European entrepreneurs and innovators on a government-led tour of the Greater Bay Area wrapped up their five-day trip on Friday, calling it a fruitful journey and hinting at potential business opportunities.

The 20-strong delegation included winners of a tech competition co-organised by Hong Kong Talent Engage and the EuroTech Federation in Germany in June, along with representatives from the federation.

The delegation toured major tech hubs in Hong Kong, Shenzhen and Guangzhou.

During their stay in the SAR, they visited the Northern Metropolis and met with local research institutions.

Cem Deniz Araz, a German physician and CEO of a startup developing an AI medical assistant, said he was impressed by the business opportunities and technology on offer in the GBA.

“My impression was that it's really not just finance. I believe Hong Kong is mainly about finance, but there's also so many opportunities in healthcare,” he said.

“In Germany, I also never have seen self-driving cars until now. In the Greater Bay Area, we just drove with one. That was really amazing, or a drone that has delivered us donuts. That was also a really cool experience.”

Araz said he might establish a business presence in Hong Kong down the line.

“Because we are at a really early stage that we just focus on Germany first, but as a subsidiary, maybe in the future also because Hong Kong has also an ageing population, this could be very valuable and also an opportunity to seek for.”

Aleksandr Gorbunov from Russia, co-founder of an AI startup that automates clinical documentation and administrative workflows for medical practices, said the region's robotics sector has a strong appeal.

“I think biotech and medicine, and robotics, these are the two things that we saw the most... the scale of it and also how advanced this is.

“Like when we visited one of the robotics companies, they showed what their robots can do, like they can dance and behave almost as humans. That was really impressive.”

He said he plans to launch robotics projects in Europe and would consider shifting manufacturing to the GBA in future.

Secretary for Labour and Welfare Chris Sun joined part of the delegation's visit to Cyberport, where he tried out workout bikes alongside participants.

He said members of the delegation gave positive feedback about the tour.

“They can see for themselves: the latest environment and the opportunities to develop here in the GBA. So I just had a brief chat with some of the members. They are very very impressed by what they saw,” he said.

“So I'm sure with this short tour, a lot of them, I think when they're planning for the future, surely they will have the GBA in mind.”



Edited by Edmond Fong