During the workday rush hours, swarms of commuters rush out Exit B of Line 3’s Fubao Station. Within five minutes’ walking distance, they will arrive at the Shenzhen Hong Kong Synergy Cooperation Innovation Center, located at Changfu Jinmao Mansion, the tallest building in Hetao Shenzhen-Hong Kong Science and Technology Innovation Cooperation Zone (HTCZ), an ideal place for entrepreneurial and innovative startups.
The Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Youth Innovation and Entrepreneurship Workshop (Futian), or E-workshop, in HTCZ, an entrepreneurial and innovative platform which houses 26 teams, including 24 with Hong Kong and Macao backgrounds, is a platform for youths across the border to realize their dreams.
Sam Ho, CEO of Glutrac Information Technology (Shenzhen) Co. Ltd., is one of those chasing their dreams at the E-workshop.
“We chose the E-workshop for business because of its geographic location. Futian has two checkpoints with one offering 24-hour crossing with Hong Kong. The government incentives are also encouraging,” Ho said. Ho came to Shenzhen in the 1990s and founded Glutrac in 2015, a company dedicated to the research and development of noninvasive monitoring technologies.
Glutrac is a hit among diabetes patients and doctors. The company integrates noninvasive continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) wearables, app and artificial intelligence (AI)-based cloud service.
“In 2019, we launched Glutrac CGM wearables. For upgrading and testing, our gears need chips, components, spare parts supplies and users’ big data. Shenzhen has a complete industrial system and responds to market demands quickly,” Ho said.
Also at the E-workshop, Wu Zhili from Shenzhen Yiyuan Intelligent Technology Co. Ltd. introduced visitors to his company’s “magic mirror,” an AI-based mirror that can quickly test, analyze and offer skin care solutions.
Wu, a Hong Kong Baptist University Ph.D. holder, is from the mainland and calls himself a new Hong Konger. “We go north to start business in the GBA because of the market opportunities, and supports from the government, as well as complete industrial auxiliaries for our products,” Wu said.
He added that in Shenzhen, it was easy to find partners for software and hardware development if one has an idea for a product or a design.