Recap of 2025 Competition
Under the continuous promotion of the National Data Bureau’s “Three-Year Action Plan (2024-2026) For “Data Elements X””, the approach of “use of data through competition” has become an important pathway to unleash the multiplier effect of data elements. The application of data in real-world scenarios has been steadily expanding, fostering a wave of innovative use cases that are closely aligned with practical needs and demonstrate significant empowerment, while continuously releasing strong data-driven momentum.
In 2025, the Digital Policy Office (DPO) of the HKSAR Government and the Shanghai Municipal Bureau of Data jointly organised the “Hong Kong/Shanghai Co-operation Open Data Challenge 2025”. Building on the momentum of open data collaboration between Shanghai and Hong Kong, the competition successfully deepened exchanges between the two cities in smart city development, digital economy applications, and cross-border data flow. It further stimulated innovation and application of open data among enterprises, academic institutions, and technology talents, thereby promoting high-quality economic and social development in both regions.
Under the "Co-creating a Data Industry Platform for the Two Cities”, “Hong Kong/Shanghai Co-operation Open Data Challenge 2025” invites participants to harness the extensive open data resources available in the two cities. The goal is to inspire innovative projects and develop advanced applications that emphasise four key areas: Smart Mobility, Smart Living, Smart Environment, and Smart Economy, thereby jointly driving deeper integration and fostering synergy between the digital economies of the two cities.
The event spanned several months and received an enthusiastic response from individuals and teams from Hong Kong enterprises and academic institutions, with the number of participating teams rising significantly compared to the previous year. Following a the first judging, 13 teams from Hong Kong had advanced to the Final Judging and competed alongside finalist teams from Shanghai, vying for a place among the top-four finalists and the Grand Award of the competition.
The shortlisted finalist teams were selected to engage in mentorship training, expert exchanges, business matching and mock presentations to fully prepare for the Final Judging. Their proposals covered multiple frontier applications, including data analytics, digital twins, environmental assessment, and passenger flow prediction, showcasing the enormous potential of open data in enhancing urban governance efficiency and improving the quality of public services.
The Final Judging and Awards Presentation Ceremony were held in Shanghai, along with corporate visits, exhibition opportunities, and business matching , to further strengthen innovation and technology exchanges between Shanghai and Hong Kong.
The Hong Kong delegation performed outstandingly in the competition, with the team from the Hong Kong Environmental Protection Department winning both the “Grand Award” and the “Best Smart Environment Award” with their solution “Hong Kong Environmental Database”, while the team jointly formed by MTR Corporation and The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology claimed the “Best Smart Mobility Award” for their solution “Ridership Prediction Model”.
Shanghai teams also shone brightly. Shanghai BroadView Information Technologies Company Limited won the “Grand Award” and the “Best Smart Economy Award” with its solution “BroadView Global Manpower AI”. Shanghai Innovation Center for Biopharmaceutical Co., Ltd. received the “Best Smart Living Award” for its “Proof-of-Concept Decision-Support Platform for Innovative Drugs Based on Retrieval-Augmented Generation and Dual-Model Collaboration”. These award-winning projects not only recognized the participants’ creativity and innovation but also injected fresh momentum into Shanghai-Hong Kong data cooperation, opening a new chapter of deeper collaboration in the digital economy between the two cities.
Note: Will include the chart of 2025 winner list and finalist list