The 15th Business of IP Asia Forum (BIP Asia Forum) and 17th Entrepreneur Day (E-Day) opened today at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre, bringing together over 180 speakers and more than 420 start-ups, innovative projects, and start-up support organizations. Jointly organized by the Hong Kong Trade Development Council (HKTDC) and the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, these flagship events reinforce Hong Kong's position as a super-connector and value-adder for regional and global collaboration in innovation and technology (I&T) and intellectual property (IP).
HKTDC Executive Director Sophia Chong emphasized that robust IP protection encourages investment in research and development and commercialization of new ideas, while multi-stakeholder collaboration helps translate IP into measurable economic impact. Hong Kong, as a regional center for IP trading and international hub for innovation and technology, is taking the lead in supporting this vital sector's sustainability. The forum explores various areas including financing, sustainability, creativity, and licensing, highlighting IP's integral role in driving business growth.
This year's forum, themed "Leverage IP to Finance Business Growth," examines IP's role as a core driver of sustainable expansion. The keynote session on "IP Valuation and Financing" featured insights into how enterprises can leverage IP assets as a source of capital. The plenary session "Propelling Sustainability with IP" explored how companies can strategically deploy intellectual property to achieve sustainability goals and accelerate industrial standardization.
Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development Algernon Yau detailed HKSAR's efforts to strengthen Hong Kong's role as a regional IP trading center, including expanding the patent examiner team, modernizing the Copyright Ordinance and registered designs regime, and creating business-matching programs connecting Mainland enterprises with Hong Kong's world-class IP service providers. He emphasized that the "IP financing sandbox" turns these initiatives into financeable, scalable reality.
The afternoon session "Cross-Border Empowerment: Forging a New IP-Driven Investment Ecosystem in the Greater Bay Area" focused on regional collaboration, cross-border IP protection, and financing strategies to help enterprises scale from the GBA to global markets. For the first time, the forum introduced an "IP Go-Global Business Matching Session," allowing local professional service providers and IP lawyers to offer one-on-one consultations to Mainland enterprises covering trademark and patent registration, enforcement, litigation, international licensing, and dispute resolution.
Tomorrow's highlights include "Cross-border Transactions in Digital Culture and Protection of Intellectual Property," where the Zhejiang Culture Assets and Equity Exchange will share how Mainland policies and regulations support protection for and commercialization of digital cultural IP. The onsite showcase area of Asia IP Exchange (AsiaIPEX) Creative Hub displays local creative IP across publishing, film, characters, and design to connect creators and IP users globally.
E-Day continues with the theme "Where Start-up Dreams Take Flight," bringing together over 360 start-ups, inventor projects, and support organizations from 11 countries and regions. Exhibits span six major tech categories: AI, healthtech, cybersecurity, construction & logistics, spatial computing, and sustainability. The event features three key exhibition zones: the "Start-up and Innovation Zone," the "University Spin-off," and "The Boosters," which offers one-stop support for start-ups.
The "GBA Tripartite Roundtable: Empowering GBA Startups to Expand into ASEAN with Hong Kong as a Super-connector and Super Value-adder" explores opportunities for Greater Bay Area start-ups to tap into ASEAN and global markets. Intan Zalani, Consul (Trade) of Malaysia in Hong Kong, highlighted opportunities in Malaysia's digital payments landscape and renewable energy sector, noting that with Malaysia's strategic position as ASEAN's natural hub and Hong Kong's super-connector role, there is "a slice of the pie for everyone."
This year's "Start-up Express International" brings together ten quality start-ups across the globe covering green tech, healthtech, AI, and edtech, demonstrating Hong Kong's attractiveness as an international launchpad. Running concurrently from 3 to 6 December, DesignInspire presents works from leading local and international designers, creating strong synergy that reinforces Hong Kong's positioning as Asia's hub for innovation and IP. More information about Entrepreneur Day can be found at https://portal.hktdc.com/eday/en and about Start-up Express International at https://portal.hktdc.com/startupexpress/en/s/start-up-express-international.
