Fostering an Integrated Innovation Platform to Empower Research
Start-ups to Go Global
HONG KONG, June 26, 2025 /PRNewswire/ — Huawei Cloud Hong Kong and The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) at Huawei’s Bantian Campus in Shenzhen. The partnership will deepen collaboration in research collaboration, technology commercialisation, start-up incubation, and global innovation ecosystems. It aims to fast-track PolyU’s research industrialisation and globalisation while building an integrated platform to drive academic-industrial innovation across Asia-Pacific and beyond. The MoU was signed by Mr.Jason Zhang, Managing Director of Huawei Cloud Hong Kong and Mr. Kelvin WONG, Director of the Knowledge Transfer and Entrepreneurship Office (KTEO) of PolyU. The signing was witnessed by Mr. Sunny SHANG, President of Huawei Cloud Asia Pacific; Prof. Christopher CHAO, Vice President (Research and Innovation) of PolyU; Mr.Liang YU, Vice President of Huawei Cloud Global Ecosystem; and Ms. Amy LUNG, Court Member of PolyU.
Under the MoU, Huawei Cloud Hong Kong and PolyU will focus on three strategic pillars. In transformation of R&D outcomes, they will drive innovation in Artificial Intelligence (AI), computer science, and communications technology, leveraging Huawei’s “AI for Universities” scheme, to scale PolyU’s breakthroughs globally via Huawei Cloud’s ecosystem. The partnership will also build an Asia-Pacific incubation platform, empowering high-potential PolyU start-ups to access regional markets. This aligns with Hong Kong SAR Government’s “Research, Academic and Industry Sectors One-plus Scheme (RAISe+)” enabling end-to-end research-to-industry transformation.
Notably, PolyU has shown strong capabilities in commercialisation of R&D outcomes, with over 130 start-ups founded by its faculty and researchers. Since the RAISe+ Scheme launched in 2023, six PolyU-affiliated start-ups have received government funding of over HK$10 million each — underscoring the University’s leadership in bridging academia and industry. Huawei Cloud Hong Kong and PolyU will further collaborate to accelerate the commercialisation of high-impact research. They will also co-develop AI-integrated curricula, embedding cloud-based AI tools and Huawei’s certification system to strengthen students’ and researchers’ practical and translational skills.
Mr. Sunny SHANG, President of Huawei Cloud Asia Pacific, remarked, “Huawei places great emphasis on strategic collaboration with leading higher education institutions. This partnership with PolyU represents a pivotal step in Huawei Cloud’s continued investment in the innovation ecosystem across Hong Kong and the wider Asia-Pacific region. By joining forces, we aim to drive synergy in areas such as AI curriculum development, start-up incubation, and the creation of global expansion pathways for promising technologies. Leveraging Huawei Cloud’s global infrastructure and open technology platforms, we are committed to empowering PolyU to enhance its capabilities in talent cultivation, innovation commercialisation, and international collaboration. Ultimately, this initiative will further elevate Hong Kong’s position as a global hub for innovation and technology, and contribute to building a robust pipeline of globally competitive tech talent and impactful research outcomes.”
Prof. Christopher C HAO , Vice President (Research and Innovation) of PolyU, said: “This MoU signifies a deepened partnership between PolyU and Huawei in research collaboration, start-up incubation, and talent development. We look forward to working together to accelerate the commercialisation of PolyU’s research outcomes and expand our impact from Hong Kong to the Asia-Pacific and beyond. With Huawei’s strong presence and resources in the region, PolyU is proud to become the first Hong Kong university to establish an official incubation base in Singapore, in collaboration with local government authority. Our presence at the national incubation centre will help fast-track the global expansion of our start-ups. Together, we aim to replicate this model in other key markets, fostering a global innovation platform that enables PolyU research and start-ups to scale internationally.”
PolyU’s outstanding innovative research shines on the international stage. In the newly released QS World University Rankings 2026, PolyU has risen to 54th globally, and in the Times Higher Education (THE) Impact Rankings 2025, the University ranks 56th worldwide and second in Hong Kong. These consistent advancements across major global university rankings reflect not only the international academic community’s recognition of PolyU’s research strengths, but also its proven ability to translate innovation into real-world impact.
Huawei Cloud is committed to building a robust AI infrastructure for global customers. Its recently launched CloudMatrix 384, an industry-leading AI compute cluster, delivers powerful support for academic research, digital innovation, and industrial applications. Through this collaboration, Huawei Cloud Hong Kong and PolyU will jointly establish an integrated AI innovation platform, combining PolyU’s research strengths with Huawei Cloud’s global ecosystem to accelerate the global expansion of high-potential research projects — originating in Hong Kong, connecting across Asia Pacific, and scaling worldwide.
Huawei Cloud and PolyU have made solid progress in start-up acceleration, international expansion, joint developer competitions, and AI talent development. Moving forward, the two parties will deepen collaboration to build an end-to-end innovation ecosystem — spanning research, teaching, incubation, and global outreach — supporting social impact through technology and strengthening Hong Kong’s position as a global I&T hub. With the shared vision of “From Hong Kong to Asia Pacific and the World,” the partnership aims to advance IP commercialisation, connect global resources, and co-create an open AI innovation platform to drive regional and international growth.
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Huawei Cloud and PolyU sign a Memorandum of Understanding
Prof. Christopher CHAO, Vice President (Research and Innovation) of PolyU, delivers a speech
Mr. Sunny SHANG, President of Huawei Cloud Asia Pacific, delivers a speech
About HUAWEI
Founded in 1987, Huawei is a leading global provider of information and communications technology (ICT) infrastructure and smart devices. We have approximately 208,000 employees and we operate in over 170 countries and regions, serving more than three billion people around the world. We are committed to bringing digital to every person, home and organisation for a fully connected, intelligent world. Our vision and mission is to bring digital to every person, home and organisation for a fully connected, intelligent world. To this end, we will drive ubiquitous connectivity and promote equal access to networks; bring cloud and artificial intelligence to all four corners of the earth to provide superior computing power where you need it, when you need it; build digital platforms to help all industries and organisations become more agile, efficient and dynamic; redefine user experience with AI, making it more personalized for people in all aspects of their life, whether they’re at home, in the office or on the go. For more information, please visit Huawei online at https://huawei.com/hk/.
About The Hong Kong Polytechnic University
The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU) aspires to be an innovative world-class university that pursues excellence in education, research and knowledge transfer for the benefit of Hong Kong, the Nation, and the world. Driven by its motto, “To learn and to apply, for the benefit of mankind”, the University nurtures socially responsible professionals and leaders with a strong sense of national pride and a global perspective, and pursues world-leading research and innovation for societal benefits. The University’s unwavering commitment to excellence has garnered international acclaim, with PolyU ranking 54th in the QS World University Rankings 2026. Seven subjects were placed within the top 30 in the QS World University Rankings by Subject 2025. Among these, “Hospitality and Leisure Management”,” Environmental Science”, and “Art and Design” achieved the top rank in Hong Kong. Also, in the recently released 2025 Times Higher Education (THE) Impact Rankings, PolyU ranked 56th globally and second in Hong Kong. PolyU also strives to foster a University community in which all members are united with a strong sense of belonging and pride, empowering the University to scale new heights.
