HKUST Annual Report 2021-2022

23 HKUST Annual Report 2021-2022 Lab to Market HKUST is leading the way in three of the Innovation and Technology Commission’s flagship InnoHK Clusters: the Hong Kong Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (HKCeND); AI Chip Center for Emerging Smart Systems (ACCESS); and Hong Kong Center for Construction Robotics (HKCRC). All are located in Hong Kong Science Park and will raise Hong Kong’s profile as a world-leading hub for research partnerships with distinguished institutions and Mainland organizations.  ACCESS is Asia’s first transnational R&D consortium on AI chip design. The leading end-to-end research c o n s o r t i um i s a c c e l e r a t i ng the realization of ubiquitous AI applications in society by developing novel AI chips that can improve performance and energy efficiency by up to 1,000 times and generating solutions to help companies quickly deploy their own customized AI-driven applications. In June 2022, ACCESS signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Hong Kong Applied Science and Technology Research Institute to spur collaboration.  HKCeND is a strategic collaboration between HKUST, Stanford University, and University College London. Researchers have made promising breakthroughs with the potential to transform management of Alzheimer’s disease, including the identification of new blood-based biomarkers and an AI-based scoring system that enables risk prediction, early detection, and classification of the disease. The Center was highly honored to receive President XI Jinping during his visit to Hong Kong for the 25th anniversary of the establishment of the HKSAR.  HKCRC HKCRC is bringing robotics, AI, and other advanced technologies to the construction industry to address immediate real-world challenges. For example, in early 2022, as the fifth wave of the pandemic hit Hong Kong, HKCRC leveraged its research findings to assist the rapid building of Mainland- supported quarantine facilities at Hong Kong’s Penny’s Bay and Kai Tak Pier. In addition, the Center will develop projects that focus on construction design and planning, intelligent construction, prefabrication manufacturing, and AI platforms for construction. INNOHK Centers