PROGRAMME DETAILS

Mr Jason Chiu, JP

ASTRI Board Member, Founder of Cherrypicks

Dr Jacob Kam, JP

Chief Executive Officer, MTR Corporation

Dr Kam was appointed as the CEO of MTR Corporation on 1 April 2019, responsible for all performance of the Corporation and its group companies, both in and outside Hong Kong.

Dr Kam is an Honorary Chairman of the International Association of Public Transport (UITP), a member of the Board / Council of various international and Hong Kong  professional and community institutions.

Dr Kam qualified as Chartered Member / Fellow of various international professional institutions in engineering, transport & logistics, business management and occupational safety and health, including being a Fellow of the Hong Kong Academy of Engineering Sciences.

He was appointed as a Justice & the Peace in Hong Kong in 2021.

Prof Jia Jiaya

Founder and Chairman, SmartMore Corporation

Professor Jia is a Chair Professor of Department of Computer Science and Engineering at The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST) and director of Von Neumann Institute.

He joined CUHK in 2004 as an assistant professor and was promoted to full professor in 2015. He moved to HKUST in 2024. He obtained his PhD degree in Computer Science jointly from HKUST and Microsoft Research in 2004. From March 2003 to August 2004, he was a visiting scholar at Microsoft. He conducted collaborative research at Adobe Research in 2007.

Professor Jia is an IEEE Fellow. His research focuses on advanced development of computer vision, language, and deep learning technologies, including image/video understanding, large X models, multi-modal AI, and generative AI.

Professor Jia assumes the position of Associate Editor-in-Chief (AEiC) of IEEE Transactions on Pattern Analysis and Machine Intelligence (TPAMI) since 2021. TPAMI is and continues to be one of IEEE’s flagship journals and one of the premier journals across all of computer science. He was also in the editorial board of International Journal of Computer Vision (IJCV). He continuously served as the area chair of ICCV, CVPR, AAAI, ECCV, and of several other conferences for 20+ years.

 

He founded SmartMore, a fast-growing unicorn company for manufacturing optimization and automation (MOA) with world-class research and development, backed by top-tier international institutional investors. 

Mr Paul Loo

Chief Operating Officer, Lalamove

As Chief Operating Officer of Lalamove, Paul is responsible for the global operations, strategic planning and business development of the company and has been instrumental in the rapid growth of the Lalamove business.

Paul brings more than 28 years of global management experience to Lalamove, having worked in Hong Kong, Middle East, the Philippines, Japan and Mainland China. His experience and leadership have been focused on delivering business services and solutions, providing outstanding client services, and driving profitable and sustainable revenue growth.

Before joining Lalamove, Paul held several senior executive roles at Hong Kong flagship carrier Cathay Pacific Airways. Most recently, he was the Chief Customer and Commercial Officer at Cathay Pacific, where he was in charge of commercial, fleet & network planning, information technology, customer experience design and delivery, and international affairs.

Paul graduated from the University of Toronto with a Bachelor of Engineering Science, and the University of Michigan with a Master of Business Administration. He also graduated from the Senior Executive Program at the Stanford University Graduate School of Business.

Ir Sunny Lee, BBS, JP

Chairman, ASTRI

Prof Steve Chuang

Chairman, Federation of Hong Kong Industries

Prof Chuang founded ProVista Group in 1995, which has evolved into a one-stop service provider in the fields of research and development, advanced manufacturing, sales and marketing of electronics products. The company has taken a leading position in solar power generation systems, energy storage systems, automotive and RV electronics, power solutions, as well as e-health IoT products.

In 2023, Prof Chuang has been elected as the Chairman of Federation of Hong Kong Industries. He also holds a number of public positions, including being a member of the Sub-committee on Development of Industries, Advisory Committee on the Northern Metropolis, a member of the Committee on Innovation, Technology and Industry Development under the Innovation, Technology and Industry Bureau, Council Member of Hong Kong Trade Development Council (HKTDC), and Board Member of Hong Kong Microelectronics Research and Development Institute (MRDI).

The Hon Sunny Tan

Chairman, Hong Kong Productivity Council

Hon Sunny Tan assumed the chairmanship of the Hong Kong Productivity Council (HKPC) in August 2022.

