On June 26th, the joint interview activity "Building Dreams and Seeking Development Together" for Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao media in the Greater Bay Area entered its third day.
Over 30 journalists from the national and the three regions of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area (GBA) media outlets visited Guangzhou's Yuexiu and Huangpu districts. They toured the Greater Bay Area Youth Innovation & Startup Hub in Yuexiu, the Guangdong Intercity Railway operation site at Panyu Station, and companies such as Guangzhou Hexin Instrument Co., Ltd. in Huangpu and Apollo Zhixing Technology (Guangzhou) Co., Ltd., gaining insights into the latest development achievements of the GBA in areas such as talent policies, transportation infrastructure, and artificial intelligence.
The journalists from the delegation visited the Greater Bay Area Youth Innovation & Startup Hub in Yuexiu, an old district of Guangzhou. Since its opening in July 2021, the hub has provided startup facilitation services to more than 30 enterprises led by young entrepreneurs from Hong Kong and Macao, covering sectors such as healthcare, international education, and cultural creativity, according to Deng Jinggan, the hub's director. Furthermore, it offers 200 internships annually to young people from the GBA and abroad to promote innovative integration and development among the young from these regions.
The hub also attracted top talents from prestigious institutions around the world, such as Oxford, Cambridge, Harvard, MIT, the University of Hong Kong, and the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, to engage in educational and cultural exchanges in the GBA. "Our hub also houses the Hong Kong and Macao Youth Home Secretariat and an Innovation and Startup Service Department. It is equipped with facilities like personal live-streaming rooms and a shared coffee room," Deng added. He expressed his hope that through the development of a series of quality cultural exchange activities, they could actively foster a proper worldview and broaden the international horizons of the young people in the region, thereby enhancing the extensive interaction, comprehensive communication, and deep integration among them.
Long Tianxiang, Chairman of Guangzhou Difenuo Coffee Co., Ltd. who’s a native of Macao, informed the media delegation that there has been a rising trend of young people from Hong Kong and Macao coming to the Mainland for internships, entrepreneurship, or employment. "Through our 'Wings Program,' we have successfully provided internship opportunities to nine interns from Hong Kong," he said.
On the one-month mark of the launch of the Guangzhou-Foshan South Loop and Foshan-Dongguan Intercity Railways, the media delegation arrived at the Guangdong Intercity Railway operation site at Panyu Station and took a test ride on the train to experience the latest achievements in transportation infrastructure in the GBA.
Zhang Qiao, the Chief Engineer of the Passenger Service Center at Guangdong Intercity Railway Operation Co., Ltd., introduced the convenient services they provide for ticket purchasing and travel. Passengers can buy tickets on the 12306 platform, as well as using the China T-Union, Lingnan Pass, Yang Cheng Tong, or the official Guangzhou Metro app QR code. Afterwards, they can smoothly enter the station and board the train. "Residents of Hong Kong and Macao can purchase tickets on the 12306 platform using their Residence Permit or Home Return Permit and directly scan their permits to enter and exit the stations," Zhang explained.
In the afternoon of the same day, the media delegation arrived in Huangpu District and visited two high-tech enterprises: Guangzhou Hexin Instrument Co., Ltd. and Apollo Zhixing Technology (Guangzhou) Co., Ltd. Sun Huaquan, the General Manager of Apollo, shared that Baidu began its foray into autonomous driving in 2013 and launched the world's first open platform for autonomous driving, Apollo, in 2017. Baidu Apollo now leads the industry with its solutions in autonomous driving, intelligent vehicles, and smart transportation. The media delegation later tested the autonomous shuttle bus in the park, experiencing the synergistic development of technology and transportation.