Global Talent Summit Week to spotlight integration of education, technology and talent featuring nine satellite events with partners
Hong Kong Talent Engage (HKTE) today (March 2) announced details of the international mega talent event, Global Talent Summit Week (GTS Week). Building on the success of its inaugural edition in 2024, this year's Summit Week consists of three parts: the International Talent Forum and the CareerConnect Expo to be held on March 18 and 19, alongside nine satellite events running over about a week. With a focus on the integration of education, technology and talent, the Summit Week strives to further highlight Hong Kong's role and advantages as an international talent hub and the country's gateway for talent.
The Secretary for Labour and Welfare, Mr Chris Sun, stated, "At a pivotal moment of rapid transformation in the global talent ecosystem, the GTS Week aims to explore forward-looking perspectives on talent development, policies and opportunities, while aligning with the country's development, thereby building Hong Kong into an international hub for high-calibre talent."
The Forum, under the theme "Connecting Global Minds", will bring together top leaders from government, business and academia from Hong Kong and abroad to discuss future trends and strategies in the manpower landscape. The opening day of the Forum will feature a keynote speech by Professor Christopher A Pissarides, the 2010 Nobel Laureate in Economic Sciences, followed by plenary sessions and dynamic panel discussions with global industry leaders and renowned scholars.
The second day of the Forum will invite international and local partners to explore how talent strategies can enhance Hong Kong's role in the country's development and strengthen regional talent exchanges. A closed-door meeting, titled "Forging a National High-calibre Talent Hub Symposium", will also be held on the same day, with representative officers from Chinese Mainland cities and the Macao Special Administrative Region in attendance to foster knowledge exchange, collaboration and network development for high-calibre talent.
The two-day Expo will feature thematic zones and bring together about 70 large enterprises, education and technology institutions, and government departments. It will provide participants with the latest industry insights and diversified support services, showcasing the boundless opportunities in Hong Kong and the rest of the Greater Bay Area.
This year's GTS Week connects international, Chinese Mainland and local partners to co-organise a week-long series of nine satellite events on talent and human resources, including regional conferences, recruitment fairs and corporate award ceremonies. By providing a one-stop platform for information and networking with convenient cross-venue participation, the GTS Week seeks to create synergy. During the period, HKTE will sign a collaboration agreement with Junior Chamber International to deepen international promotional co-operation and tell good stories of Hong Kong.
The Director of Hong Kong Talent Engage, Mr Felix Chan, expressed the hope that the GTS Week will promote cross-regional and cross-sector collaboration on talent and provide a platform for exchange with various partners that helps talent seize opportunities, understand development pathways in Hong Kong and gain foresight into manpower trends.
Participation in the Forum will be by invitation only. HKTE will arrange live broadcasting for global talent and members of the public to follow the sessions in real time. The Expo will be held from 10am to 5.30pm at Hall 3F, Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre, with free admission. Participants can pre-register via the GTS Week website (gts.hkengage.gov.hk) and present a QR code for entry during the event. Those interested can visit the website or HKTE's social media platforms, or email enquiries to gts@hkengage.gov.hk, for the latest updates.
Hong Kong Talent Engage (HKTE) hosted a press conference today (March 2), announcing details of the international mega talent event, Global Talent Summit Week. Photo shows the Director of HKTE, Mr Felix Chan, introducing the event highlights at the press conference. Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases
Hong Kong Talent Engage hosted a press conference today (March 2), announcing details of the international mega talent event, Global Talent Summit Week. Photo shows the Secretary for Labour and Welfare, Mr Chris Sun, delivering remarks at the press conference. Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases
Hong Kong Talent Engage (HKTE) hosted a press conference today (March 2), announcing details of the international mega talent event, Global Talent Summit Week. Photo shows (from left) the Account Delivery Director at DayOne Data Centre, Mr Tony Zhou; the Secretary for Labour and Welfare, Mr Chris Sun; the Director of HKTE, Mr Felix Chan; and the Partner and Market Development Leader of Consulting at Ernst & Young Advisory Services Limited, Mr Jeff Tang, at the press conference. Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases
Government announces tender result for Sandy Ridge site
The Innovation, Technology and Industry Bureau (ITIB) today (March 2) announced that the Sandy Ridge Data Facility Cluster site, with a total area of over 110000 square metres (Lot No. 953 in Demarcation District No. 89 at Sandy Ridge, North District, New Territories), has been awarded to Hong Kong Range Intelligent Computing Technology Company Limited for developing into an advanced data facility cluster for data centres and related industries on a land grant for a term of 50 years. The parent companies of the successful tenderer are Hong Kong Range Intelligent Computing Technology Development Company Limited and Sengro Fusion Technology Hong Kong Limited, with the ultimate holding company being Range Intelligent Computing Technology Group Company Limited (the Group). The Group has extensive experience in developing high-tier data centres and has developed and operated high-tier data centres facilities and large-scale dataport projects in multiple cities on the Mainland.
