Established in 2016, the StartmeupHK Festival is an annual series of events curated by Invest Hong Kong and organised by external expert partners. The series of events comprise of conferences, exhibitions, pitching competitions, startup-investor matching as well as other networking activities.
Guided by the theme A Future Unlimited, this year’s Festival will feature main events covering a startup competition, web3, female entrepreneurship, healthtech and sustainability. In addition, a wide range of community events will be held such as an investor summit, business matching, country startup showcases, etc. to add further value and diversity to the week.
The StartmeupHK Festival this year is also an anchor event for Blocktober, the blockchain themed month long programme coordinated by Web3 Harbour, along with partners including HKFW, Consensus, Smartlink and Animoca Brands.
Main Event Schedule
12:00 - 18:00
- ASIA SOCIETY HONG KONG CENTER
10:30 - 17:30
- Hong Kong Maritime Museum
Community Event Schedule
13:30 - 18:00
- ASIA SOCIETY HONG KONG CENTER
Highlighted Speakers
Jing Liu
Chief Economist, Greater China, Global Research
HSBC
John Whaley
Founder
Inception Studio
Founder & CEO
Redcoat AI
21 OCT [MON]
JUMPSTARTER Ignition Gala
I build stuff. I started programming at five years old and never stopped. I work in the broad area of computer systems, especially operating systems, virtualization, computer security, finding and avoiding software defects, algorithms, performance, parallelization, concurrency, scalability, mobility, compilers, program analysis, programming languages, APIs, networking, protocols, system architecture, kernel development, IO performance, and data structures.I'm also into building great companies. I founded UnifyID and before that, Moka5.I'm looking to make an impact. I like to work on the hardest problems - the ones that people assume are impossible to solve.
Poman Lo
Founding Managing Partner
AlphaTrio Captial
Founder
Institute of Sustainability & Technology
21 OCT [MON]
JUMPSTARTER Ignition Gala
Poman is the Founding Managing Partner of AlphaTrio Capital, an Asia-focused sustainable technology fund empowering the next wave of green tech unicorns to provide disruptive solutions for the world’s most pressing environmental challenges.Poman serves as an Adjunct Professor teaching sustainable business management and impact investing at The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology. She founded the non-profit Institute of Sustainability and Technology with a mission to nurture the next generation of ESG talent through executive education and advance the sustainability agenda through interdisciplinary research and international conferences. She is also the Council Member of Hong Kong University of Science and Technology and the Member of Chief Executive’s Policy Unit Expert Group.Poman is the only person in Hong Kong history to receive both the “Outstanding Young Person of the World Award” and the “Hong Kong Outstanding Students Award”. She is also the first and only female Asian recipient of the “Oslo Business for Peace Award” by the Business for Peace Foundation in Norway, selected by an independent committee of Nobel Prize Laureates in Peace and Economics.
Shane James Chesson
Founder, General Partner
Openspace Ventures Pte Ltd
21 OCT [MON]
JUMPSTARTER Ignition Gala
Shane Chesson is a Founding Partner of Openspace Ventures, a venture capital fund manager focused on backing and building early and mid-stage technology companies in South East Asia. Openspace Ventures manages over US$800 million across 6 funds and has invested in over 60 companies since 2014. Openspace has a team of 40 people in 5 offices and including 12 different nationalities. Shane has served on the Board or as an Observer for companies including Gojek (Exit GOTO:JK), HaloDoc, Whispir (Exit WSP:AU), Finnomena, FinAccel, Topica, CXA, Tradegecko (Exit to INTU:US), Amp, Abacus, Biofourmis, Validus, Pluang, Envisso, Neuroglee and BeautyMNL.
SHIVA JOON, CFA
Director, Data Scientist, Global Research
HSBC
Angelina Kwan
CEO
Stratford Finance Limited
22 OCT [TUE]
Game On! 2024
Angelina is the CEO of Stratford Finance Limited, a consulting company focused on dealing with regulatory and operational issues in the financial services and digital assets sectors and advises brokerages, fund managers, and technology providers.
Annie Hui
Co-founder & COO
Custonomy Company Limited
22 OCT [TUE]
Game On! 2024
Enterprise Architect in Oracle with 20 years IT experience from applications to cloud solutions and end-to-end enterprise solutions focus in telco industry. A blockchain evangelist in Oracle since 2016.
