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Simpson Cheung

A cluster comprising Hong Kong and two mainland Chinese cities has been ranked the world’s top innovation hub for the second consecutive year by a United Nations body.
The Shenzhen-Hong Kong-Guangzhou cluster retained its crown in the 2026 Global Innovation Index released by the World Intellectual Property Organization on Tuesday.
Tokyo-Yokohama, San Jose-San Francisco, Seoul and Beijing followed in the rankings.
A government spokesman welcomed the ranking, saying it reaffirmed the Greater Bay Area’s “outstanding innovative capacity” and its strong financing ecosystem for innovation and technology (I&T).
He said the city would “proactively align with the national 15th five-year plan to strengthen its strategic positioning” as an international I&T centre.
The government would also deepen collaboration across the bay area – which refers to Beijing’s initiative to turn Hong Kong, Macau and nine mainland cities into an integrated hi-tech economic powerhouse – to help build a modern industrial system and support national technological self-reliance, he said.


The ranking identifies local concentrations of world-class innovation activity using three key metrics: international patent filings via the organisation, scientific publications and venture capital deals.
For 2026’s ranking, the Shenzhen-Hong Kong-Guangzhou cluster filed 2,259 patent applications, published 4,060 scientific articles and had 138 venture capital deals per 1 million inhabitants over the last five years.
Huawei Technologies was the top patent applicant in the Shenzhen-Hong Kong-Guangzhou cluster, while Sun Yat-sen University in Guangzhou was the leading publishing organisation, the report showed.
Mitsubishi Electric and the University of Tokyo led patent filings and publications in Tokyo-Yokohama, while Google and Stanford University topped those categories in San Jose-San Francisco.
Samsung Electronics stood out as the top patent filer in four economies: Seoul, Bengaluru, Moscow and Warsaw.

China ranked first globally with 25 innovation clusters, followed by the United States with 20. Germany had seven, while the United Kingdom and India each had four.
The report also published an Innovation Intensity Ranking, in which San Jose-Francisco topped the list with a total innovation intensity share of 1.836 per capita. Shenzhen-Hong Kong-Guangzhou ranked 44 with a score of 0.278, up one spot from 2025.
The government spokesman said authorities remained committed to enhancing the I&T ecosystem, continuing to develop the original grant patent system and introducing the patent box regime, which offers tax breaks on intellectual property income to promote innovation.
The number of start-ups rose from over 1,500 in 2015 to more than 5,200 in 2025, while Hong Kong Science Park and Cyberport have collectively produced about 20 unicorns – privately held companies valued at over US$1 billion – to date, he said.
More than 100 technology enterprises and institutions had signed leases and begun moving into the Hong Kong-Shenzhen Innovation and Technology Park, which opened in December 2025, the spokesman said, adding that the San Tin Technopole Company was also established in June 2026 to press ahead with the development of 210 hectares (519 acres) of I&T land in the zone.
The spokesman said Hong Kong had a vibrant private equity market with assets under management close to US$250 billion, adding that the government was boosting venture financing to support start-ups at every stage – from university research and early seed funding to expansion, commercial launch and global growth.
Victor Kwok Hoi-kit, deputy research director of Our Hong Kong Foundation, noted that venture capital deals per 1 million inhabitants saw only a modest increase, rising from 135 last year to 138 in 2026.
“There is still room for improvement in financing activity,” Kwok said. “If we can better leverage our role in private capital, we can further transform our strength in scientific research and development into industrial and capital results.”
He added that as an international financial centre, Hong Kong should leverage government-guided funds and international venture capital networks to attract more global investment both to the city and the wider bay area.
Francis Fong Po-kiu, honorary president of the Hong Kong Information Technology Federation, said the city played a bridging role within the Shenzhen-Hong Kong-Guangzhou cluster.
Amid rising geopolitical tensions, marked by US tariffs and sanctions, Hong Kong should capitalise on its status as a dual gateway, serving as an entry point for foreign businesses into the mainland and a launchpad for enterprises from over the border expanding globally, Fong said.
He also said the cluster’s relatively lower per capita innovation intensity ranking was primarily due to its massive population base and noted that it continued to close the gap with the US across various fields of technological innovation.


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Shenzhen-Hong Kong-Guangzhou retains crown as world’s top innovation hub

A Galbot robot serves customers at a new store in Hung Hom. Hong Kong aims to "strengthen its strategic positioning as an international innovation and technology centre", a government spokesman said. Photo: Karma Lo

A drone delivering takeaway food in Shenzhen. China ranked first globally with 25 innovation clusters. Photo: Xinhua

More than 100 technology enterprises and institutions have signed leases and begun moving into the Hong Kong-Shenzhen Innovation and Technology Park, which opened in December 2025. Photo: Karma Lo

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Illustration: Lau Ka-kuen

The lower prices in cities such as Guangzhou allow Hongkongers to enjoy the best of both worlds – a career in Hong Kong and leisure on the mainland. Photo: AFP

Former city leader Leung Chun-ying says Hong Kong must pair its strengths in biotech, research and professional services with specific mainland hubs in Guangzhou and Shenzhen. Photo: Dickson Lee

More Hongkongers are moving to Guangzhou to access cheaper medical services with shorter waiting times. Photo: Getty Images

Legislator Simon Lee Hoey says Hong Kong must act as a “global gateway and rule connector” for the bay area, helping Chinese innovation meet international standards. Photo: Jelly Tse

The MixC shopping centre in Nansha. For many in Hong Kong, connectivity to the bay area is less about macroeconomics than about cheaper and better lifestyle options. Photo: May Tse

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Yau is in Malaysia as part of a 200-strong delegation, the biggest under Hong Kong Trade Development Council’s “Think Business, Think Hong Kong” flagship campaign. Photo: Handout

According to Hong Kong government data, trade between the city and Malaysia was worth HK$220 billion in 2022. Photo: EPA-EFE

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Hong Kong government says ranking by UN body reaffirms Greater Bay Area’s ‘outstanding innovative capacity’ and strong financing ecosystem


Hong Kong government says ranking by UN body reaffirms Greater Bay Area’s ‘outstanding innovative capacity’ and strong financing ecosystem.


Shenzhen-Hong Kong-Guangzhou retains crown as world’s top innovation hub

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}Hong Kong government says ranking by UN body reaffirms Greater Bay Area’s ‘outstanding innovative capacity’ and strong financing ecosystem

Hong Kong government says ranking by UN body reaffirms Greater Bay Area’s ‘outstanding innovative capacity’ and strong financing ecosystem