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AsiaPac and AsiaPay Forge Strategic Partnership to Launch a Unified “Marketing-plus-Payment” Growth Engine for Asia
Headquartered and deeply rooted in Hong Kong for many years, both companies have successfully expanded their presence across multiple Asian markets. This partnership builds on their shared vision to drive innovation and accelerate digital transformation throughout the region.
Strategic Synergies: The AsiaPac & AsiaPay Growth Ecosystem
OptAdEasy | Unified Intelligence & Capital Efficiency: Streamlines cross-platform management across Meta and Google. By integrating real-time optimization and competitive benchmarking, it ensures marketing capital is deployed with precision, maximizing reach while eliminating budget waste.
KOOLER AI | Regional Influence & Trust: Leverages 200,000+ Asian influencers to ignite brand demand. By integrating with AsiaPay’s one-stop payment solution, brands can bridge localized storytelling with a frictionless checkout, drastically accelerating the ‘discovery-to-purchase’ cycle.
Kolsify | Localization & Synthetic Innovation: Utilizes Face Fusion technology to instantaneously adapt visual content to local cultural nuances. This allows global brands to maintain a “Local Face” at every touchpoint while significantly reducing production costs.
APHub | Omnichannel Programmatic Reach: A one-stop DSP connecting digital ad exchanges with premium placements. It drives seamless traffic from global billboards directly to secure, borderless checkout environments.
AsiaPay | Secure Omnichannel Conversion: The ecosystem’s financial core, unifying e-commerce and in-store POS solutions. By supporting diverse localized digital wallets, it ensures marketing-driven demand converts into a high-security, frictionless payment experience.
“This partnership with AsiaPac is a strategic leap from processing multi-channel payment transactions to powering intelligent marketing capabilities to boost merchant’s business growth,” said Mr. Joseph Chan, CEO of AsiaPay. “As we deepen our strategic collaboration, our vision is to create a powerful synergy by integrating our payment infrastructure with AsiaPac’s cutting-edge AI marketing technologies. We are empowering merchants to evolve beyond reactive discounting, moving instead toward predictive, streamlined, personalized engagement. This is the future of commerce.”
Mr. Daniel Chan, CEO of AsiaPac, stated, ” AsiaPac is excited to join forces with AsiaPay, combining our deep regional expertise with advanced payment intelligence to set the standard for omnichannel marketing. This partnership is specifically designed to address the diverse pain points brands face when entering new markets. By leveraging our AI SaaS platforms, we believe it will not only strengthen our client base but also help our clients achieve sustained sales growth.”
Hashtag: #AsiaPac #AsisPay #MOU
The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.
AsiaPac Net Media Limited
Founded in 1996, AsiaPac is a leading AI-driven omnichannel digital marketing technology company, headquartered in Hong Kong, with a strategic presence across 11 Asia-Pacific markets and 14 local offices spanning Mainland China, Taiwan, Macau, Japan, South Korea, Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam, and Indonesia.
With proprietary tech from its subsidiary, AdTech Innovation, and deep local expertise, it serves 5,000+ global brands across industries, offering data-driven solutions that unify online and offline campaigns for measurable growth and strategic market impact.
For more information, please visit www.asiapacdigital.com.
AsiaPay Limited
Founded in 2000, AsiaPay, a premier digital payment service and technology solution provider, strives to bring advanced, secure, integrated, and cost-effective electronic payment processing solutions and services to banks, corporations, and e-Businesses in the worldwide market, covering an array of international credit card, debit card, prepaid card, net banking, eWallet, BNPL, and QR code payment, as well as cash collection.
Headquartered in Hong Kong, AsiaPay also offers its advanced, integrated, secure multi-channel digital payment solution and quality local service support in its 17 offices across the Asia Pacific region including Australia, Thailand, Philippines, Singapore, Malaysia, Mainland China, Taiwan, Vietnam, Indonesia, Cambodia and India.
For more information, please visit www.asiapay.com.
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Hong Kong Techathon+ 10th Anniversary Finale and Inaugural Global University Innovation Network (GUIN) Forum Successfully Held
Bringing together local and overseas innovation talents and leaders to deepen cross-border, cross-campus collaboration
HONG KONG SAR – Media OutReach Newswire – 27 January 2026 – Hong Kong Science and Technology Parks Corporation (HKSTP), together with 15 local tertiary institutions, marked a major milestone as Hong Kong Techathon+, the city’s largest international intercollegiate innovation and technology (I&T) annual event, celebrated its 10th anniversary. The Hong Kong Techathon+ Finale was successfully held recently (on 24 January) at Hong Kong Science Park. The team “Cresento” from The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology won the Gold Award in the category of Trusted AI and Data Science under the Local Track (Open Group) as well as the Best Presentation Award voted by the audience.