Evan Auyang
Group President
Animoca Brands
22 OCT [TUE]
Game On! 2024
Evan Auyang is the Group President of Animoca Brands, a Hong Kong-based multinational blockchain technology and investment company focused on developing the digital property rights ecosystem, including play-to-earn games, non-fungible tokens (NFTs), decentralized finance (DeFi), blockchain marketplaces, infrastructure and more.
Gary Liu
Co-founder & CEO & Chair
Terminal 3, Web3 Harbour
22 OCT [TUE]
Game On! 2024
Gary Liu is the Co-founder & CEO of Terminal 3, a company building the trusted user data layer to ‘empower an equitable web3 future’. He is also the Founder & Director of Artefact Labs which is on a mission to ‘preserve and connect history’ through the development of historical NFTs.
Sebastien Borget
Co-founder & COO
The Sandbox
22 OCT [TUE]
Game On! 2024
Entrepreneur & Dad with 14 years experience in growing startups. 4 years in Blockchain and 11 years in Mobile Gaming. Worked for numerous startups with diverse business models as advisor.
Sébastien is the Co-founder and COO of The Sandbox, a unique virtual world where players can build, own, and monetize their gaming experiences using NFTs & SAND, the main utility token of the platform.
Cynthia Lok
Co-founder
Clean Taps
23 OCT [WED]
LOUDER Connect
After graduating from LSE, Cynthia spent the first 10 years of her career in the insurance industry across various Strategy roles. However, with an urge to be ‘closer to the ground’, she began her entrepreneurial journey in 2021 with a coffee and laundry shop that focused on ‘sustainability in the small things’. Fast forward to 2023, through experimentation, the Clean brand has now pivoted into something much wider: utilising design and technology to create a more inclusive workplace. Cynthia aims to create sustainable social impact by empowering Special Educational Needs (SEN) talents and businesses with innovative solutions to mutually excel.
Fai Chan
Co-founder & CEO
PairPair Full
23 OCT [WED]
LOUDER Connect
Fai Chan is the co-founder and CEO of Pair Pair Full, a dynamic startup brand with a mission to inspire positive living and Hong Kong design. Pair Pair Full offers a curated selection of premium sock items designed to enhance everyday life. Under Fai's leadership, the brand has quickly gained a reputation for innovation, quality, and customer-centricity. Fai brings to Pair Pair Full over 15 years of extensive experience in building start-up, brand building, and business transformation. Before co-founding Pair Pair Full, Fai served as the Global Chief Operating Officer at CASETiFY, where he played a pivotal role in driving operational efficiency and expansion for this leading global tech accessories brand. His expertise in strategic planning was further honed during his tenure at Hong Kong Disneyland, where he contributed to the park's strategic initiatives and planning.
Jessie Li
Founder
Reliefx.ai
23 OCT [WED]
LOUDER Connect
Jessie Li has over a decade of experience in investment banking, with a focus on the oil, gas, and natural resources sectors. She brings a wealth of expertise and knowledge in these industries to the table. After leaving investment banking, Jessie pursued her entrepreneurial aspirations in the field of AI health technology. However, she has remained deeply committed to philanthropy and empowering young girls, working to dismantle gender stereotypes and biases. Jessie's remarkable contributions and achievements in these areas caught the attention of Insider, who featured her as part of their International Women's Day Campaign, showcasing her inspirational work. Jessie's unique career journey has garnered a large following across multiple social media platforms, where she inspires women of all ages with her insights on career development, fashion, luxury travel, fitness & wellness, and biohacking tips. In addition to her social media presence, Jessie has also been a frequent guest at fashion weeks in London, Milan, and Paris, as well as guest speakers at global cryptocurrency and financial institution conference. Most recently, she was featured in Vogue China for the Fall/Winter 2023 season.
