Hong Kong will begin testing its "AI City Brain" as early as next year's typhoon season, with full operation targeted for 2028, according to Chief Secretary Eric Chan Kwok-ki.
His remarks came in a newspaper interview on Monday, and revealed that the system will integrate early warning and monitoring systems into an AI platform to sharpen emergency response.
As proposed in the latest Policy Address, Chan said the system's basic design will be completed in the first half of next year, with the first phase of the platform’s development expected to be completed and officially launched in the first quarter of 2028.
Regarding the government inviting applications for three campus sites in Hung Shui Kiu University Town, Chan said institutions would be chosen on four criteria — industry impact, promoting Hong Kong as an international education hub, talent attraction, and financial viability.
Chan added that the HK$10 billion loan pool would not count against applicants, stressing that proposals would be assessed on their overall merits rather than finances alone.
The scheme was designed with flexibility, Chan said, with the government able to extend the 20-year repayment period by five years if an institution faces exceptional circumstances — a scenario he called unlikely.
Meanwhile, he said local institutions in the Hung Shui Kiu university town will operate on a self-financing basis, arguing that Hong Kong's institutions are attractive enough to draw overseas students without direct subsidies.