In parallel, the Global University Innovation Network (GUIN), jointly established by HKSTP and its 15 local tertiary institution partners, convened its inaugural forum on 23 January. The forum brought together GUIN member representatives and academic I&T leaders for in-depth exchanges on innovation and entrepreneurship ecosystem development, further strengthening Hong Kong’s position as an international I&T and talent hub.
Hong Kong Techathon+ is co-organised by HKSTP and 15 local tertiary institutions, including: City University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong Baptist University, Hong Kong Metropolitan University, Hong Kong Shue Yan University, Lingnan University, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, The Education University of Hong Kong, The Hang Seng University of Hong Kong, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, The University of Hong Kong, Tung Wah College; and three institutions under the Vocational Training Council – The Technological and Higher Education Institute of Hong Kong, Hong Kong Institute of Vocational Education, and Hong Kong Institute of Information Technology.
Record-high International Participation Highlights Hong Kong’s Role as a Hub for Talent, Markets and Opportunity
This year’s Techathon+ attracted enthusiastic participation from both local and overseas universities, Approximately 1,900 participants formed over 470 teams. Notably, 215 overseas teams joined, underscoring the event’s growing international appeal.
Following rigorous selection, 172 teams advanced to the finale, including 122 local teams and 50 overseas teams from Australia, Brazil, Chinese Mainland, Japan, Kazakhstan, Malaysia, Portugal, Singapore, the Republic of Korea, Taiwan, the UK, and the US. Kazakhstan, Japan, Korea and the UK participated for the first time through their university representatives, further demonstrating Techathon+’s reach as an international platform for I&T exchange.
A Decade of Growth: From a Local Challenge to One of Asia’s Major Inter-University I&T Platforms
HKSTP Chief Executive Officer Mr Terry Wong said: “Since its launch in 2015, Hong Kong Techathon+ has grown from a local challenge to one of Asia’s largest intercollegiate I&T events — driving creativity and collaboration while creating international impact. Techathon+ brings together outstanding young talents across tertiary institutions, turning ideas into innovative solutions that respond to societal needs and carry strong potential for real-world application. The platform has expanded the global pipeline of innovators and entrepreneurs, reinforcing Hong Kong’s role as a hub connecting talents, markets, and opportunities, and writing the next chapter of Hong Kong’s I&T story.”
Beyond a Competition: A Comprehensive “Soft-landing” platform for Entrepreneurship
Hong Kong Techathon+ is more than a university innovation competition. Over the past decade, the platform has engaged over 9,000 participants, nurturing innovative talents and supporting the growth of startups.
Non-local teams also participated in a four-day immersive programme, featuring I&T ecosystem seminars, mentorship, investor matching, visits at Hong Kong Science Park, and tours to Chinese Mainland I&T bases, helping participants explore market expansion opportunities across the Greater Bay Area.
HKSTP also invites selected high-potential finalist teams and winners to join its Ideation Programme, offering up to HK$100,000 in seed funding (along with support aligned with participating universities’ startup programmes), free co-working spaces, access to advanced technology resources and professional mentorship. Through HKSTP’s incubation and industry networks, teams are supported from prototype development to sustainable startups operations – scaling progressively and building international impact.
Amazon Web Services (AWS) is the exclusive Technology Enabler for the 10th Edition of Hong Kong Techathon+, providing participating startups with access to leading cloud and artificial intelligence technologies and platforms. Through this collaboration, AWS offered competing teams technology resources in generative AI and machine learning, professional technical support, and workshop to accelerate innovation and drive Hong Kong’s development as an international I&T hub.
Inaugural GUIN Forum: Deepening Global University Innovation Collaboration
The first Global University Innovation Network (GUIN) Forum was successfully held on 23 January at Hong Kong Science Park, bringing together GUIN member institution representatives and I&T experts. The forum focused on three key areas:
- Exploring strategies for university-industry technology transfer collaboration to achieve win-win innovation outcomes
- Examining the Greater Bay Area as a hub for international innovation collaboration, including opportunities for research commercialisation and cross-border partnership, and
- Strengthening global collaboration networks through actionable pathways.
Speakers included Dr Tony Raven, former CEO of Cambridge Enterprise; Professor Poh Kam Wong, Emeritus Professor at National University of Singapore; and Dr Alwin Wong, Chair of the Association of Technology Transfer Professionals (ATTP), among others.