JOYA
Singer, Songwriter, Artist
23 OCT [WED]
LOUDER Connect
With a slightly non-typical background in political science and a passion for building things that people need and love, Jodie has successfully launched multiple SaaS products and formed strategic partnerships that generate new revenue streams and growth opportunities. By day, she works in an Enterprise SaaS platform company to enable the world’s premier companies to penetrate the globe’s second-largest economy via the trailblazing China web performance platform, Chinafy (chinafy.com). By night, she transforms into “Joya”, a polyglot, independent artist and singer-songwriter based in Hong Kong, celebrated as a Spotify Radar HK Artist for 2024. Her music has been featured in major media outlets such as SCMP, MixMag, Tatler, TimeOut, and more. Notable global playlist placements including GLOW, New Music Friday, .org, and Beatport Best New Breaks, Performances included Music Matters Fest in Singapore, Club Bbang in Seoul, Gay Games HK, Pink Dot, and most recently “Today at Apple'' session where she notably helmed Apple Hong Kong’s first Pride event, covering themes of tech, music, diversity, equity, inclusion (DEI), women in technology, and lgbtq+.
Michelle Zhang
Founder
Muse Digital
23 OCT [WED]
LOUDER Connect
Michelle Zhang, founder of MUSE. China-born Australian entrepreneur. A fearless woman leader who is agile and has a rare ability to conceptualize and deliver innovative solution. Michelle has been instrumental in pioneering innovations in finance, particularly in the areas of investment and wealth management. Her leadership and vision have helped shape MUSE into a leading organization, with significant influence in the global investment industry. Michelle is also known for her philanthropic efforts, focusing on initiatives that empower women, support education and impact investment.
Christine Yuan Huang
Founder & CEO
Quantum Life Limited
24 OCT [THU]
Asia Health Innovation Summit
Dr. Christine Yuan Huang is the Founder and CEO of Quantum Life Limited, and also the Technology Transfer Director of Hong Kong Quantum AI Lab. Dr. Huang is also the Managing Director of HK Longevity Medical Centre, focusing on providing end-to-end precision longevity medical technology solutions to improve health-span. Dr. Huang has vast experience in the biotechnology and longevity field and shares her professional insights as a Venture Partner of LongeVC.
Jacky Lio
Chief Medical Officer
Bowtie Life Insurance Company
24 OCT [THU]
Asia Health Innovation Summit
Jacky Lio is the Chief Medical Officer at Bowtie Life Insurance, Hong Kong's first virtual insurer. With over a decade of experience in Acute Medicine from the UK's NHS, Jacky bridges healthcare and insurance to make quality health protection accessible to all. At Bowtie, he leads healthcare partnerships, guides customer-centric product development, and champions preventive care integration. Jacky's expertise in both medical practice and insurance innovation positions him as a thought leader in addressing Hong Kong's health protection gap. Passionate about leveraging technology to improve healthcare accessibility, he is dedicated to creating an inclusive future for health protection through innovative insurance solutions.
Maaike Steinebach
Founder & CEO
Femtech Future Limited
24 OCT [THU]
Asia Health Innovation Summit
Maaike Steinebach has over 20 years of leadership experience in financial services and tech, holding executive roles across Asia with Fortis Bank, ABN Amro, and Commonwealth Bank of Australia. In 2018, she co-founded the Fintech Association and Women Chief Executive Network in Hong Kong. In 2019, she transitioned to tech, joining Visa as General Manager for Hong Kong & Macau. In 2023, she left Visa to focus on women’s health and Femtech, founding Femtech Future Limited, an advisory firm helping femtech companies scale and advising corporates how to integrate women's health into the workplace. She is a leading advocate for Femtech in Asia, where the sector remains underserved and underfunded.
Neeladri Verma
Manager, Health - Economist Impact
The Economist Group
24 OCT [THU]
Asia Health Innovation Summit
Neeladri is a manager at Economist Impact’s Health team, where she leads customised research projects for international healthcare clients, guiding them from ideation to execution. Her work spans various health topics, including cancer, antimicrobial resistance (AMR), and dengue, with a strong focus on Asian markets. Dr. Verma is a dental doctor by training and holds an MBA, from the University of Hong Kong. Before joining Economist Impact, she was a consultant at a boutique healthcare management firm in Hong Kong, specializing in vaccine procurement, health reforms, and multisectoral health policy analysis.
