The 15th Business of IP Asia Forum and 17th HKTDC Entrepreneur Day will convene from December 4 to 5 at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre, bringing together innovators, investors, professionals, and policymakers from around the world. These concurrent events aim to strengthen Hong Kong's role as a regional intellectual property trading center and international innovation hub through cross-sector collaboration and business matching opportunities.
Patrick Lau, HKTDC Deputy Executive Director, emphasized Hong Kong's advantages as an IP trading platform, citing its sound legal system, deep capital markets, and robust IP protection regime. The BIP Asia Forum, under the theme "Leverage IP to Finance Business Growth," will feature more than 100 speakers exploring IP's potential for corporate development and financing. The event will include a keynote session on "IP Valuation and Financing" examining how intellectual property can be converted into viable capital sources.
The Global Tech Summit's opening session, "Unlocking Value: Intellectual Property and Investment Opportunities in AI Innovations," will feature investors from organizations including Hong Kong Investment Corporation Limited, Alibaba Hong Kong Entrepreneurs Fund, and Google Cloud discussing AI investment trends and IP landscape evolution. Special addresses will be delivered by HKSAR Chief Executive John Lee and Li Shengjun from China's National Intellectual Property Administration.
Diverse thematic sessions will address critical industry topics, including a plenary session on "Propelling Sustainability with IP" featuring speakers from GE Aerospace, Maersk, and the University of Exeter Business School. Breakout sessions will cover data licensing opportunities and risks, the IP economy, and Hong Kong brand transformation through IP strategies. An ASEAN Session co-organized with the ASEAN Secretariat will focus on patent commercialization and technology transfer between ASEAN economies and Hong Kong.
Concurrently, Entrepreneur Day continues under the theme "Where Start-up Dreams Take Flight," featuring more than 350 startups, innovation projects, and support organizations across six technology verticals: Artificial Intelligence, Health Tech, Cyber Security, Construction and Logistics, Spatial Computing and Sustainability. The event includes dedicated pavilions from the Digital Policy Office showcasing Hong Kong ICT Awards winners and the Home and Youth Affairs Bureau featuring Greater Bay Area youth entrepreneurship projects.
The seminar program spans four tracks: Inspirational Masterclass, Start-up 101, Uncovering Hidden Gems and Global Tech Summit, addressing topics including artificial intelligence, green energy, deeptech commercialization, and sustainable fashion. A roundtable discussion titled "Empowering GBA Startups to Expand into ASEAN with Hong Kong as a Super-connector and Super Value-adder" will explore how Hong Kong's financial strength and legal expertise can facilitate cross-border innovation collaboration.
The return of "Start-up Express International" will feature 10 selected startups from Australia, Chinese Mainland, Italy, Singapore, Thailand, the United Kingdom and other economies presenting their entrepreneurial journeys. DesignInspire will be held concurrently from December 3 to 6, creating additional synergy and business opportunities across the creative industries. More information about these events can be found at https://bipasia.hktdc.com/en/ and https://portal.hktdc.com/eday/en, while details about the startup program are available at https://portal.hktdc.com/startupexpress/en/s/start-up-express-international.
These events highlight Hong Kong's strategic position in connecting innovation ecosystems across the Greater Bay Area and international markets, providing crucial platforms for knowledge exchange, investment matching, and cross-border collaboration that drive economic growth and technological advancement throughout the region.