Co-founded last year by HKSTP and 15 local tertiary institution partners with support from multiple overseas institutions and partners, GUIN aims to bring together leading minds to advance international collaboration in innovation and entrepreneurship, reinforcing Hong Kong’s role as a global talent and innovation hub.
In his welcome address at the forum, Mr Terry Wong, Chief Executive Officer of HKSTP remarked: “We are building GUIN into a ‘global platform for innovation exchange and incubation’ — sharing knowledge, co-creating initiatives, and connecting startups with campus incubation resources and markets worldwide to turn concepts into tangible outcomes.”
Since last summer, HKSTP and university partners have launched the Theme-based Global Incubation Programmes under GUIN with three initiatives currently underway focusing on dentistry, visual technology, and the circular economy. The inaugural ” Global Hub for Future Dentistry” programme has attracted 40 top applicants worldwide. Additional thematic incubation programmes are in preparation, and GUIN members and partner organisations are welcomed to co-develop this expanding international collaboration.
The 10th Edition of Hong Kong Techathon+ Partial Awards List:
Local Track (Student Group)
| Technology Theme | Award | Winning Team | Project Brief |
| Trusted AI & Data Science | Gold | SpeakRight | An AI‑powered voice‑changing solution designed to demonstrate and enhance speech training applications. |
| Sustainability & ESG | Gold | Hydroforge Tech | Development of cost‑efficient AEM electrolysis systems using a binder‑free, self‑growing electrode technology to enable scalable green hydrogen production. |
| Life Science & Healthcare | Gold | Nanos | A tech‑driven Contract Development & Manufacturing Organisation (CDMO) platform that rescues undeliverable drug candidates through proprietary drug‑carrier optimisation, targeting breakthrough therapies including Alzheimer’s. |
| Digital Economy & Smart City | Gold | Smart Mall Wayfinding with AI Paedestrian Dead Reckoning Technology | An AI-powered Pedestrian Dead Reckoning (PDR) solution – an infrastructure‑light indoor navigation that delivers accurate mall wayfinding using AI‑powered pedestrian dead‑reckoning with minimal deployment cost. |
| Tech FYP Group | Gold | OmniWatch AI – A Scalable, Multi-Model AI Proctoring Engine and Invigilator Dashboard | A privacy‑preserving, multi‑modal AI platform for onsite digital exam proctoring that detects suspicious behaviours in real time and enables scalable, non‑intrusive invigilation. |
Local Track (Open Group)
| Technology Theme | Award | Winning Team | Project Brief |
| Trusted AI & Data Science | Gold | Cresento* | A Hong Kong–based sports technology startup developing AI‑powered smart shin guard solution, delivering actionable performance insights for safer, smarter football training. |
| Sustainability & ESG | Gold | Off-Grid AEM Hydrogen Production Driven by Fluctuating Renewable Energy | A modular off‑grid AEM electrolysis system designed for stable hydrogen production from fluctuating renewable energy sources. |
| Life Science & Healthcare | Gold | Illuminatio Medical Technology | A medical imaging startup developing non‑invasive diagnostics to improve the assessment of chronic liver disease (CLD). |
| Digital Economy & Smart City | Gold | MicroLink | A micro‑LED‑based optical interconnect technology enabling faster, more energy‑efficient data transfer for next‑generation AI data centres. |
Global Track
| Technology Theme | Award | Winning Team | Project Brief |
| Life Science & Healthcare | Gold | Cancer Immunotherapy | A next‑generation cancer immunotherapy programme developing novel PD‑1 combination treatments to improve outcomes for solid tumours. |
| Non-Life Science & Healthcare | Gold | ROTOBOOST | ROTOBOOST develops Thermo‑Catalytic Decomposition (TCD) technology to produce low‑cost, low‑carbon hydrogen from diverse hydrocarbon feedstocks, enabling efficient pre‑combustion carbon removal at industrial scale. |
*Winner of Best Presentation Award voted by the audience.
Hashtag: #HKSTP
The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.
The agreement was signed by the Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury, Christopher Hui, and the Chairman of the Shanghai Gold Exchange, Yu Wenjian.
“The agreement just now signed is far more than a formal document,” said Mr Hui.
“It represents a resolute commitment to advancing the synergistic development of Hong Kong and Shanghai as premier international financial and gold markets. It reflects our joint determination to deepen the integration and complementary strengths of Hong Kong and Shanghai, so that together we can expand our share and influence in the global gold market, and better support Renminbi internationalisation.”
Mr Hui outlined the strategic significance of the agreement and the overall development blueprint for Hong Kong’s gold market.
