FHKI presents the First Hong Kong Innopreneur Awards

Best Innopreneur Award conferred on SmartMore’s Prof Jia Jiaya

Launched by the Federation of Hong Kong Industries (“FHKI”), the first Hong Kong Innopreneur Awards presentation ceremony was successfully concluded earlier today.  The Ceremony was officiated by the Guest of Honour Professor Sun Dong, Secretary for Innovation, Technology and Industry of the HKSAR Government. 

The awardees are as follows:

 

The Awards is titled-sponsored by HSBC Hong Kong with an aim to endorse and honour forward-looking and promising startup founders who have attained breakthrough innovation in their businesses and commit to bringing positive impact to the society.  FHKI Chairman Dr Sunny Chai congratulated all awardees in his opening remarks; he said, “With the full support of our motherland and the HKSAR Government, I&T will be the driving force for Hong Kong to break new grounds and reach newer heights in leaps and bounds.  This award presentation not only recognises the outstanding achievements of the entrepreneurs, but also enhances exchanges and collaborations among industry leaders, bringing together not only greater technological knowledge, innovation and dynamism in the Greater Bay Area but also driving transformational development of Hong Kong industries.”

Professor Sun Dong, Secretary for Innovation, Technology and Industry, said despite the difficult time in the past three years of pandemic, members in our local I&T industry have been making continued efforts to serve the community with their professionalism and pursue best technology solutions to cope with the challenges.  Today, as our city is gradually returning to normalcy, Hong Kong is able to present, again, its dynamic and vibrant characteristics to the world. He said, “Hong Kong remains its position as an ideal place to start businesses and pursuit dreams. Leveraging Hong Kong’s unique status and edges as an international city, Hong Kong will consolidate our role as an important bridge connecting the Mainland and the rest of the world, from which the I&T industry will benefit at large”.

After a rigorous evaluation process by the judging committee, comprising of renowned political and business leaders who are reputable members with advanced knowledge and expertise in the industry, the 2022 Best Innopreneur Award was conferred to Professor Jia Jiaya, the Founder and Chairman of SmartMore Corporation Limited. Professor Jia is a tenured professor at the Chinese University of Hong Kong and a top expert in computer vision and artificial intelligence. With more than 20 years of research experience, he deployed advanced technology to support social development. He has led his team to develop well-known new generation of advanced manufacturing platform, auto-driving platform, and intelligent medical diagnosis system. Professor Jia is passionate in capturing the global Industry 4.0 transformation and founded SmartMore in 2019 which focuses on empowering smart manufacturing and digital innovation with advanced technology. SmartMore has become a unicorn in less than 18 months.

Representing the Awards’ title sponsor, Mr Frank Fang, General Manager, Head of Commercial Banking, Hong Kong and Macau, HSBC, said, “Innovation has become imperative for businesses to improve resilience and achieve long term growth. As a close partner of Hong Kong’s business community , we are pleased to support the Hong Kong Innopreneur Awards to inspire more innovative thinking to create new market opportunities and build a better, more sustainable future. As quarantine free travel resumes internationally and the Greater Bay Area becomes more economically integrated, Hong Kong is ready to elevate its position and transform into an international innovation hub.”

About the Hong Kong Innopreneur Awards

Organised by FHKI and title sponsored by HSBC, the Hong Kong Innopreneur Awards was founded in 2022 to honour forward-looking and promising startup founders who have attained breakthrough innovation in their business and commit to bringing positive changes to the society.

Nominations for the awards were adjudicated by renowned political and business leaders, well-known industralists and I&T leaders, making it one of the most prestigious honors in Hong Kong's start-up community. The judging committee interviews the candidates in-person and makes a fair and unbiased assessment on their performance and contribution to ensure that the awards go to the best candidates.

The award presentation not only recognises entrepreneurs who have achieved outstanding achievements, but also inspires people in the industry with entrepreneurial spirit and encourages outstanding I&T talents to become future industry leaders, promoting Hong Kong to become an international I&T hub.

The profile of awardees and event photos can be found in Appendix.

Media Enquiries:

Tel: 2732 3178 / 2732 3154
E-mail: media@fhki.org.hk 

Appendix 1: Event Photos

Photo 1 - Prof Dong Sun, the Secretary for Innovation, Technology and Industry of the HKSAR Government, FHKI Chairman Dr Sunny Chai and Mr Frank Fang, General Manager, Head of Commercial Banking, Hong Kong and Macau, HSBC, posed for a group photo with the winners of first Hong Kong Innopreneur Awards.

Photo 2 - FHKI Chairman Dr Sunny Chai said the Awards not only affirm the outstanding achievements of the entrepreneurs but also aim to promote exchanges and collaborations among industry leaders.

