Hong Kong’s advanced materials institute plans to extend R&D services to Greater Bay Area
Non-profit institute sees opportunities in licensing its technology to generate income to fund new equipment and facilities, CEO Fung says
Nano and Advanced Materials Institute (NAMI), a government-backed body tasked with helping Hong Kong’s small and medium-sized (SME) companies conduct research and development, plans to establish a presence north of the border to extend its services in the region.
“One of our long term directions is to align our development with that of the Greater Bay Area, but due to various reasons including the Covid-19 pandemic we have yet to establish a physical presence there,” CEO Andy Fung said on Monday. “We aim to set up our presence there as soon as possible.”
The area comprises nine cities in southern Guangdong province, Hong Kong and Macau, where closer economic integration is encouraged by Beijing.
By extending its collaboration there, the non-profit institute can seize more opportunities to license its technology and earn income to fund new equipment, expand its facilities and deepen its talent pool, said Fung, who became its CEO earlier this month.
That would be in preparation of Hong Kong’s pledge to create a cross-boundary science and technology hub by 2035.
