City University of Hong Kong (CityUHK) welcomes and supports the Budget announced by the Financial Secretary today (28 February) which includes $6 billion for subsidies for local universities to collaborate with Mainland and overseas organisations to set up life and health technology research institutes. This is aligned with CityUHK’s upcoming establishment of the Institute for Digital Medicine (IDM).

As the first local University to adopt and implement the pioneering “One Health” concept, CityUHK is uniquely positioned to lead in this area. CityUHK believes that Digital Medicine is the future of healthcare, as it complements traditional approaches and offers cost-efficient and sustainable solutions.

Professor Freddy Boey, President of CityUHK, announced last week that the University will partner with the Medical Schools of various prestigious universities in Australia, Israel, Singapore and the United States to establish the IDM this year. The IDM will support doctors with advanced technology, enhance the University’s research capabilities in related fields, and explore the long-term benefits of digital health solutions for patients. We have successfully engaged renowned scholars and professors who have joined CityUHK as Distinguished Visiting Professors to contribute actively to the establishment of the IDM, and we are actively recruiting more experts to enhance our team. 

CityUHK also welcomes the budget proposal to allocate $3 billion for the launch of a three?year AI Subsidy Scheme to support local universities to leverage computing power and achieve scientific breakthroughs. CityUHK established the School of Data Science as early as 2018, making it one of the first data science schools in the world. It has engaged scholars from a number of professional fields, including financial technology, information technology, smart cities and industry, to help students gain exposure to a wide range of application areas, with the goal of nurturing a new generation of data science talent for Hong Kong.

CityUHK looks forward to the government’s release of more information and details regarding the relevant measures soon.

Media enquiries: 
Helen Mok, Communications and Institutional Research Office, CityUHK (Tel: 3442 6827 or 9859 3321)  
Michelle Liu, Communications and Institutional Research Office, CityUHK (Tel: 3442 6807 or 6333 9158)