HKUST Annual Report 2024-2025

6 HKUST ANNUAL REPORT 2024-25 Beyond external funding, we are investing directly in our innovation ecosystem. In 2024, we set up the University’s HK$500 million Redbird Innovation Fund (RIF), which has created venture investment funds with investment partners to support our DeepTech start-ups that commercialize HKUST intellectual property. In March 2025, the RIF launched its inaugural partnership with Shanghai Industrial Investment (Holdings) Co. Ltd., establishing the Hong Kong Biotechnology Fund to propel biomedical and healthcare breakthroughs. In total, HKUST now supports more than 140 active DeepTech start-ups. This was also a year of reaffirming friendships and connections. In November 2024, we welcomed four distinguished leaders into the HKUST family through the conferment of Honorary Doctorates. The recipients— NVIDIA’s visionary Founder and CEO, Jensen HUANG (Doctor of Engineering honoris causa) ; internationally acclaimed actor Tony LEUNG Chiu-Wai (Doctor of Humanities honoris causa) ; Nobel laureate Professor Michael LEVITT (Doctor of Science honoris causa) ; and Fields Medalist Professor David MUMFORD (Doctor of Science honoris causa) —have each joined our university community as inspiring, lifelong members of the HKUST family. Each has blazed new trails in their fields while contributing selflessly to the greater good, serving as powerful role models for our community. In May 2025, we strengthened local community partnerships with the official launch of the HKUST Foundation. The occasion drew over 200 leaders from academia, industry, and philanthropy and raised HK$35 million. On behalf of the University, I extend our heartfelt thanks to our Foundation donors and all institutional supporters for their steadfast commitment to ground-breaking innovation and talent development.