HKUST-Sino One Million Dollar Entrepreneurship Competition 2023 Well-Received with Record High Entries
The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST) and Sino Group share a passionate commitment to nurturing the next generation of visionary innovative and entrepreneurial talents. The HKUST-Sino One Million Dollar Entrepreneurship Competition is a large-scale integrated platform via which visionary youngsters are encouraged to innovate ideas to help make our world a more sustainable place. The competition’s most promising finalists will also have the opportunity to broaden their horizons by going forward to participate in the International Exhibition of Inventions Geneva 2024.
This year, the internationally renowned competition has added a new ESG (Environmental, Social and Governance) category. Designed to generate and transform “green” ideas into sustainability-driven start-up enterprises, the newly introduced “Sustainability Impact Awards” will help pave the way for a brighter future for all. The registration period for the competition ended on 13 April this year. The competition continued to draw many aspiring entrepreneurs and the number of entries broke the record, with the year’s contest attracting a total of 234 eligible entries from local, Mainland and international teams, with 80% of the entries featuring ESG elements.
Prof. Nancy IP, HKUST President, said, “HKUST has been a pioneer when it comes to investing in entrepreneurship through seed funding, industry partnerships, and activities such as our signature One Million Dollar Entrepreneurship Competition. This has resulted in 1,645 active start-ups, including nine unicorns and nine exits (IPO or M&A), that have collectively created an economic impact of HK$400 billion. Moreover, our knowledge transfer pipeline of support for DeepTech incubation and entrepreneurship has led to many fruitful partnerships with industry, government departments, and social organizations. Together, these efforts are contributing to Hong Kong’s growing reputation as an innovation powerhouse and a hub for impactful start-up incubation. I sincerely thank the Sino Group for their steadfast support of HKUST’s entrepreneurship endeavors over the years. We aim to attract more members to commercialize research and connect with industry to incubate more successful start-ups from HKUST.”
Sino Group again serves as the title sponsor of the HKUST-Sino One Million Dollar Entrepreneurship Competition for a sixth successive year. Mr. Daryl NG, Deputy Chairman of Sino Group, said, “Innovation is a key driver of sustainable development, and the Group is committed to promoting innovation development by nurturing and supporting local and overseas technology start-ups. We are delighted to be working with HKUST again this year, as we believe that young people in Hong Kong are creative and innovative. Over the past five years, many participants have transformed their promising business concepts in innovation and technology into tangible goods and services that create social value. The HKUST team must be applauded for providing a wide range of opportunities for young people with diverse interests and potentials to bring their talents to life, and for actively nurturing local talents to help promote the sustainable development of Hong Kong.”
Themed “Empower your Future”, this year’s competition will invite overseas participants to collaborate with their HKUST counterparts to make our world a better place by turning visionary ideas into working realities. With sustainability now a vitally important topic of global concern, the competition’s new “Sustainability Impact Awards” encourage entrants to reinvigorate ESG with the fresh energy needed to create a greener, more eco-friendly, and fully sustainable tomorrow. The organisers’ ultimate hope is that entrants will seize the opportunity to grow by innovating ideas addressing critical issues such as global warming.
The winners will earn seed funding for starting up companies or further developing their ideas. After two rounds of judging by an expert panel of “angel” investors, corporate representatives, and respected professors, six teams will be shortlisted. In the competition’s final stage, the judges will announce the winners of 2023’s coveted Platinum, Gold and Silver Awards and a share of the HK$1 million prize fund. A total of 10 selected teams and finalists can also go on to participate in the International Exhibition of Inventions Geneva 2024.
Since 2018, Sino Group-sponsored Competition has received over 700 high-quality entries from around the world, spanning industries such as AI and medical, among others. Initially hosted exclusively in Hong Kong, the competition now attracts top-notch submissions from an expanding list of cities including Macau, Beijing, Guangzhou, Shenzhen and Foshan.
Those wishing to obtain full details about this year’s HKUST-Sino One Million Dollar Entrepreneurship Competition, should visit https://ec.hkust.edu.hk/one-million/home
About The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology
The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST) (https://hkust.edu.hk/) is a world-class research intensive university that focuses on science, technology and business as well as humanities and social science. HKUST offers an international campus, and a holistic and interdisciplinary pedagogy to nurture well-rounded graduates with global vision, a strong entrepreneurial spirit and innovative thinking. Over 80% of our research work were rated “internationally excellent” or “world leading” in the Research Assessment Exercise 2020 of Hong Kong’s University Grants Committee. We were ranked 3rd in Times Higher Education’s Young University Rankings 2022, and our graduates were ranked 30th worldwide and among the best from universities from Asia in Global Employability University Ranking and Survey 2022. As of 2022, HKUST members have founded 1,645 active start-ups, including nine unicorns and nine exits (IPO or M&A), generating economic impact worth over HK$400 billion. InvestHK cited QS World University Rankings by Subject 2021 to demonstrate the performance of five world’s top 100 local universities in several innovation-centric areas, among which HKUST ranked top in four engineering and materials science subjects.
About Sino Group
Established in 1971, Sino Group comprises three listed companies – Sino Land Company Limited (HKSE: 083), Tsim Sha Tsui Properties Limited (HKSE: 0247), Sino Hotels (Holdings) Limited (HKSE: 1221) – and private companies held by the Ng Family.
As one of Hong Kong’s leading property developers with core businesses in property development and investment, Sino Group has grown with the communities it serves. The Group’s business interests comprise a diversified portfolio of residential, office, industrial, retail and hospitality properties across Hong Kong, mainland China, Singapore and Australia, and has developed over 250 projects, spanning more than 130 million square feet. Core business assets are further complemented by property management services, hotel investment and management, including The Fullerton Hotels & Resorts and other affiliate brands.
With over 11,000 committed staff members, the Group strives to fulfill its vision of Creating Better Lifescapes with a focus on three interconnected pillars – Green Living, Community Spirit and Innovative Design – shaping the cities we call home where people live, work and play. Sustainability is central to what we do as we seek to create value for stakeholders and make business a driver of sustainability for a better future.
(This news was originally published by the HKUST Public Affairs Office here.)
