According to a recent press release, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU) and the cloud computing arm of a major e-commerce and tech group, signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) recently to strengthen their cooperation in Artificial Intelligence (AI) research, particularly focusing on the areas of smart cities and smart healthcare.
The two parties hope to translate research findings into real applications which can be initially adopted in Hong Kong as a pilot and then rolled out to the rest of the Greater Bay Area and other overseas cities.
The MoU signing ceremony was held on the campus of PolyU, with PolyU’s Vice President (Research Development), and the Senior Vice President and the President of the e-commerce group, as signatories.
The Director of Liaison Office of the Central People’s Government in the Hong Kong SAR and the PolyU President, alongside a number of industry leaders also attended and witnessed this event.
The President of PolyU stated at the event that PolyU is very pleased to collaborate with the e-commerce group, he is convinced that the extended strategic cooperation between PolyU and the company’s cloud computing arm will further the development of cutting-edge technologies in the fields of smart cities and smart healthcare.
He noted that PolyU and the company have been working closely together for some time, collaborating on many research projects, AI-related projects and activities.
PolyU has been recognised for its endeavours when it was ranked eighth in terms of field-weighted citation impacts in AI research according to data analysis for Times Higher Education.
Combining the two parties’ research capabilities in AI and big data analysis, he is certain that fruitful results for both scientific research and technological development will be delivered.
The Senior VP of the e-commerce giant stated that, in 2017, the company’s cloud computing arm launched the ET Brain series which integrated urban management, industrial optimization, auxiliary medical care, environmental management and aviation scheduling amongst other capabilities.
He noted that ET City Brain and ET Medical Brain have achieved significant success in a relatively short period of time.
The developing team is confident that by combining the group’s cloud’s powerful cloud computing infrastructure and AI technology with PolyU’s research capabilities, the digital transformation of industries through applicable technologies that enhance people’s lives will be driven forward.
The two parties will further explore the opportunity for setting up a joint research centre to advance AI research, including fundamental research, applied research and commercialisation of research findings that will ultimately support the development of the ecosystem and benefit the wider community.
In the area of smart cities, the two parties will strive to apply big data technologies and the Deep Neural Network to areas such as public transportation management and urban planning.
As for smart healthcare, PolyU and the cloud computing arm of the group hope to develop a series of advanced and impactful AI-application technologies. Initiatives that have already been identified include helping to lower medical expenses, reducing the chance of medical malpractice, assisting in the automation of diagnostic procedures and providing more personalised medication services for patients.
Since 2016, PolyU has been working closely with the e-commerce giant through a number of inter-disciplinary research. PolyU and the cloud computing arm will promote the application of AI solutions in different fields through their strong networks, with a target to promote AI development in Hong Kong in order to bring wider societal benefit.
