Hong Kong and Shanghai launch HK$600M fund to industrialise university research
What's the deal? Shanghai and Hong Kong have launched the Victoria Harbour Bridge Innovation and Technology Fund, a HK$600 million vehicle, and signed its first batch of nine sci-tech projects at a ceremony in Hong Kong. All nine were incubated from research teams at Hong Kong universities.
Who's backing it? Shanghai State-owned Investment Co., Ltd. is the cornerstone investor, with CITIC CapitalDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom → as manager and BOCOM InternationalDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom → and Taiping Asset ManagementDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom → as co-managers. The HKSAR Government's Innovation and Technology Venture Fund (ITVF) contributes capital as a limited partner.
Why now? The fund is the first established through cooperation between the HKSAR Government and mainland institutions under the optimised plan of the ITVF, matching private capital at a 1:3 ratio. Its aim: help Hong Kong's scientific research take root in the Chinese mainland.
What's the endgame? The first projects span three sectors — artificial intelligence and big data, advanced manufacturing and new energy, and life health technology — including Maizhi Technology, Xihe Intelligent Sensing, and Jingzhun Medical. The model pairs the research capabilities of Hong Kong universities such as The University of Hong Kong and The Chinese University of Hong Kong with the industrial chains and application scenarios of Shanghai and the Yangtze River Delta.
The reality of transformation: Professor Yu Bei of The Chinese University of Hong Kong leads a project applying AI to 3D chip design. His team has spent four to five years on the research, with some results already tested at large chip design enterprises, but he expects it will take one to two more years to reach a commercial product.
What could go wrong? Moving from laboratory results to industrialisation is a long chain. "To accomplish this, there are several difficulties, including talents, data, engineering, verification and commercialization," Yu said.
The signal: The fund reflects a growing push to connect Hong Kong's original research and international talent with mainland China's engineering and manufacturing capacity, giving university spinouts a route to market rather than leaving them in the lab.
Read more: 36Kr
