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Following is the speech by the Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development, Mr Gregory So, at the grand opening of Brinc's IoT Hub today (April 28):
Manav (Chief Executive Officer and Founder of Brinc, Mr Manav Gupta), Bay (Chief Operating Officer of Brinc, Mr Bay McLaughlin), members of the startups and investors community, friends from the media, ladies and gentlemen,
Good evening!
Manav and Bay, congratulations on the launch of Brinc, the first IoT (Internet of Things) accelerator programme in Hong Kong. It is indeed very exciting to witness this key moment and a new milestone for innovation and technology in the city.
We are now living in a world full of devices and systems which "talk" to each other. IoT is indeed a disruptive and transformational technology, and its impact will certainly be felt across all industries and all areas of society, including business and government. According to a recent survey, there will be 25 billion connected things by 2020.
The Hong Kong SAR Government is firmly committed to supporting the development of the IoT and transforming the city into a centre of excellence. Hong Kong has all the ingredients to becoming a leading destination and hub for innovation and entrepreneurship where startups can use the city as a lab, a showcase and a global launch pad.
Exactly what kind of opportunity are we talking about? Well, these IoT devices need to be physically manufactured, unlike most other Internet and mobile innovations. Nonetheless, many innovators and startups developing new products have very limited manufacturing experience. They often end up failing because of the lack of access to the right partners who are able to scale manufacturing in a very quick and efficient manner.
This is where Hong Kong comes in. Hong Kong has deep and broad expertise in design and software development. More importantly, we are strategically located next door to Shenzhen, the hardware capital of the world. We have easy access to the Pearl River Delta and its sophisticated supply chain and logistics platform. Hong Kong is ideally positioned to act as a strategic bridge for innovative companies worldwide to access China's ecosystem.
Manav, we hope that Brinc's IoT accelerator in this beautiful venue will help attract leading technology innovators to our city. We hope that entrepreneurs from all over the world will soon recognise Hong Kong's unique capability to integrate design, software and hardware, and turn ideas into commercially viable IoT products.
Hong Kong is ready to welcome the best IoT companies from around the world. We will help them get funding, develop prototypes, validate their products, line up large scale manufacturing in the Pearl River Delta, and help bring them to market in the fastest possible way.
Moving forward, we hope to see more family offices and other investor groups funding and mentoring these innovative IoT startups.
Manav and Bay, I wish you all a very successful journey, and look forward to witnessing the birth of many world renowned IoT startups from your platform.
I wish everyone here tonight a fantastic time.
Thank you!
Ends/Tuesday, April 28, 2015
Issued at HKT 19:45
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