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HKUST 2011-2012 Annual Report
The University has built up and strengthened a suite of
IT systems for its knowledge transfer enterprise. These
systems have facilitated the identification of areas of
research excellence, management of university-owned
intellectual properties (IP), and sharing HKUST research
knowhow with the outside world via a powerful open
innovation platform — the
Open Research, Innovation
and Collaboration Network (ORION)
.
A leading university in science and technology has the
responsibility to promote awareness in S&T policy in the
society which she serves. On 1-2 December 2011, as the
finale of HKUST’s 20th Anniversary celebrations, a HKUST
Science and Technology Forum was held in Hong Kong
and Nansha respectively to deliberate a future strategy for
S&T developments in Hong Kong and the Pearl River Delta.
The Forum was organized by HKUST in collaboration with
the Hong Kong Academy of Engineering Sciences and
the Hong Kong Institution of Science. It was attended
by renowned academics and society leaders including
the Hon Leung Chun-ying, former Convenor of the Non-
official Members of the Executive Council and currently
Chief Executive of the Hong Kong SAR Government; Ir
Dr the Hon Raymond Ho Chung-tai, former Member of
the Legislative Council; Prof France A Córdova, President
of Purdue University and National Science Board, USA.
Experts exchanged thoughts on the development of
science and technology policies and explored ways to
further Hong Kong-Guangdong cooperation under the
12th National Five-Year Plan. The forum was an excellent
example of HKUST influencing S&T policy and extending its
sphere of innovation beyond Hong Kong.
Driving forward entrepreneurship
Through the Technology Transfer Centre (TTC) and the
HKUST R&D Corporation (RDC), HKUST has continued
to offer catalytic support to promote and foster
innovation, entrepreneurship and commercialization.
The University’s Entrepreneurship Center focuses on
three areas — entrepreneurship education and training,
business outreach, and start-up incubation. The “Be
Your Own Boss” lecture series had been well attended
by the University community and incorporated into an IT
entrepreneurship course. The 2012 HKUST One Million
Dollar Entrepreneurship Competition received a total of
89 applications. The first prize went to Neoid Limited, a
company that develops high performance RFID tagging
solutions. The Proof-of-Concept Fund has funded six
projects with technologies emerging from the University’s
research for pre-commercialization development. In its
second year of operation, the PCF had been recognized
by faculty members as an excellent means to turn their
research outputs into something that would truly benefit
the local economy and beyond, thereby enhancing the KT
culture among faculty members.
