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CUHK launches InnoHub for New Quality Industries

CUHK launches InnoHub for New Quality Industries to strengthen industry-academia-research collaboration in the Greater Bay Area

The Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK) officially inaugurated the CUHK InnoHub for New Quality Industries in Qianhai, Shenzhen today (10 March 2026). The event marks a new milestone in CUHK's long-standing commitment to the development of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area (GBA) and its efforts to foster the nation's new quality productive forces.

The opening ceremony

The opening ceremony was attended by distinguished guests including Professor Dennis Lo Yuk-ming, Vice-Chancellor and President of CUHK; Mr Wang Shourui, Member of the Standing Committee of the CPC Shenzhen Municipal Committee, Secretary of Qianhai Cooperation Zone Work Committee of the CPC Shenzhen Municipal Committee, Director of the Administration Committee of China (Guangdong) Pilot Free Trade Zone Qianhai & Shekou Area of Shenzhen ; Mr Wu Junbin, Deputy Director of the Shenzhen Liaison Unit of Liaison Office of the Central People's Government in the HKSAR; Ms Wen Ping, Deputy Director General of Qianhai Authority; Ms Lai Sui King, Grace, Director of the Shenzhen Liaison Unit of the Government of the Hong Kong SAR,Professor Isabella Poon Wai-yin, Provost of CUHK; Professor Sham Mai-har, Pro-Vice-Chancellor (Research) of CUHK; Professor Chan Kwan-chi, Associate Vice President (Knowledge Transfer) of CUHK; and Ms Agnes Tsang, Associate Vice-President (Communications and Public Relations) of CUHK; the leadership of the CUHK Shenzhen Research Institute, the management team of CUHK InnoHub for New Quality Industries, leaders and guests from the government, media, partner organizations, brother institutions, alumni organizations, various departments of the university, and related sections, over 200 participants attended the event.

Professor Lo delivered remarks at the opening ceremony, saying: "With the steadfast support of the Shenzhen Municipal Government and the Qianhai Authority, we are proud to mark the inauguration of the CUHK InnoHub for New Quality Industries. This is a landmark project in the University's new phase of strategic development. It is also a significant step towards aligning with the National 15th Five-Year Plan, integrating into and serve overall national development and further promoting the development of the GBA. I look forward to leveraging the Hub as a platform to accelerate the translation and industrial application of research from academic fields in which we are particularly strong – such as AI, robotics, life science technologies and health, contributing CUHK's expertise and innovation to the nation's high-quality development."

Professor Dennis Lo Yuk-ming, Vice-Chancellor and President of CUHK, delivers a speech

Mr Wang highly commended CUHK's long-standing contribution to the development of innovation in Shenzhen and the GBA. He noted that the establishment of the CUHK InnoHub for New Quality Industries is a vivid example of Shenzhen and Hong Kong joining forces to advance technological innovation, and a clear interpretation of "serving the country's needs with Hong Kong's strengths and Qianhai's capabilities." Qianhai will focus on the "Three Integrations"—the deep integration of industrial and technological innovation, advanced manufacturing and modern services, and Shenzhen-Hong Kong development. Moving forward, it will further strengthen its partnership with CUHK to drive progress in cross-border technology transfer, research commercialization, and startup incubation between Shenzhen and Hong Kong, ultimately bolstering the GBA's development as an international scientific and technological innovation hub.

Mr János Csák, representative of the partner institutions, Honorary Professor of Corvinus University of Budapest and former Hungarian Minister for Culture and Innovation, extended his congratulations on the opening of the CUHK InnoHub for New Quality Industries. He said, the relationship between Hungary and China has been excellent historically because it is based upon mutual respect. New technologies offer new opportunities to further deepen cooperation between Hungarian and Chinese universities and institutions. Hungary is determined to become a prime research and innovation hub in Europe focusing on digitalization, life sciences and green transformation. The collaboration between Corvinus University of Budapest-CIAS and SZRI for New Quality Industries on the Academic and Innovation Matrix (AIM) platform is a great initiative for talent exchange and joint R&D based on the CUHK's experience and achivements. We are committed to contributing to this initiative in the coming years and look forward to working together by leveraging the CUHK InnoHub for New Quality Industries.

Mr János Csák, Honorary Professor of Corvinus University of Budapest, Consultant of the Corvinus Institute for Advanced Studies and former Hungarian Minister for Culture and Innovation, delivers a speech

Following its establishment, the Hub will become a pivotal platform for consolidating CUHK's research translation and innovation resources within the GBA. It will spearhead cross-border project incubation, accelerate the deployment of advanced technologies and startups from CUHK into the GBA, and support collaborations among CUHK research teams and GBA-based scientific and industrial entities through expert technology transfer management services. The Hub will also be an international platform for talent exchange and technological collaboration, with a particular focus on strengthening partnerships with Belt and Road countries. It also offers CUHK students dedicated career development resources and a supportive environment for their entrepreneurial ventures.

Professor Chan Kwan-chi, Associate Vice President (Knowledge Transfer) of CUHK, shares the Knowledge Transfer Strategies and Practices of CUHK

The ceremony included a signing event with ecosystem partners. The Hub has established strategic collaborations with numerous industrial enterprises, innovation service providers and investment firms. The aim is to build an open, collaborative, mutually beneficial ecosystem for innovation and entrepreneurship. These partnerships will emphasise comprehensive cooperation in areas such as technological breakthroughs, knowledge transfer and industrial implementation, creating a seamless value chain from basic research to industrial application across Shenzhen and Hong Kong. By leveraging scientific and technological innovation, this initiative seeks to unlock new quality productive forces, foster synergistic development between manufacturing and services, and drive the continuous evolution of industrial systems.

The ecosystem partnership signing ceremony-1

The ecosystem partnership signing ceremony-2

The ceremony marked the official induction of the first 10 tech enterprises into the Hub. Founded by CUHK professors, alumni and current students, they all focus on advancing new quality industries, with their technologies spanning cutting-edge fields such as AI, robotics, advanced manufacturing, healthcare and biomedicine. A concurrent showcase of the companies' products and interactive installations demonstrated the exceptional spirit of innovation within the CUHK community and its rich heritage of blending technology and art.

The inaugural startup induction ceremony

One of the first Hong Kong universities to establish a presence in the GBA, CUHK took a pioneering step in 2006 by partnering with the Chinese Academy of Sciences and the Shenzhen Municipal Government to found the Shenzhen Institute of Advanced Technology. Since then, the University has developed a comprehensive, multi-tiered, collaborative innovation network, comprising the CUHK Shenzhen Research Institute, The Chinese University of Hong Kong (Shenzhen) and the CUHK Hong Kong-Shenzhen Innovation. This expansive footprint encompasses research institutions, joint educational ventures, entrepreneurship hubs and strategic collaborations. The inauguration of the CUHK InnoHub for New Quality Industries marks another pivotal strategic deployment in the Chinese Mainland, reflecting the University's commitment to the National 15th Five-Year Plan and the deepening of science and tech integration between Shenzhen and Hong Kong.

Referenced from WeChat Official Account [香港中文大學 CUHK]  (ID:CUHK-Official)