Photo 3 - Prof Dong Sun, the Secretary for Innovation, Technology and Industry of the HKSAR Government served as the Guest-of-Honour to officiate the Presentation Ceremony of first Hong Kong Innopreneur Awards.

Photo 4 - Representing the Awards’ title sponsor, Mr Frank Fang, General Manager, Head of Commercial Banking, Hong Kong and Macau, HSBC, said, “Innovation has become imperative for businesses to improve resilience and achieve long term growth. As a close partner of HK’s business community, we are pleased to support the Hong Kong Innopreneur Awards to inspire more innovative thinking to create new market opportunities and build a better, more sustainable future. As quarantine free travel resumes internationally and the Greater Bay Area becomes more economically integrated, Hong Kong is ready to elevate its position and transform into an international innovation hub.”

Photo 5 - The 2022 Best Innopreneur Award was conferred on Prof Jia Jiaya, Founder and Chairman of SmartMore Corporation Limited.

*Please visit here for higher resolution photos.

Appendix 2 : First Hong Kong Innopreneur Awards Winner Profiles

Best Innopreneur Award

Prof Jia Jiaya
Founder & Chairman, SmartMore Corporation Limited

Jia Jiaya, a tenured professor at the Chinese University of Hong Kong and a top expert in computer vision and artificial intelligence. With more than 20 years of research experience, he deployed advanced technology to support social development.  He has led his team to develop well-known new generation of advanced manufacturing platform, auto-driving platform, and intelligent medical diagnosis system. Professor Jia keenly captured the global Industry 4.0 transformation and founded SmartMore Corporation Limited in 2019 which focuses on empowering smart manufacturing and digital innovation with advanced technology.  Through cutting-edge technologies such as manufacturing optimization and machine vision, it aims to create platforms with greater scalability and broader applications for smart manufacturing and digital innovation, realising the great potential of digital and intelligent transformation. As a result, SmartMore has become a unicorn in merely 18 months.  In the future, Professor Jia Jiaya will continue to lead the way in contributing to the development of Hong Kong’s I&T ecosystem.

High Flyer Innopreneur Award

 

Prof Ng Siew Chien

Co-Founder, GenieBiome Limited

In 2010, Prof Siew Ng, a specialist in gastroenterologist, met Prof Francis Chan, Dean of Faculty of Medicine, the Chinese University of Hong Kong. There came the opportunity of InnoHK, the major initiative of the Government for global research collaboration, to position Hong Kong as a leading biotech hub. They convinced the Innovation and Technology Bureau with their proposal and successfully established Microbiota I-Center (MagIC), the only microbiome R&D center in Asia. In 2019, along with Prof Francis Chan, she co-founded GenieBiome (G-Niib) Limited. Their mission is to transform novel microbiome discoveries into effective diagnostics and therapeutics. GenieBiome has now expanded to over 100 staffs in under 3 years. It has risen to be one of the top 25 microbiome biotech companies globally. Their innovations have expanded from Hong Kong to Singapore, Malaysia and Greater Bay Area (GBA) and they recently celebrated the grand opening of the first Microbiome Molecular Diagnostic Laboratory in Hong Kong. Prof Ng will continue to apply her microbiome expertise to other diseases including autism, obesity, diabetes and depression.

 

Excellence in Research Application Award

Dr Lam Fung, Tenny
CEO & Co-Founder, Grand Rise Technology Limited

Co-founded in 2019 by Dr Tenny Lam, Doctor of Business Administration, and Prof Pei Li, Department of Applied Biology and Chemical Technology of the Hong Kong Polytechnic University. Grand Rise Technology Limited (“Grand Rise Technology”) developed a novel bio-based technology based on the patented core-shell particle technology platform, enabling a new class of amphiphilic core-shell nanoparticles for a wide range of applications such as bio-based anti-microbial coating applications solutions and edible coating for food shelf-life extension. The team puts a strong emphasis on translating research excellence into real-world applications for the benefit of society. People are now more concerned about hygiene than ever amid the COVID-19 pandemic. In light of this, during the startup stage, the team developed a solution with a long-lasting antimicrobial effect on various surfaces, while being safe for humans and the environment. In 2022, Grand Rise Technology won the Environmental Impact Award in the Alibaba Entrepreneurs Fund/HSBC JUMPSTARTER 2022 Global Pitch Competition.  In addition, Grand Rise Technology was selected as Forbes Asia 100 to Watch List in 2022.