A two-envelope approach was adopted in the tender assessment for the Sandy Ridge Data Facility Cluster site to enable a comprehensive evaluation of both non-premium and premium proposals with a view to selecting the proposal that best unleashes the site's potential. In the tender evaluation, a weighting of 70 per cent was allocated to the non-premium proposal, and 30 per cent to the premium proposal. The tender must comply with the requirements on both non-premium and premium aspects as specified in the tender documents.
The Tender Assessment Panel assessed the tender in accordance with the criteria set out in the tender documents and confirmed the successful tenderer met the requirements in both the non-premium (such as the tenderer's contribution to Hong Kong in terms of investment and industrial development) and the premium proposals. The premium proposal of the tender is $581 million, and the successful tenderer expects to commence operations within 42 months, with an estimated cumulative investment of $23.8 billion from the development to the operation in the first three years. Other key aspects of the Sandy Ridge Data Facility Cluster to be developed by the successful tenderer include:
(1) A total gross floor area of 250000 sq m, of which about 90 per cent (88 per cent) of the floor area will be dedicated to high-tier data centre use.
(2) It is estimated to generate an economic output of about $4.6billion and create around 180 skilled positions in the first three years of operation.
(3) A significant expansion of Hong Kong's digital and computing power infrastructure, with an expected provision of 180000 peta-floating point operations per second (PFLOPS) computing power by 2032, equivalent to 36 times the current computing power in Hong Kong. Enhanced computing power will accelerate the development of the artificial intelligence (AI) industry, promote scientific breakthroughs, and drive the widespread application of AI technology in industry and society.
The Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government will closely monitor the project's progress according to the service deed to ensure that the tender commitments are delivered as scheduled and with the required quality.
Since the 2023 Policy Address announced the rezoning of the Sandy Ridge site for innovation and technology and related uses, the ITIB has been taking forward the plan of developing the Sandy Ridge site into a data facility cluster and for related industry uses. Subsequently, the ITIB and the Digital Policy Office solicited expressions of interest in 2024 for the use of the Sandy Ridge site as a data centre, and requested further information from the industry in 2025. After gaining a deep understanding of the industry's interests and considerations for the development of the site, the tender was launched in the fourth quarter of 2025, inviting the industry to lead the development and operation, provide advanced computing power facilities, and promote the development of data and AI-related industries. One tender was received in this exercise.
The Sandy Ridge Data Facility Cluster is located in the Northern Metropolis, a core area of the Hong Kong-Shenzhen Boundary Control Points Economic Belt, and is well-positioned to attract resources such as technology and talent from both Hong Kong, Shenzhen and other parts of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area (GBA), facilitating the aggregation of Chinese data from around the world and the development of related industries, forming an industrial cluster effect and driving the vigorous development of data and AI industries across the GBA.
A spokesperson for the ITIB said, "The Sandy Ridge Data Facility Cluster will provide crucial support for the development of AI in Hong Kong with essential elements such as data and computing power, deepening Hong Kong's leading advantage in regional digital infrastructure and cross-boundary data flow, promoting the development of the digital economy and smart city, as well as making an active contribution to the country's high-quality development and the 'AI+' initiative."
The Sandy Ridge Data Facility Cluster site, Photo source: FB of the Innovation, Technology and Industry Bureau
