Chuangke will have greater development space in Hong Kong

Article author: Yin Sizhe, Hong Kong technology journalist

These two weeks, the Hong Kong innovation and technology scene has been very lively, with both Huang Renxun visiting Hong Kong and Li Ka-shing donating the Histotripsy equipment. Even Zhongan Bank has taken the lead to become the first bank in Asia to allow retail users to directly trade BTC and Ethercoin.

In the middle, there is also a less talked about piece of news - former CEO of the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, Charles Li Xiaojia, financed the financial start-up Micro Connect, which to some extent reveals some potential uncertainties and concerns. Reports indicate that Micro Connect provides innovative financing for small and micro-enterprises in China, which may be seen as a true reflection of the Chinese economic situation or as potential financial security risks. It is understood that Micro Connect has not responded.

Based on the same logic, many other financial technology startups (Fintech) that involve data security also have similar concerns. In this way, it seems that Hong Kong adopts Li Ka-shing's suggestion, and the long-term focus on the development of medical technology may indeed be more stable.

After all, the re-election of President Trump in the early months has gained consensus from all sectors. Regardless of who takes up the position of the next US president, there will be no major shift in the overall direction of US policy towards China, as adopting a tough approach towards China is a common principle of both US parties.

In the field of technology competition, it is predicted that the competitiveness of the US technology industry will be enhanced under the Trump administration. As for venture capital, it will be more difficult to be favored by US VC in the future. In addition to existing regulations requiring US investors not to invest in Chinese-related technology and companies, in fact, AI companies have also tended to prioritize profitability in the past few years, and most of them will not choose the path of IPO listing.

In other words, this ecosystem also limits the AI startups in Hong Kong and Mainland China. If they don't prioritize profitability by adopting the SaaS model, they can only turn to Chinese and Hong Kong VC. The best exit result in the future may be acquired by several Chinese technology companies such as Tencent and Alibaba.

It is not difficult to find that in the Hong Kong ecosystem in the past half year, either actively seeking business opportunities in the Middle East, or attracting more mainland technology enterprises and funds to settle in Hong Kong. One important feature is the role played by Hong Kong universities, often acting as an intermediary platform, coupled with official institutions such as Science Park and Cyberport, to establish various experiments, accelerator projects, or investment funds.

Even academic institutions that used to claim neutrality are actively contributing to Hong Kong, and it is believed that the day when the whole city's citizens enthusiastically support innovation and technology is not far away.