[April 16, 2019‧Hong Kong] Hong Kong International Entrepreneurs Festival 2019, an annual event organised by Brightway, has launched kick-off ceremony and innotech forum discussions at the Harbour Grand Hong Kong. Adhering to the highest standards of excellence, the Hong Kong International Entrepreneurs Festival (HKIEF) is a high-profile international innotech event held in Hong Kong. It has been widely supported by the Central People's Government, Hong Kong government, Cyberspace Administration of China and from every sector at home and across the border. Under the theme of ‘Integrating Innovation and Technology into Daily Life’, the HKIEF 2019 hosted a series of interactive discussions on how innotech can lead to rise of smart living, smart city and new economy. The successful event attracted more than 500 start-up leaders and young talents from home and aboard, giving attendants a glimpse of the vibrant innotech scene in Hong Kong.

True to the founding vision and mission of Hong Kong International Entrepreneurs Festival, this year’s HKIEF aims to encourage innovation and technology across all walks of life, and businesses of all shapes and sizes through its interactive discussions. The kick-off ceremony was launched by: Chen Dong, Deputy Director of the Liaison Office of the Central People's Government in Hong Kong (LOCPG); Ma Li, President of China Internet Development Foundation; Dr. David Chung Wai Keung, JP, Under Secretary for Innovation and Technology of Hong Kong; Zhang Wang, Deputy Director of Ministry of Industry and Information Technology of Cyberspace Administration of China; Chen Lin, Director General of Youth Department, LOCPG; Jiang Zaizhong, Member of the National Committee of CPPCC and Chairman of Hong Kong Ta Kung Wen Wei Media Group; Wei Zhengxin, Secretary-General of China Internet Development Foundation; Chen Xiaobing, Deputy Director General of Social Liaison Department, LOCPG; Eunice Yung Hoi-yan, Member of the Legislative Council; Lau Kwok Fan, MH, Member of the Legislative Council; Alex Yeung, Chairman of Brightway and Executive Director of Emperor Group; Stan Tang, Chairman of the Organizing Committee of HKIEF, Founder of The STILE Initiative; Fok Kai Man, Founding Chairman of Brightway and Nicholas Tse, Ambassador of HKIEF 2019. Lighting the multi-colour symbol of ‘Hong Kong International Entrepreneurs Festival’ together, the ceremony signifies the many possibilities of innotech that will enrich our world. Dr Albert Yeung, Chairman of Emperor Group, was also present to witness the kick-off ceremony.

During his speech in the kick-off ceremony, Alex Yeung, Chairman of Brightway and Executive Director of Emperor Group, said that Hong Kong is set to boost its role as a platform for innovation and technology because of its many strategic advantages: the unique setting of ‘One Country, Two Systems’, its status as an international financial centre and as one of the freest economies in the world, and the many opportunities that come with the Greater Bay Area development. This new era of technology and innovation presents many opportunities and challenges, which provide the avenue for start-ups to work together with corporates, social institutions and the government. Their synergy will transform our daily lives and the way our city operates, and adds much-needed agility to those operating in this ever-changing business environment.

This year’s HKIEF kicked off a series of panel discussions under the banner of ‘Integrating Innovation and Technology into Daily Life’. Known first as a multi-talent artist then as an inter-disciplinary, prolific entrepreneur involved in music, technology, food and beverage and more, Nicholas Tse was invited as the ambassador for HKIEF 2019. As one of the guest speakers, he shared his journey in building up his multi-discipline business with the eager young minds at the conference. “Technology only brings you to a half way, you have to walk the other half which is the true meaning of Innovation.” he said.

The forum discussions were also brought alive by 15 other senior management representatives from well-respected companies from Hong Kong, Mainland and overseas across various industries including banking and finance, electrical vehicles and energy production, co-working place and creative industries, as well as from Cyberport and Greater Bay Area Development. The forum discussions evolved around four topics: ‘How Innovation and Technology rejuvenates Corporate’, which explored how traditional industries were prompted to seek innovation by rapid changes in home and overseas market and the waves of technological advancements. It also talked about how such a force of change may help transform Hong Kong’s economy. Next came ‘How Innovation and Technology Navigate The Development of Greater Bay Area’, which talked about the new opportunities arising from the collaboration of the 11 cities within the Greater Bay Area, and how different sectors could work together to develop high-end technology. Another topic was ‘Innovation in Daily Life’, where guest speakers talked about how innotech breaks us out of the way we used to live our life, and how people from all sectors should adopt an internet-based mindset to push for new horizons for their business. This year’s festival has also introduced E-sports as a theme for the first time under the theme of  ‘New Era of E-sports’, where a panel discussion was joined by Ryan Chow, Chairman of E-Sports Association Hong Kong, and TOYZ (Kurtis Lau) Hong Kong's First League of Legends World Champion, Chief Team Manager of Emperor Esports Stars (EES), and more e-sports industry leaders to discuss how this creative industry breaks down silos, and embarks on a fasts-growing trajectory to be a popular industry and an internationally recognised sports item.

Since HKIEF has been attracting successful start-up entrepreneurs from around the world, it has decided to take it a step further to encourage young talents to join the start-up scene and pursue their dreams. That’s why this year’s HKIEF had started a partnership with The STILE Initiative, a start-up incubation programme, to inject new blood into the start-up ecosystem in the region. After some fierce screening, a total of five start-ups companies selected from among more than 500 companies from the Belt and Road countries were invited to the HKIEF to share their experience. They had all received a token from Chen Dong, Deputy Director of the Liaison Office of the Central People’s Government in Hong Kong and Dr. David Chung Wai Keung, JP, Under Secretary for Innovation and Technology of Hong Kong, in recognition of their outstanding achievements, and were thrilled part of two international start-up platforms, HKIEF and The STILE Initiative, at the same time. The collaboration of HKIEF and The STILE Initiative should help maximise the exposure of start-ups to both local and international business communities, and accelerated their journey to fruition.