As a seasoned industrialist, he is currently a Member of the Legislative Council representing the Textiles and Garment functional constituency and Senior Advisor to Luen Thai Holdings Limited, a leading fashion and lifestyle apparel and accessories manufacturer, for which he has served for more than two decades.  He is also Executive Deputy Chairman of the Federation of Hong Kong Industries and Executive Vice Chairman of The Hong Kong General Chamber of Textiles.  In 2013, he received the “Young Industrialist Awards of Hong Kong”.

Hon Sunny Tan has a strong record of public and community service.  He is a member of the Committee on Innovation, Technology and Industry Development; the Trade and Industry Advisory Board; the Vocational Training Council; and the Board of Directors of the Hong Kong Design Centre.  He is also a Standing Committee member of the Hebei Province Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference.

Hon Sunny Tan obtained a Master of Science degree from Stanford University and Bachelor of Business Administration degree from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

Mr Jacob Lee

Vice-President, Federation of Malaysian Manufacturers (FMM); Working Committee Chairman, FMM Industry 4.0 & Digital Economy

Jacob Lee Chor Kok brings a wealth of experience in industrial leadership, economic development, and humanitarian work. With a strong foundation in engineering and extensive involvement in trade, productivity, and industry innovation, he has played a pivotal role in shaping policies and driving Malaysia’s advancement in Industry 4.0 and the digital economy.

His dedication extends to social causes, where he champions relief and development efforts through World Vision Malaysia and MCRD, embodying a balance of business acumen and social responsibility.

Prof Michael Yang

Senior Vice-President (Innovation and Enterprise), Chair Professor (Biomedical Sciences), City University of Hong Kong

Professor Michael Yang is currently Senior Vice-President (Innovation and Enterprise), Yeung Kin-Man Chair Professor (Biomedical Sciences), and Director of the Tung Biomedical Sciences Centre of City University of Hong Kong (CityU). He received his BSc from Xiamen University, PhD from the University of Toronto, and postdoctoral training from The Scripps Research Institute, USA. He joined CityU in 1994, and rose through the ranks of assistant professor (1994–1998), associate professor (1998–2002), professor (2002–2007), and chair professor (since 2007). He was the Founding Head of Department of Biomedical Sciences (2013–2018), Acting Dean of College of Veterinary Medicine and Life Sciences (2019–2020), Vice President (Research and Technology) (2020–2023), and appointed as Senior Vice–President (Innovation and Enterprise) (since May 2023), responsible for innovation, knowledge transfer, and entrepreneurship.

Professor Yang’s research interests focus on studying cancer biology and developing biochips and nanotechnology for diagnostics and therapeutic applications. He has published more than 300 peer-reviewed scientific papers, received/filed 54 US/China patents, delivered over 150 lectures in international conferences and academic institutions. He was listed among the top 2% of the world’s most highly cited scientists, according to metrics compiled by Stanford University from 2020 to 2023. He has trained over 40 PhD graduates and 30 postdoctoral fellows, and co-founded several biotech companies based on technologies developed in his laboratory, including Genetel, Prenetics and Cellomics. He was awarded the “Chunhui Scholar Award” by the Ministry of Education of China in 2003, the “K. C. Wong Foundation Award” in 2004, the “Shenzhen Science and Technology Innovation Award” in 2006, the “Hong Kong Technological Achievement Grand Award” in 2007, the “Natural Science Award, Second-Class” from the Ministry of Education in 2015, the “Wuxi AppTech Life Science and Chemistry Award” in 2016, and a Gold Medal at the 47th International Exhibition of Inventions of Geneva in 2019.

Professor Yang also serves on the Hong Kong’s Research Grants Council, the Health and Medical Research Fund, and the Innovation and Technology Fund. He holds Honorary Professorships at the Institute of Microsystems of the Chinese Academy of Science, Zhejiang University, and the Army Medical University. He is the vice-president of the Hong Kong Biotechnology Association, a council member of the Asia Federation of Biotechnology, a member of the Hetao Shenzhen-Hong Kong Innovation and Collaboration Zone Experts Consultative Committee, a scientific advisor of the Asian Fund for Cancer Research and the government-funded Hong Kong Genome Centre, and a mentor of the Hong Kong X platform.

 

Professor Yang is responsible for the “HK Tech 300” initiative, the leading university-based entrepreneurship program in Asia, with the aims to promote innovation, technology transfer and commercialization, and to provide an ecosystem for young people to start their entrepreneurship journey. Since 2021, “HK Tech 300” has incubated more than 600 startups, and expanded to Mainland China and Southeast Asia, making significant contribution to developing Hong Kong into an international hub of innovation and technology.