Tony Wu
Co-founder & CEO
Ninenovo Technology
24 OCT [THU]
Asia Health Innovation Summit
Tony Wu, a PhD graduate from the University of Hong Kong, has conducted extensive research in intelligent computing, machine learning, and the application of smart wearable devices in healthcare. As the co-founder and CEO of Ninenovo Technology, he led the company from inception to market launch, spearheading the development of its flagship product, the “RingConn Smart Ring.” This product has won multiple international awards, with its Gen 2 version surpassing a million dollars in sales within eight hours on Kickstarter, setting several records. Ninenovo Technology is now focused on strategically expanding within the medical and healthcare ecosystem.
Massimiliano Hasan
Head of Platform
Moonshot Ventures
25 OCT [FRI]
1.5C Summit
Massimiliano Hasan (Massi for short) is the Head of Platform at Moonshot Ventures, an impact investment firm focused on backing female founders tackling climate adaptation in Southeast Asia, and Co-Founder of Climate starts with SEA, a climate newsletter also focused on Southeast Asia. He is also an angel investor and advisor to various impact ventures in Indonesia.
Previously he led venture building for Catalyst Fund in emerging markets across Africa & Latin America, scaled FinTech products to millions of users and built Data Analytics teams from scratch at both Gojek & Oportun, as well as deployed capital into dozens of impact ventures at Kiva.
As an Indonesian-American, he grew up between both countries and received his master’s degree from MIT.
Patrick Teyssonneyre
Co-founder & CEO
Xinterra
25 OCT [FRI]
1.5C Summit
Entrepreneur and accomplished senior executive with over 24 years of global experience in Deep Tech Ventures, Climate Tech and General Management of Innovation & Technology, having led the development of numerous Technologies, Products and Applications into successful commercialization in the Chemical and Materials Industries.
Sarah Cragg
Head of Asia Pacific
The Earthshot Prize
25 OCT [FRI]
1.5C Summit
Sarah is a sustainability and impact expert having over a decade of experience working with organisations to embed sustainability at the core of their operations and effectively communicate their impact. She has built programs and driven positive change through partnerships between business, government, and civil society, working with organisations such as Unilever, Danone, Essilor, Grow Asia and Microsoft. She is a graduate of the University of Oxford and a qualified solicitor in England and Wales.
Sarah joined The Earthshot Prize as Head of Asia Pacific in July 2023. Her primary focus within The Earthshot Prize is to discover, spotlight, and scale eco-innovations throughout Asia Pacific, contributing to the vital mission of healing our planet. Before joining The Earthshot Prize, Sarah was Head of Corproate Partnerships for Conservation International Asia Pacific. The Earthshot Prize, founded by Britain's Prince William in 2020, is gearing up for its forth annual awards ceremony, scheduled to take place in Cape Town. This event represents a significant milestone in recognizing and celebrating innovations that have the potential to create a more sustainable and resilient world.
Tuan Phan
Associate Professor
HKU
25 OCT [FRI]
1.5C Summit
Dr. Tuan Q. Phan is an Associate Professor at the University of Hong Kong (HKU) of Marketing, Innovation & Information Management at the HKU Business School. He also serves as the director of the Representative Office of HKU Vietnam, and the founding member and current president of the Vietnam Chapter of the Association of Information Systems (VAIS).
His research using big data and AI covers various industries including ESG, FinTech, retail and e-commerce, logistics and transportation, social media, news and video media, technology and consumer products, and education. His has published in leading scientific and management journals including the Harvard Business School Publishing, Proceedings of the National Academy of Science (PNAS), Marketing Science, Journal of Marketing Research (JMR), and Information Systems Research (ISR). In addition, he has co-founded a number of companies, including Xeptagon, a leading carbon credit management system (CCMS) with the UN and World Bank.
He received his doctorate from Harvard Business School, and an undergraduate from MIT. He is also an expert witness, entrepreneur, investor and frequently consults industry leaders.
Wesley Choi
President of Ventures
Qonvolv Ventures
25 OCT [FRI]
1.5C Summit
Wesley has over 20 years of general management and investment experience, and is currently President of qonvolv Ventures, established in 2023, the corporate ventures arm of Tessellation Group. qonvolv Ventures aims to be the hub of industry knowledge and technologies for innovative growth in fashion industry and beyond, and conducts both incubation of creative solutions as new businesses and investments in emerging technologies in manufacturing excellence, digital value chain, green tech, and enablement of future workforce.