GBA+ Award

Mr Kingsley Leung
Chairman & Co-Founder, Great Bay Bio Limited

Mr Leung has over 10 years’ experience in the life science and finance industries. Currently, he is the Chairman of Great Bay Bio (“GBB”) and also serves as Director in both Uni-bio Science Group and DotBio. He was also elected the Vice Chairman of Pharmaceutical & Chemical group of the Federation of Hong Kong Industries. GBB, headquartered in Hong Kong, was founded in 2019 with extensive footprint in the Greater Bay Area.  The core team of GBB is composed of global talents with expertise in medicine, pharmacy, synthetic biology and AI. With a 3000m² R&D center and CMC platform, GBB has successfully pushed several biological drugs into the NDA stage, including national class 1 new drugs. During the three years since its establishment, GBB has applied for more than 30 patents for its AI empowered bioprocesses solutions. The resulting AI platforms were successfully commercialized, enabling GBB to establish long-term cooperation with many domestic and foreign leading enterprises. GBB has attained the title of National “High-Tech Enterprise” twice in a row by the National High-Tech Enterprise Certification Management Leading Group Office.

ESG Award

Dr Chiu Yin-to, Ricky
Chairman & CEO, PHASE Scientific International Limited

Dr Ricky Chiu has been recognised as being one of the top leaders in the biotechnology field in Hong Kong. He has developed a proprietary sample preparation technology that significantly improves the speed and accuracy of diagnostic testing, thus enabling much earlier detection of cancers and infectious diseases. As a scientist who deeply cares about public health, Dr Chiu’s dedication to corporate social responsibility goes beyond his company. In the fourth wave of the city’s pandemic, he established a COVID-19 laboratory, became the Government’s testing contractor and began to offer accurate and reliable testing services to meet the increasing demand for PCR testing services in the city. Dr Chiu is also devoted to charitable causes. In the fifth wave of COVID-19, when the medical system in Hong Kong was severely challenged and children were not receiving immediate medical support, he provided over a thousand of free telemedicine and medication delivery services to young patients so they could receive timely treatment. Going forward, he and the team will focus on diagnostic innovations to assist in the detection of different diseases.

Corporate Innopreneur Award

Biel Crystal Holdings Limited

Founded in 1989, Biel Crystal Holdings Limited (Biel) is a leading global provider of exterior structure and module solutions for smart devices. With over 30 years of technological innovation and excellent management, Biel has become a large technology innovation group with 8 advanced production bases worldwide, a total capital investment of over HKD $40 billion, a total area of industrial zones reaching approximately 2 million square meters, over 80,000 employees, and an annual production capacity of 1.85 billion pieces. With their persistent drive to innovation, Biel used cutting-edge equipment sourced from outside Hong Kong in R&D and production; set up a product technology R&D center and three key laboratories; and invested over HK$1 billion in R&D. Furthermore, Biel has obtained a total of 310 invention, utility model, and design patents in many fields, such as optical glass and sapphire glass processing, touch screen R&D, and fingerprint module assembly. In terms of CSR, Biel partners with renowned universities and authorised institutes to promote cross-sector collaborations. Biel is working with the Hong Kong Polytechnic University to drive advanced academic research in glass processing and manufacturing technologies. Biel also sponsored research of veterinary medicine and student overseas exchange programmes for the City University of Hong Kong.

Prenetics Global Limited

Founded in 2014, Prenetics Global Limited (“Prenetics”) is a global leading diagnostics and genetic testing company with the mission to build the world's first end-to-end health ecosystem by placing online and offline clinical care in consumers' control, across consumer health, medical and cancer genomics. Prenetics is led by visionary entrepreneur, Danny Yeung, with operations across 9 locations, including the United Kingdom, Hong Kong, India, South Africa, and Southeast Asia. Prenetics has expanded its product pipeline through the launch of 2 new innovative products; ColoClear by Circle and Circle Snapshot. In 2020, Prenetics has expanded its products and services to diagnostic testing with the launch of COVID-19 testing services under Project Screen. On May 18th 2022, Prenetics made international headlines to become Hong Kong’s First Unicorn to publicly list on the Nasdaq.

Ecosystem Catalyst Award

Alibaba Hong Kong Entrepreneurs Fund

Alibaba Hong Kong Entrepreneurs Fund (AEF) is a not-for-profit initiative launched by Alibaba Group in 2015. Mission is to support young entrepreneurs in Hong Kong to fulfil their startup dreams, while contributing to the community. Meanwhile, exploiting a pioneering and sustainable model, aspire to bolster innovation and entrepreneurship in order to help Hong Kong stay vibrant and emerge as an international innovation and technology hub. AEF invests in early-stage technology startups with innovative business models through AEF Hong Kong Fund and AEF Greater Bay Area Fund, to support their development and expansion, portfolio companies span over a wide range of industries. AEF provides their portfolio companies with strategic guidance and business networks via a diversified pool of mentors, helping them expand their businesses locally and internationally.