Ir Prof Christopher Chao

ASTRI Board Member, Vice President (Research and Innovation), Hong Kong Polytechnic University

Prof. Christopher Chao is Vice President (Research and Innovation) and Chair Professor of Thermal and Environmental Engineering at The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU). He oversees the planning and strategic development of research and innovation, knowledge transfer and entrepreneurship activities at PolyU.  Prof. Chao is also Director of PolyU Policy Research Centre for Innovation and Technology, in which Greater Bay Area (GBA) Innovation and Technology Development is one major focus.

Prof. Chao also plays a pivotal role in promoting PolyU’s research development in the Mainland. In the last two years, PolyU has established eleven Mainland Translational Research Institutes in major cities across Mainland China, including Jinjiang, Wuxi, Hangzhou, and Wuhan where he is serving as Chairman of the Board. These institutes aim to translate academic research from PolyU into practical applications that support innovation, technology, and economic development through technology transfer and entrepreneurship, thereby contributing to the broader innovation ecosystem between Hong Kong and the Mainland. 

As an accomplished scholar in thermal and environmental engineering, Prof. Chao has published extensively in international journals. He is a Fellow of the Hong Kong Academy of Engineering and currently holds several advisory roles within the professional community and HKSAR Government, making significant contributions to the engineering, education and innovation landscape in Hong Kong. 

Mr King Ma

Founding Partner of China Prosperity Capital Advisors Limited

Mr Michael Zhang

Senior Director of Inspur Cloud Hong Kong

Mr Bryan Peng

Executive Director, Office for Attracting Strategic Enterprises, HKSAR Government

Mr. Bryan Peng is the Executive Director of the Office for Attracting Strategic Enterprises (OASES) under Financial Secretary’s Office. He is responsible for attracting representative high potential strategic enterprises from around the globe to set up or expand their businesses in Hong Kong and targets four priority sectors namely: (i) life and health technology, (ii) artificial intelligence and data science, (iii) financial technology and (iv) advanced manufacturing and new energy technology.

 

The OASES team in Hong Kong and in 17 cities overseas and in the Mainland reach out to enterprises which could bring a major economic impact to Hong Kong, carry out negotiations with them to formulate attractive, bespoke measures and provide tailor-made plans and a concierge service to facilitate the set up or expansion of their strategic operation(s) in Hong Kong.

 

Mr. Peng is an accomplished business development executive with 20 years of extensive experience. He has a comprehensive understanding of the I&T ecosystem and the business landscape in both Hong Kong and Mainland China. His passion for the I&T sectors includes biomedical, smart cities, Information and Communications Technology (ICT), cloud computing, big data, artificial intelligence (AI), and robotics.

 

Prior to his government role, Mr. Peng was the Director (Corporate) at the Hong Kong Quality Assurance Agency (HKQAA), where he became well-versed in international management system standards, including quality, cybersecurity, telecom, IT service, supply chain management, ESG, and green finance, etc.

 

He holds a Master of Business Administration (MBA) from the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology.

The Hon Duncan Chiu

Legislative Council Member, Functional Constituency- Technology & Innovation

Duncan has committed to technology and innovation development for nearly 20 years. He is not only a tech entrepreneur but also a veteran investor, as well as an influential advocator of local technology and innovation policies. He often speaks at forums and conferences to promote start-up culture and helps young entrepreneurs with workshops and mentorship.

Duncan is the President of the Hong Kong Information Technology Joint Council (HKITJC) and the Convenor of Innovate for Future, a think tank representing some of the leading technology start-ups in Hong Kong. He is also the Chairman of HKTDC Information & Communications Technology (ICT) Services Advisory Committee, the Chairman of Information Technology Services Committee of the Hospital Authority, the Chairman of the Advisory Committee of the Department of Systems Engineering & Engineering Management of The Chinese University of Hong Kong, the Member of the Advisory Committee of The Hong Kong Polytechnic University and the Chairman of Lai Yuen Company Limited.

Ir Chris Chong

Acting CEO & Chief Operating Officer, ASTRI

Ir Chris Chong joined ASTRI as Chief Operating Officer in September 2024, bringing over 30 years of leadership experience in business development, strategy, operations, and management. He has extensive expertise across various engineering sectors, including energy, construction, and facilities management.

