The ninth edition of Start-up Express, organized by the Hong Kong Trade Development Council (HKTDC), concluded its Final Pitching Day today, with 10 winning start-ups emerging from the competition. The winners span sectors including smart city solutions, green tech and health tech, reflecting growing momentum among Hong Kong start-ups in translating innovative technologies into practical applications.
The ESG Award was presented to BioZein Technology Corporation Limited for its outstanding commitment to sustainability and social impact, while Homing Therapeutics Limited received the My Favourite Start-up Award. The winning start-ups will next participate in a series of local and overseas business events organized by the HKTDC, providing opportunities to build capability and connections, explore markets, seek business and funding partners, and enhance brand awareness.
HKTDC Assistant Executive Director Anna Cheung said: "When we launched Start-up Express in 2018, we had one simple goal: to help Hong Kong start-ups grow and flourish. Since then, we have supported 80 start-ups in building capacity, enhancing their visibility, making connections, finding new partners and investors and seizing opportunities and markets previously out of their reach."
The 10 winning start-ups are: Alpha AI Technology Limited, BioZein Technology Corporation Limited, GABES Limited, Hay-koze Limited, Homing Therapeutics Limited, Muuse Limited, O-Spheres Limited, PetWell HK Limited, PregnaSense Co. Limited and Pyramid AI Limited. The HKTDC will arrange exposure opportunities for the winning teams to interact with potential investors, buyers and partners, helping them expand their business networks and capture opportunities in both local and global markets.
One of the judges, Jimmy Tao, Chairman of the Hong Kong Startup Council, said: "The quality of participating start-ups continues to improve year after year. Many of this year's finalists have successfully integrated artificial intelligence and other innovative technologies into practical applications, demonstrating strong commercial potential." He noted that the number of start-ups in Hong Kong reached a record high last year, increasing 11% year-on-year to 5,221.
Taranjit Singh, Chief Technology Officer of Entoptica, a winner from Start-up Express 2025, said: "Start-up Express provided valuable opportunities to connect with investors and industry mentors, helping us secure funding to advance clinical trials and expand production capacity." He added that participation in CES 2026, a trip led by the HKTDC, enabled the company to establish connections with potential partners from Shanghai, Japan and the United States, and resulted in the sale of two prototype products at US$100,000 each.
The HKTDC has long been committed to fostering the growth of start-ups by actively providing platforms that help them raise market visibility and expand into Chinese Mainland and international markets, to further promote Hong Kong's strengths as an international innovation and technology hub. Since the launch of Start-up Express International in 2022, the competition has attracted start-ups from around the world over four editions, including participants from Chinese Mainland, Australia, France, Germany, the United Kingdom, Italy, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam, the United Arab Emirates and the United States. The fifth edition will be held during Entrepreneur Day in December this year, providing winning overseas start-ups with support to establish a presence in Hong Kong and leverage the city as a gateway to explore opportunities in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area and international markets.
More information on the finalists can be found here.