“In recent years, amid heightened geopolitical uncertainty, inflationary pressures, and ongoing restructuring of the international monetary system, the strategic importance of gold has become even more pronounced,” Mr Hui said.
The agreement covers two major forward-looking areas of co-operation: establishing a high-level, collaborative governance structure for Hong Kong’s new gold central clearing system; and opening new avenues for physical infrastructure synergy and market interconnectivity.
“The signing of this agreement with the Shanghai Gold Exchange marks the dawn of a new chapter—one in which Hong Kong and Shanghai join forces to shape the future of global gold markets,” Mr Hui said.
A discussion session on gold trading themed “Global Spectrum – Gold Exchange” features expert panelists invited to examine recent market developments and share insights on Hong Kong’s role, potential and opportunity as a world-class gold trading centre. Speakers include overseas experts James Emmett, Chief Executive Officer, MKS PAMP SA and David Tait, Chief Executive Officer, World Gold Council.
Other highlights on day one of the AFF include a keynote luncheon speech by Dr José Manuel Barroso, former President of the European Commission, former Prime Minister of Portugal, and current Chairman of Goldman Sachs International Advisory Board, to share his insights on the current global landscape and macro‑level challenges.
Other notable speakers today include Zou Jiayi, President of Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank; Scott Morris, Vice-President (East and Southeast Asia, and the Pacific) of the Asian Development Bank; Mehmet Şimşek, Minister of Treasury and Finance of Türkiye; Klemen Boštjančič, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance of Slovenia; H.E. Waleed Saeed Abdul Salam Al Awadhi, Chief Executive Officer of Securities and Commodities Authority of United Arab Emirates; Burkhard Balz, Member of the Executive Board of the Deutsche Bundesbank; Rhee Chang-yong, Governor of the Bank of Korea; and Gokul Laroia, Chief Executive Officer Asia of Morgan Stanley.
The AFF serves as the opening event of the International Financial Week in Hong Kong, featuring over 10 partner activities covering a range of global financial and business topics, including ASEAN opportunities, asset and wealth management, and artificial intelligence.
Hashtag: #hongkong #brandhongkong #AFF #HKTDC #FSTB #finance
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UABBHK 2025 transformed traditional architectural exhibitions into a dynamic civic performance, positioning artificial intelligence (AI) not as a tool, but as a platform to co-create ethical, inclusive, and human-centred futures. Through immersive installations, public workshops, and experimental formats, UABBHK 2025 invited audiences to participate in the design of the city — in real time.
“The Biennale has not only showcased the possibilities of design in the AI era, but also activated a civic platform where architecture, technology and public imagination intersect,” said Ar. Allen Poon, Chairman of The Hong Kong Institute of Architects Biennale Foundation, during the ceremony. “Today’s conclusion marks both a milestone and a beginning — a new phase of creative exploration among Hong Kong, Shenzhen and the world.”
Exhibition Highlights: Tech Meets Imagination
UABBHK 2025 unfolded across two venues, Oil Street Art Space (Oi!) and the newly opened East Kowloon Cultural Centre (EKCC), showcasing 25 curated exhibits by architects, artists, researchers, and technologists from Hong Kong and beyond. Teams from 10+ regions, including Chinese Mainland, Hong Kong, Taiwan, as well as Australia, Austria, Italy, Japan, Singapore, the Netherlands, the UK, and the USA, explored how AI can be integrated into architectural thinking, spatial storytelling, and participatory design. Among the highlights were 4 video screening works that extended the exhibition’s themes through cinematic and documentary perspectives, addressing topics such as displacement and homecoming, the entanglement of code and culture, and speculative futures shaped by collective memory and student-led design fictions. Interactive installations like Prompt[Pond]ering, Sentient Mirror, and Collaborative Ephemeral Pavilion invited audiences to co-design spaces through AI-driven interactions. Works such as LANdLine Project and Flower Market Imaginaries grounded these future-facing visions in Hong Kong’s unique community and cultural context.
“In curating UABBHK 2025, we imagined AI not as a threat, but as a collaborator — a partner in rehearsing the future of our cities,” shared by Dr. Jimmy Ho and Ar. Aron Tsang, Lead Curators of UABBHK 2025. “We are proud to have created a platform that enables technology to be tangible, and civic imagination visible.”
Extending Impact: Public Programmes on Innovation & Collaboration
To extend the UABBHK 2025’s engagement beyond the galleries, two flagship public programmes were launched to bring AI and urban thinking into action: the ArchiTech Hackathon and the Hetao Vision: AI Video Competition.
