HKUST welcomes the launch of the Fund for Innovative Technology-in-Education by UGC | The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology

The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST) welcomes the launch of the Fund for Innovative Technology-in-Education (FITE) by the UGC, which will provide universities with additional resources to implement innovative teaching technologies.  
 
As a pioneer in applying new technologies in education, HKUST was among the first in Asia to offer courses online (MOOCs) worldwide, and is one of the first educational institutes to adopt generative AI in teaching and learning. The University fully agrees with the UGC that emerging technologies can create ethical and legal issues, and technological social responsibilities should be carefully considered and upheld. To this end, HKUST has developed courses on the ethical implications and potential benefits of AI over the years.  Furthermore, to ensure a responsible and inclusive approach to integrating AI and new technologies, we set up a committee to discuss and guide policies related to curriculum development, teaching methodologies, assessment strategies, and upholding academic integrity. The Centre for Artificial Intelligence Research (CAiRE) at HKUST, the first among all local universities, was established in 2018 to spearhead cross-disciplinary research in scientific, technological, business, societal, and educational aspects of AI.

HKUST has recently rolled out various funds to promote the appropriate and wider adoption of AI technology, the University is looking forward to the details of the FITE to see how it can deepen its potential collaborations with academic and industry partners, and help offer our members more diverse learning experiences through the scheme.

About The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology 
The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST) (https://hkust.edu.hk/) is a world-class research intensive university that focuses on science, technology and business as well as humanities and social science. HKUST offers an international campus, and a holistic and interdisciplinary pedagogy to nurture well-rounded graduates with global vision, a strong entrepreneurial spirit and innovative thinking. Over 80% of our research work were rated “Internationally excellent” or “world leading” in the Research Assessment Exercise 2020 of Hong Kong’s University Grants Committee. We were ranked 3rd in Times Higher Education’s Young University Rankings 2022, and our graduates were ranked 30th worldwide and among the best from universities from Asia in Global Employability University Ranking and Survey 2022. As of early 2023, HKUST members have founded 1,645 active start-ups, including 9 Unicorns and 11 exits (IPO or M&A), generating economic impact worth over HK$400billion. InvestHK cited QS World University Rankings by Subject 2021 to demonstrate the performance of five world’s top 100 local universities in several innovation-centric areas, among which HKUST ranked top in four engineering and materials science subjects.