China’s latest Five-Year Plan has put renewed emphasis on accelerating technological transformation, giving Hong Kong fresh impetus to scale up its own tech-driven goals and capabilities.

Among other areas, China’s national blueprint for 2026 to 2030 outlines support to further strengthen Hong Kong as an international centre for innovation and technology (I&T), as part of a dedicated section that focuses on Hong Kong and Macao.

This includes fast-tracking Hong Kong’s large-scale Northern Metropolis development, a planned innovation corridor near the border with Shenzhen that spans 30,000 hectares, around one third of Hong Kong’s land area.

The I&T-oriented megaproject aims to create a new growth engine for Hong Kong that also deepens high-tech collaboration and commercialisation within the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area (GBA).

At the same time, Hong Kong aims to upgrade its own traditional sectors and businesses, by aligning with national strategies geared around high-quality development.

China’s Artificial Intelligence Plus Initiative, or AI+, for example, aims to raise national productivity and efficiency by embedding AI applications across real-world industries and services.

For Hong Kong, this promises to open up more opportunities in areas such as smart manufacturing, fintech, healthtech, logistics and professional services.
 

Hong Kong’s Chief Executive John Lee highlighted the benefits of closer aligningment in a speech last month, soon after China’s 15th Five-Year Plan was approved by national lawmakers in Beijing.

“The country's comprehensive capabilities provide Hong Kong with immense market momentum and development opportunities,” he noted.

Hong Kong is also drawing up its own five-year-plan, the city’s first, to further integrate with national development.

This endeavour is being led by Mr Lee, and is targeted for release by the end of the year.

In the same speech, Mr Lee recounted how China has surged to global leadership in various fields, including I&T, AI, big data and infrastructural development.

“Hong Kong can leverage the country's industrial ecosystem and progress to achieve leapfrog development in our own emerging industries,” he added.

Meanwhile, the city’s unique position as a two-way gateway between the Chinese Mainland and global markets, combined with its traditional strengths and advantages, also enables it to contribute meaningfully to the growth of globally competitive innovation ecosystems.

As an international finance centre, Hong Kong can attract more overseas capital, while supporting industrial and commercial synergies with the Chinese Mainland, for example. This can help strengthen supply chains and the real economy.

In addition, Hong Kong’s position as a hub for IP trading, for legal and dispute resolution services and for high-calibre talent, all cited in China’s new Five-Year Plan, further underscores the city’s role as a connector between global markets and national innovation priorities.