Swiss pharmaceutical giant Roche (SWX: ROG) has signed a multi-faceted collaboration agreement with the Hong Kong Science and Technology Parks Corporation (HKSTP) to further the development of the life sciences industry in Hong Kong and the Greater Bay Area (GBA), which includes Macau and Guangdong Province.
Key Areas of Collaboration
The partnership will focus on several key initiatives, including the development of a joint white paper on policy recommendations, round-table discussions with government officials, and public forums. Roche and HKSTP will also establish a co-incubation program to support healthcare start-ups. Additionally, the two parties will work together to create a data-sharing environment, exploring synthetic data generation tools to facilitate data sharing among stakeholders on the HKSTP platform.
Significance of the Partnership
While not the first collaboration between a multinational firm and HKSTP—AstraZeneca launched a co-incubation program with HKSTP in February 2021—the press release describes the agreement with Roche as the “first multidimensional collaboration between HKSTP and a life science corporation, including technology and data sharing.”
HKSTP Background
Established in 2001, HKSTP operates four sites in Hong Kong, housing over 12,000 research professionals and more than 1,200 technology companies focused on healthtech, AI and robotics, fintech, and smart city technologies. This partnership with Roche underscores HKSTP’s commitment to fostering innovation and growth in the life sciences sector.-Fineline Info & Tech
