Cover Photo: Courtesy of StartmeupHK Festival

The Hong Kong startup festival returns for a fourth year, featuring seven core events across a packed week-long programme

StartmeupHK 2019 follows up the success of the past three years with another week-long festival designed to galvanise the city's start-up community. Expect keynote speeches, interactive how-to sessions, hackathons and networking opportunities for entrepreneurs involved in a variety of tech fields, from fintech and healthtech to smart city technologies and IoT. 

Coordinated by government body InvestHK, the festival offers local start-ups connections to investors and industry leaders, while companies from overseas can learn more about Hong Kong's start-up ecosystem. 

Here's our rundown of this year's core events.

1. Healthtech O2O

Tatler Asia
Above Photo: Courtesy of StartmeupHK Festival

This summit explores how technology can transform healthcare. Hosted by online-to-offline "innovaction" platform Nexchange, Healthtech O2O brings together some of the leading minds that have revolutionised health, medicine and wellness through technology. Expect speakers from a variety of backgrounds, including government, science and business.

Jan 21, 9am to 6pm, Meeting rooms S421 and S423-430, HKCEC, US$60 or US$99.

See also: Upcoming Generation T Events Across Asia

2. Tech(life)style Conference

Tatler Asia
Above Photo: Courtesy of StartmeupHK Festival

As its title suggests, this conference is dedicated to the technologies that are revolutionising the way we live, work and play. Following the theme of "living better, living smarter," key players—including hosts Startup Launchpad and The Mills Fabrica—share their stories, while a start-up village showcases the latest in lifestyle technology. Meanwhile, investors and start-ups can connect in the investor lounge. 

Jan 22, 10am-6pm, Meeting rooms S421 and S423-430, HKCEC, $500.

3. Jumpstarter

Tatler Asia
Above Photo: Courtesy of Jumpstarter

Arguably the most high-profile event of the week, Jumpstarter is a start-up platform from Alibaba Entrepreneurs Fund that aims to create an effective springboard for young entrepreneurs. The two-day event offers an array of workshops, demos, showcases, and talks spanning everything from businesses for social good to presentation techniques.

Jan 23-24, 2-6:45pm and 9am-6:30pm, Hall 5G, HKCEC, $800.

See also: Time With: Otto Ng

4. Retail’s Cutting Edge

Tatler Asia
Above Photo: Courtesy of Inside Retail Hong Kong

One of last year's most popular events, Retail's Cutting Edge returns to address all things retail, from logistics and social challenges to manufacturing and the customer experience. Five members of the recently announced Top 50 Innovative Retail Leaders in Hong Kong list, put together by host Inside Retail Hong Kong, come together for a panel discussion on the future of the industry. 

Jan 23, 10am-6pm, HKCEC, $899.

5. The Connected Cities Conference

Tatler Asia
Above Photo: Courtesy of StartmeupHK Festival

Examining the relationship between technology and urban spaces, this conference questions how to enhance a city's livability, workability and sustainability through looking at various examples of smart cities across the globe. Hosted by multinational auditing giant KPMG, the event offers plenty of talks and breakout sessions covering topics such as industrial IoT and human-centric technology. 

Jan 24, 8:30am-5:30pm, Rooms S421-S430, HKCEC, $899.

See also: Can Chatbots Help Identify Depression In Teenagers? This Psychologist Thinks So

6. AI & Education

Tatler Asia
Above Photo: Courtesy of StartmeupHK Festival

AI and big data analytics have the capacity to fundamentally transform the nature of education and employment. The AI & Education conference, hosted by edtech and HRtech platform EdTech Asia, features talks by the region's industry leaders, breakout sessions, and workshops that will focus on technology trends, improving learning through AI, future-proofing careers, and many other issues. 

Jan 25, 9am-6pm, HKCEC, US$99.

7. Startup Impact Summit

Tatler Asia
Above Photo: Courtesy of StartmeupHK Festival

The festival wraps up with the Startup Impact Summit, hosted by start-up community WHub. The summit will showcase successful international start-ups and collaborative projects between start-ups and corporations in the so-called Greater Bay Area. The programme includes talks and workshops from 30 speakers, a Startup Showcase and a Job Fair.

Jan 25, 9am-5pm, HKCEC, $560.

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