Throughout his career, Ir Chong has made significant contributions to sustainability and innovation, particularly in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area. At Veolia (formerly Dalkia Group) since 2005, he had developed and managed environmentally friendly projects, implementing innovative technologies to promote ESG practices. His work has garnered more than 30 awards in areas such as innovation, occupational health and safety, sustainability, quality and environmental achievements.

Prior to that, he worked for the CLP Group from 1993 to 2004, holding various positions in power generation, marketing and customer services, asset management, and business development.

Ir Chong is deeply committed to nurturing young engineers and broadening their perspectives. He has organised numerous initiatives, including the Mechanical Innovation Awards and mentoring schemes, to support the growth of emerging talents in the field. His dedication to sustainability and engineering excellence has been recognised with the Distinguished Sustainability Leader Award 2019 from the Hong Kong Management Association.

Currently serving as the International Vice President of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers, he is also an active member of various advisory groups in Hong Kong. He holds a bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering and an MBA from the University of Hong Kong, along with numerous professional qualifications and fellowships.

Dr Amy Hochadel

Vice President, Urban Lab, Expo City Dubai (United Arab Emirates)

An expert in global cities, Dr Amy Hochadel’s mandate is to manage Expo City Dubai's Urban Lab as an open, innovation-driven, city-wide testbed dedicated to piloting and showcasing technology and innovative solutions for sustainable urban development. Her role sees her work closely with entrepreneurs, large and small businesses, academia, global cities and governments who are eager to transform sustainable urban ideas into practical and scalable solutions. Dr Amy joined Expo City in 2024 and brings more than three decades of experience in politics and public policy, as well as community, government, diplomatic and international relations. She has served as special adviser to Congressional and Presidential candidates across the United States, as well as for British Members of Parliament, and has been a guest lecturer at Harvard's Kennedy School of Government. A specialist in enabling local governments and leadership around the world build globally focused, innovation-based economies, Dr Amy holds a Doctorate in International Political Economy from King’s College London. In addition to her master’s degree in Psychology from Cleveland State University, she also holds a certificate in Advanced Public Diplomacy from the University of Southern California's Annenberg School of Communication. She is the author of Local Leadership in a Global Era: Policy and Behaviour Change in Cities, which explores the changing role local leaders play in addressing local challenges through global engagement.

Mr Julian Lee

Team Leader, Global Partnership Team, Smart City Association(Korea)

Joohyun(Julian) LEE is a Smart City expert with a background in Geo-spatial Information System(GIS), International Business Management. He Implemented various global consulting projects related to GIS/LIS and Smart City ordered from Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, Korea EXIM Bank, World Bank, etc. Before he joined Smart City Association, he worked at GIS, LIS, Aero Survey, and Consulting firms, etc.

Dr Chalermpol Charnsripinyo

Director of Technology Support Service Division at the National Electronics and Computer Technology Center (NECTEC) (Thailand)

Dr. Chalermpol Charnsripinyo is a senior research specialist at National Science and Technology Development Agency (NSTDA), Ministry of Higher Education, Science, Research and Innovation (MHESI), Thailand. He is currently Director of Technology Support Service Division. He got a Bachelor of Science degree in computer science from Thammasat University, Thailand and received the Royal Thai Government scholarship to pursue his Master and Doctoral degree study in the USA. After he graduated from University of Pittsburgh, USA in 2003, he came back to work at National Electronics and Computer Technology Center (NECTEC), NSTDA. His previous research work and projects were related to Internet technology, Network infrastructure, Cloud Services, Internet of Things, Data platform, and Smart City information platform.

Ms Lily Lai

Chief Information Officer, Airport Authority Hong Kong

Currently the Chief Information Officer of Airport Authority Hong Kong, Ms Lily Lai has been in the Information Technology (IT) industry for over 30 years serving the aviation sector for over 20 years.   Being a strategic, synergistic and business-oriented leader, Lily has extensive experience in strategy formulation, technology and organizational transformation and building resilient partnerships across and beyond the organization.  Lily is also active in community works to promote IT industry development, green IT, innovation and talent cultivation. 

