Nearly 40 distinguished scholars from Hong Kong, Macau and the Mainland attended the two-day Xiangshan Science Conference hosted by the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST) yesterday. The Honorable Mrs Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor, Chief Executive of HKSAR, Mr Chen Dong and Dr Tan Tieniu, Deputy Directors of the Liaison Office of the Central People’s Government in HKSAR officiated at the closing ceremony of this high-profile conference today, which was founded by the State Science and Technology Commission (now the Ministry of Science and Technology of the People’s Republic of China, PRC) and the Chinese Academy of Sciences.

The conference was the first national science symposium organized in Hong Kong after the Central Government pledged to make the city an international innovation hub. Members of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and Chinese Academy of Engineering exchanged their views with other attending scientists on the latest development and international collaboration in Neuromorphic Computing & Artificial Intelligence – the theme of the conference this year. Meanwhile, the conference’s officiating guests also witnessed the official launch of the Hong Kong Society of Artificial Intelligence and Robotics (HKSAIR).

Mrs Carrie Lam congratulated on the success of the conference. In her officiating address, she said the conference is an important platform of national science development and the Central Government has been supporting Hong Kong to be the international innovation hub. With world-renowned universities, technological strength, well-established legal, judicial and intellectual property rights system, Hong Kong is capable to attract the first-class scientific research institutions and draw on resources across the globe; and continue to contribute to the national innovation and technology development.

Prof Nancy Ip, Vice-President for Research and Graduate Studies of HKUST, expressed her gratitude that Xiangshan Science Conference selected HKUST as the partner for this event. “This is the first time for HKUST to host the Xiangshan Science Conference,” she said. “I feel very honored as one of the organizers of this event. Neuroscience and artificial intelligence are key strategic areas of national science and technology development, and are also areas of focus at HKUST. This conference will forge collaboration among different disciplines, as well as facilitate nation-wide advancement in neuroscience and artificial intelligence.”

Prof Yang Qiang, executive co-chair of the conference as well as Founding President of HKSAIR, said the mission of the society is to leverage Hong Kong’s scientific advantages and promote in-depth cooperation among industry, academia and the research sector. He added that the society will work across governments, policy, academia and business sectors to nurture an AI ecosystem including talent, entrepreneurs, research and commercialization of research findings in Hong Kong and the Greater Bay area. Through the development of AI and robotics technology, the society will contribute to Hong Kong’s development in innovation and technology.

Launched by the State Science and Technology Commission (now the Ministry of Science and Technology) and the Chinese Academy of Sciences in 1993, Xiangshan Sicence Conference aims to advance the frontiers of science and contribute to the national development in innovation and technology. Summary reports will be prepared and distributed to participating scholars, the State Council and other relevant departments following the conference.

(This news was originally published by the HKUST Public Affairs Office here.)