Ng's own story offers an example of deepened cooperation between entrepreneurs from Hong Kong and the mainland.
He went to Beijing in 2004 -- the first post doctorate student from Hong Kong that ever studied at Tsinghua University, and met professionals who supported his company Titanium Group, which specialized in facial recognition systems.
He suggested that other Hong Kong entrepreneurs should go there, too. "With policy, capital and platforms all improving, entrepreneurship in Beijing and Shanghai has entered a golden age," he said.
He added that young people from Hong Kong can play an important role in building the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area and in the Belt and Road Initiative as well.
SPUR INNOVATION
The government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) set up its Innovation and Technology Bureau in 2015 aiming to develop Hong Kong into an innovation hub. In the first year that followed, the number of start-ups in Hong Kong grew 24 percent to 1,926. By the end of 2016, Hong Kong had 48 maker spaces, a substantial increase from only 5 of them in 2015.
Less than one-hour drive from the bustling city center, Hong Kong Science Park in Sha Tin District is home to some prominent research teams and laboratories.
Fanny Law, chair of Hong Kong Science and Technology Parks (HKSTP), said Hong Kong does not lack talent, but it needs to create more jobs for them.
To support young innovators, the HKSAR government has rolled out a series of policies "in areas ranging from R&D, promotion, to market application," Law said.
According to Law, the Science Park's facilities are a major advantage, and save the startups money. Besides, sharing lab facilities increases exchange of ideas among different teams, she added.
The HKSTP has inked cooperation agreements with four maker spaces or incubators in Beijing, Tianjin, Shanghai and Shenzhen, she said, hoping these partnerships to further exchanges between innovators from Hong kong and those from the mainland.