Trained as an engineer, Lily’s technical expertise spans from industrial design, technology development to youth coaching in the NGO community.  She has extensive business and management experience in the banking, consultancy, logistics and aviation industries. 

 

Dr Ying Huang

Acting CEO & Chief Technology Officer, ASTRI

Dr Ying Huang assumed the role of Chief Technology Officer at ASTRI in September 2024. A visionary technologist with over 30 years’ experience in ICT, AI, data analytics and decision sciences, Dr Huang is renowned for driving innovation and commercialisation. His illustrious career spans major multinational corporations across the United States and China, where he has shaped research strategies and pioneered advancements in cutting-edge technologies.

Dr Huang’s professional journey includes significant tenures in Beijing, Shanghai and New York, where he held leadership roles at esteemed organisations such as Lenovo Research, IBM Research and Philips Research, accumulating rich experiences and connections.

Dr Huang’s contributions have garnered numerous accolades, including Lenovo Leadership Awards, IBM Outstanding Research Awards. He has published extensively in peer-reviewed academic journals and holds dozens of patents in both the United States and China. His contributions have earned him the title of Professor-Grade Senior Engineer in China.

He serves as a Guest Professor at the College of Software and Microelectronics at Peking University, and has held prominent positions such as the founding Vice Chair of the International Alliance on SparkLink, an emerging short-range communication technology, and a Board member of the Green Computing Consortium.

Dr Huang holds a PhD in Operations Research from Stanford University and a bachelor’s degree in Applied Mathematics from Fudan University.

Mr Andy Fung

Chief Executive Officer, Nano and Advanced Materials Institute Ltd. (NAMI)

Mr. Andy Fung has led an extremely diverse and successful career in the field of ICT over the past three decades in Asia Pacific.  Being a seasoned leader in driving substantial business growth and operational efficiency, Mr. Fung had held leadership positions in a broad spectrum of global software and hardware systems companies, network connectivity carriers and systems integrators, including IBM Lotus, SAP Sybase, Sun Microsystems, France Telecom Orange Business, and British Telecom, with responsibilities spanning Mainland China, Taiwan, and Hong Kong.

Mr. Fung has led Pactera, a China-headquartered digital transformation application development firm, since 2018. The company was acquired by China Electronics Corporation in 2020, transforming into Gientech, a China-based giant specializing in digital transformation strategy and solutions for Hong Kong and Mainland China markets. Under his leadership, Gientech has doubled its business size despite challenges from the 2019 Hong Kong unrest and the COVID-19 pandemic.

As of 2024, Mr. Fung has been appointed CEO of the Nano and Advanced Materials Institute. He is committed to accelerating material science R&D to commercialization and industrialization, driving the GDP growth from Hong Kong companies.

Ir Dr Tony Lee

Operations and Innovation Director, MTR Corporation

Dr Lee joined the Company in 1991 and has held various management positions related to the design, construction, operations and maintenance of the Company’s railway system in Hong Kong. He has been the Operations and Innovation Director since 1 October 2023 and a Member of the Executive Directorate since January 2020. Prior to his current position, Dr Lee took up the position of Chief of Operations Engineering in September 2013 and became the Deputy Operations Director in November 2019. He was appointed as the Operations Director in January 2020. Dr Lee is also the Chairman of MTR Lab Company Limited, a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Company.

Dr Lee is responsible for managing the Company’s railway-related asset performance, asset management, new railway projects operations planning and development, operations safety and quality in Hong Kong as well as innovation and technological development in Hong Kong Transport Services. He also oversees the Company’s Digitalisation and Innovation Department with a view to establishing an integrated technology and innovation framework across the Company.

Dr Lee is currently a Member of the Hong Kong Quality Assurance Agency Governing Council. He is also a Non-official Member of the Common Spatial Data Advisory Committee, and a Member of each of the Advisory Committee of the Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering of The University of Hong Kong, the Technical Committee of National Rail Transit Electrification and Automation Engineering Technology Research Center (Hong Kong Branch), and the Rail Excellence Advisory Panel of Land Transport Authority in Singapore.

Dr Lee is a Chartered Engineer and is a Member of The Hong Kong Institution of Engineers, The Institution of Engineering and Technology and The Hong Kong Institute of Directors. He holds a Doctoral degree in Engineering and a Master degree in Philosophy both from The Hong Kong Polytechnic University and a Master of Business Administration degree from The Hong Kong Metropolitan University.