Having a photo or facilitating business

[East_coast]

I recently had a meeting with a couple of Hong Kong scientists who run a sort of patent boiler room around nano-technology.

I asked them what changes there had been in the government's attitude to science investment. Purely anecdotal and a very limited sample size but previously they said the government was poor at giving money but good at assisting with connections to industry. Now they say they are poor at giving money (all people who live off government handouts seem to say this!) but just offer a photo with a smiling government official and a cheap trophy celebrating their success 'with government support'- ala Mainland style.

Does this mean science investment in Hong Kong seems destined to become more obscure with governments choosing winners - as we know civil servants are not the best at running things and picking winners.

How can Hong Kong's leading edge technology research compete on a global scale?

[Proplus]

How can Hong Kong's leading edge technology research compete on a global scale?

Was this ever the case in the first place?

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[East_coast]

Was this ever the case in the first place?

Probably more than would be expected of a city of 7 million. Although consumers tend identify with brand name innovation focussed around the looks and feel while Hong Kong has been a minor centre for behind the scenes technology advancements for the last 20 years. Much of the development grunt work happens over the border but the technology is led by HK companies.

For purer science it does seem that the government now wants to pick winners instead of forging links to industry. Hopefully I could be wrong.