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MRDI to lead operation of Hong Kongâs first national manufacturing innovation center
News: Microelectronics 19 October 2026 MRDI to lead operation of Hong Kongâs first national manufacturing innovation center The First Five-Year Plan for Economic and Social Development of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (2026â2030) and the chief executive’s 2026 Policy Address have reaffirmed the role of the Hong Kong Microelectronics Research and Development Institute (MRDI) as one of Hong Kong’s five key R&D institutions, and supported the accelerated establishment of Hong Kong’s first national manufacturing innovation center, to be led and operated by MRDI. The initiative is intended to strengthen Hong Kong’s research capacity in frontier technologies, promote industry-academia-research integration and support breakthroughs in power semiconductors. “We welcome Hong Kong’s First Five-Year Plan, which aligns with the country’s 15th Five-Year Plan and strategic development priorities and sets out a clear vision and strategic direction for Hong Kong’s high-quality development over the next five years,” says MRDI’s chairman professor Philip Chan. “In particular, MRDI fully supports its strategic initiatives on innovation and technology and is confident that the new development landscape of the ‘three major I&T parks and five key R&D institutions’ will further strengthen Hong Kong’s research capacity in frontier technologies,” he adds. “MRDI moved into the Microelectronics Centre in Yuen Long InnoPark earlier this year and is pressing ahead with the installation and commissioning of two pilot lines for the R&D and trial production of third-generation [i.e. wide-bandgap] semiconductor chips, with a view to commencing operations by the end of this year,” says MRDI’s CEO Dr Gao Teng. MRDI will leverage its research capabilities, international collaboration network and industry partnerships to lead the operation of Hong Kong’s first national manufacturing innovation center and advance its establishment. Hong Kong Microelectronics Research and Development Institute In the 2023 Policy Address, the chief executive of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region announced a series of measures to promote Hong Kong’s I&T development, including the establishment of the MRDI in 2024 to lead and promote collaboration among universities, research centers and industry. In May 2024, the Finance Committee of Legislative Council approved a new commitment of $2838.4m under the Innovation and Technology Fund for the establishment and operation of MRDI. Two pilot lines are being set up at the Microelectronics Centre in the Yuen Long InnoPark. MRDI is dedicated to R&D on core technologies of third-generation semiconductors, with a focus on unleashing the potential of the ‘1 to N’ transformation of R&D outcomes and industry development, contributing to the development of Hong Kong as an international I&T centre. MRDI initially focuses on supporting third-generation semiconductors, including silicon carbide and gallium nitride, which are applicable to electric vehicles, as well as other industrial and consumer electronic products and renewable energy. Tags: Power electronics Visit: www.mrdi.org.hk/en