To promote the development of Macao’s high-tech and big-health industries, and strengthen Macao’s function as an internal and external connection platform for the region, the Commerce and Investment Promotion Institute (IPIM) of the Macao SAR organised, together with ZGC Group, the “Intelligent Macao: Embarking on Global Journey - Conference on Artificial Intelligence and Biopharmaceutical Industry International Expansion” (the “Conference”) during the ZGC Forum on March 27. IPIM also led a delegation of more than 20 Macao technology and biopharmaceutical entrepreneurs (the “delegation”) to attend. The Conference drew over 130 representatives from companies and institutions in Beijing, Shanghai, Shenzhen, and elsewhere, including leading firms and specialised, innovative and elite enterprises in high technology and biopharma, demonstrating the co-operation potential of Beijing and Macao in technological innovation sector
The event was supported by the Economic and Technological Development Bureau of Macao SAR, the Pharmaceutical Administration Bureau, the Talent Development Committee, Association for Promotion of Science and Technology of Macau, the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade Beijing Sub-council, the Beijing Federation of Industry & Commerce, China Overseas Development Association, the China International Association for Promotion of Science and Technology, and the Beijing Pharmaceutical Profession Association.
Focused on artificial intelligence and biopharmaceuticals, the Conference brought together multi-dimensional linkages across government, industry, academia, research, and investment in the high-tech sector. More than 20 business matching sessions were arranged, during which attending companies reached preliminary co-operation intentions with Macao enterprises. The event provided a high-quality platform for industry upgrading and international expansion for Beijing–Macao businesses and advanced shared efforts toward a science-and-technology-driven future. IPIM received numerous enquiries from mainland enterprises interested in establishing in Macao, spanning sectors such as AI, big health, and biopharmaceuticals; local companies expressed particular interest in Macao’s business environment and investment policies.
Industrial Park + Guidance Fund — Positioning Macao-Hengqin to Empower Overseas Expansion
In his keynote at the Conference, IPIM President Che Weng Keong said Macao, home to four state key laboratories, is actively constructing a science and technology R&D industrial park that, following a “Macao R&D + Hengqin commercialisation” model, will serve as a hub for mainland companies going global and for overseas tech firms establishing a presence. Coupled with a government guidance fund, this initiative aims to help enterprises accelerate the transformation of research outputs and expand into international markets. Representatives from Beijing and Macao enterprises and institutions engaged in in-depth exchanges during panel discussions to explore the advantages of using the Macao platform for international expansion, leveraging Macao’s China-Portuguese-speaking countries platform role to develop scenarios for technology applications abroad, and maximising Macao’s strategic positioning to connect domestic and international markets. Overall, participants were optimistic about Macao’s policy advantages and future industry development.
Beijing Enterprises Intend to Invest — Bringing New Projects and Technologies to Macao
To broaden mainland investment outreach and facilitate businesses expansion, IPIM representatives detailed the Macao SAR government’s institutional advantages and industry support policies to promote Macao’s business strengths. Some of the biopharma companies at the Conference used explore, through business matching sessions, potential collaborations with Macao firms and exchanged views on R&D and industrialisation.
In addition, several innovative Beijing companies also expressed interest in visiting Macao for on-site inspections and potential investment, covering fields such as artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, and biotechnology. Some Beijing AI and cybersecurity firms plan to conduct field visits to Macao to assess the feasibility of establishing R&D or operations bases there. A Beijing biotechnology company preparing for an IPO indicated its intention to take advantage of Macao’s information flow freedom and institutional advantages to set up an R&D centre and an international headquarters in Macao. Another Beijing firm engaged in cardiac stent R&D said it intends to register its medical device in Macao and use the Macao platform to enter overseas markets, seeking opportunities for clinical collaboration and regulatory alignment.
Visit to Zhongguancun Fengtai Park Industrial Cluster — Promoting Beijing–Macao Collaboration
To achieve targeted investment promotion, the delegation visited Zhongguancun Fengtai Park to tour its technology and big-health clusters. IPIM and the Beijing Investment Promotion Service Center of the Fengtai District People’s Government co-hosted a forum to create a precise matchmaking platform that promotes interaction between enterprises on both sides and advances intentions to establish operations.
IPIM will continue to strengthen its business network in the mainland market and actively attract more high-quality mainland enterprises to invest in Macao. By promoting a two-way opening strategy of “bringing in investment and going global”, it aims to inject strong momentum into Macao’s appropriately diversified economic development and encourage promising companies to use the Macao platform to expand into overseas markets and to plan future expansion in the Macao science and technology R&D industrial park.
