers’ dedicated commitment to advancing the frontiers of technology and knowledge to cope with energy challenges.