ArchiTech Hackathon: Bridging Architecture and AI
Held earlier on the 24 January morning and co-hosted with Google Developer Group Hong Kong (GDGHK), the ArchiTech Hackathon was a first-of-its-kind 3-hour collaborative event that brought together 40 architects, developers and students — half from the HKIA Young Architects Group (YAG) and half from GDGHK — to explore how AI can support architectural workflows. The participants learned to use Google’s Gemini model and no-code platforms to build AI agents for architectural design code compliance.
Led by Mr. Frankie Wu from GDGHK, Ms. Adeline Chan and Ar. Owen Lam, Executive Curators of UABBHK 2025, the event embodied UABBHK’s vision by fostering cross-disciplinary collaboration between the tech and design communities, showcasing AI as a practical and imaginative tool for the built environment.
The winning team is Mr. Eric Chan and Ar. Toby Chiu. They successfully built the AI agent for the competition in an astonishing time of 3 minutes, 56.32 seconds within a 60-minute timeframe, and was able to answer 10 questions, as required by the competition, completing the complex professional architect exam questions with 90% accuracy under four minutes.
Hetao Vision: Innovative AI Video Competition
Also announced during the ceremony were the winners of the Hetao Vision AI Video Competition, which invited creators to imagine the future of the Hetao Shenzhen-Hong Kong Science and Technology Innovation Co-operation Zone (HSITP). All entries were required to be fully AI-generated — both visually and aurally — using tools such as Runway, Pika Labs, Suno, and Udio.
The competition explored how AI can democratise futurology, letting creators of all backgrounds envision interconnectivity, innovation, and inclusiveness across the “one river, two banks” vision of Hetao.
The winning video,titled 深港河脈：一河兩岸的科創樞紐宏圖(Shenzhen-Hong Kong River Network: A Grand Vision for a Science and Technology Innovation Hub Across Both Banks) by Mr. Zhang Xiaoshan, was praised for utilising AI to create a convincing narrative of a cross-border innovation hub, demonstrating a profound understanding of the development of the Hetao area. Two additional finalists were also recognised for their distinctive storytelling and technical creativity.
A public screening of the shortlisted videos will be held in the Hetao Science and Technology Innovation Centre, in February 2026, allowing the public to reflect on the role of AI in imagining future urban life.
What’s Next: Visit UABBSZ and Explore the Living Archive
UABBHK 2025 will continue its journey in the Shenzhen & Hong Kong Bi-City Biennale of UrbanismArchitecture (Shenzhen) (UABBSZ) from January to March 2026. Whether you participated in the Hong Kong Edition or missed it, we warmly welcome you to visit the parallel venue of UABBSZ, at the Shenzhen Hetao Science and Technology Innovation Centre. Come and view the selection of UABBHK 2025 exhibits, continuing the creative dialogue and collaboration between Hong Kong and Shenzhen.
In addition, UABBHK 2025’s ideas and output will remain accessible through a dedicated digital gallery website and a forthcoming archive booklet, both will preserve the curatorial vision, exhibited works, and public interactions from this edition. These resources will serve as an open, living archive — a springboard for future conversations across architecture, AI, and urban futures.
Hashtag: #UABBHK
The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.
About The Hong Kong Institute of Architects Biennale Foundation
The Hong Kong Institute of Architects Biennale Foundation is a non-profit making organisation established and incorporated in 2014 for charitable purposes. The objects for which the Biennale Foundation is established are:
- To promote creativity and advance the understanding, appreciation and interest of architectural and design excellence
- To encourage cross-border and cross-disciplinary dialogue and collaboration among creative professionals from Hong Kong, other parts of the Greater China region and overseas
- To support art, design, architectural and cultural education for students and youth, the community, and policy makers
- To create a favourable environment for study, research and experimentation of design, art and architectural works in an exhibition scale
- To energise and revitalise specific sites of interests by introduction of cultural and creative events
About the Cultural and Creative Industries Development Agency
The Cultural and Creative Industries Development Agency (CCIDA), formerly known as Create Hong Kong (CreateHK) since 2009, was established in June 2024. CCIDA is a dedicated office under the Culture, Sports and Tourism Bureau of the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR Government) to provide one-stop services and support to the cultural and creative sectors with a mission to foster a conducive environment in Hong Kong to facilitate development of the arts, culture and creative sectors as industries. CCIDA’s strategic foci are nurturing talent and facilitating start-ups, exploring markets, promoting cross-sectoral and multi-disciplinary collaboration, promoting industrialisation of the arts, culture and creative sectors under the industry-oriented principle, and fostering a creative atmosphere in the community, thereby reinforcing Hong Kong as Asia’s creative capital and our positioning as the East-meets-West centre for international cultural exchange.
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