From 4th to 7th November 2025, the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government in China convened the “HOUSING • I&T Summit”. The summit is a key event of the “HOUSING • I&T Year 2025” organised by the Housing Bureau of Hong Kong SAR and the Hong Kong Housing Authority, which brought together local governments, industrial practitioners, researchers, and relevant stakeholders to exchange insights on adopting innovations for providing sustainable housing solutions.
Credit: Hong Kong Housing Bureau
Hong Kong Government’s vision on public housing
The summit started with remarks from Ms. Ho Wing Yin Winnie (Justice of Peace), Secretary for Housing in Hong Kong, who presented the Hong Kong government’s vision and plan for future public housing. With 2 million residents living in public housing in Hong Kong, the Housing Bureau has set the following goals and strategies in its ten-year plan to address the housing needs.
- Public housing supply target: 294,000 units in order to maintain a 70:30 public and private housing split
- 30,000 Light Public Housing units and 21,000 Transitional Housing units will be constructed
Light Public Housing and Transitional Housing are initiatives by the Hong Kong Government to quickly fill gaps in public housing by using temporarily vacant land. In practice, the government finds sites outside of Hong Kong’s long-term development plans and builds housing units that operate for a relatively short time, usually less than ten years. To make this fast-moving effort successful, efficiency must be paired with innovation — the key to delivering it on time and sustainably.
This housing innovation summit exemplifies the Hong Kong Government’s focus on promoting cross-sector collaboration and advancing innovative solutions in housing development.
Credit: Hong Kong Housing Bureau
Fostering alignment between sectors and regions
Establishing the vision for adopting housing innovation, the summit invited representatives from different sectors and regions to discuss how they can contribute to the Hong Kong Government’s development plan.
From the academic, Prof. Michael B. Wong from the University of Hong Kong shared his research to demonstrate the importance of public housing for Hong Kong’s development. The supply of public housing is directly linked to the housing affordability of both the public and private markets, and therefore to social stability.
The Hong Kong government, in anticipation of the extensive housing construction projects, recognised the urgent need for housing technology advancement. Mr. Leung Hung Wai, Daniel, Deputy Director of the Housing Department in Hong Kong, introduced the Modular Integrated Construction (MiC) method, which will be adopted in Light Public Housing and Transitional Housing projects. He also established the importance of standardised design, highly repetitive, and vast supply in the development of today’s housing technologies.
“The traditional approach to building is no longer sufficient to meet this challenge of constructing 294,000 public housing units in ten years. Therefore, we must completely redesign the entire process to eliminate dependence on the current steady state and achieve transformative growth at an unprecedented scale, speed, efficiency, and quality to deliver public housing.”— Mr. Leung Hung Wai, Daniel, Housing Department in Hong Kong
Mr. Wu Luyang, an official from the Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development of China, proposed recommendations from the national perspective that aim to support efforts by strengthening inter-regional and industry collaborations and exchanges, as well as promoting industry standardization and norms to facilitate prefabrication for more efficient house construction.
“We should actively promote regional exchanges and cooperation, sharing advanced technology and management experience between the two sides in the field of urban housing.”—Mr. Wu Luyang, Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development of China
Coordination among local governments, the national government, academia, and the private sector paved the way for a united effort to develop housing solutions in Hong Kong. It drives the shift in innovative housing technology, including the use of digital tools, process optimization, and prefabrication in construction technology.
Credit: Hong Kong Housing Bureau
Different perspectives on innovative housing solutions
The alignment among different sectors encourages rapid innovation in housing. How to engage the private sector and research institutes in the development process has become a key task for the Hong Kong Government to promote innovation. Various institutes and companies shared their progress and insights on housing innovations. Below are some of their views and perspectives.
Prof. Nelson LAM from the University of Melbourne shared his insight on disaster-proof construction, which is critical for the safety aspect of construction.
Mr. Andy Fung, CEO of the Nano and Advanced Materials Institute, represented the view of a government-supported and owned research enterprise, focusing on the commercialization of research products as a key enabler of collaboration between local governments and research and development sectors.
“Our job is to ensure that the funds provided by the government are actually used for projects that benefit the local community.”—Mr. Andy FUNG, Nano and Advanced Materials Institute
Mr. Marc COLELLA, Senior Vice President of AECOM Global Group Limited, presented the platform-based construction ecosystem, emphasizing the importance of ecosystem thinking.
“Why is this framework (platform-based construction ecosystem) transformative? Because it combines people, processes, and technology into a unified ecosystem.” — Mr. Marc COLELLA, AECOM
Sharing insights, perspectives, concerns, and needs across sectors is a vital part of development.
Credit: Hong Kong Housing Bureau
Implementation of housing innovations
The summit also highlighted experts and industry practitioners in logistics, property management, and construction worker safety. Here are some insights:
Prof. Wilson Lu from the University of Hong Kong showcased the world’s first blockchain technology in construction, MiC Three Treasures, which facilitates easy record-keeping during the construction process. The project is a collaboration between Hong Kong and the National Center of Technology Innovation for Digital Construction, another example of national-local collaboration.
Mr. Oh Sang Wook and Dr. Hwang Jong A from Seoul Housing & Urban Development Corporation presented their Geographical Information System platform to manage property development.
Mr. Eddie HO, General Manager of the Lighthouse Inno-Lab Limited, shared three solutions to common construction accidents. He urged local governments to respond to the rapidly advancing innovation. Echoing his thoughts, Prof. Jack Cheng, from the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, emphasised the importance of flexibility in regulations on innovations.
“Technology is evolving rapidly. Government regulation needs to catch up with it.”—Eddie HO, Lighthouse Inno-lab Limited.
Ar. Prof. Ada Fung, the Chairperson of the Construction Industry Safety and Health Steering Committee, Occupational Safety and Health Council in Hong Kong, showcased how remote control and robotic solutions empower a safer work environment.
“Advanced technology is not here to replace human workers but to empower people to work in better ways.”—Ar. Prof. Ada FUNG
Credit: Hong Kong Housing Bureau
Public housing in action
The summit concluded with a visit to two Light Public Housing sites in Kai Tak and Lam Tin. During the visit, representatives from the Hong Kong Housing Bureau and Hong Kong Housing Authority introduced that Light Public Housing.
Light public housing units are allocated to households with the greatest needs, such as those living in subdivided units. Moving into new places, especially those built with innovative technologies, can cause hesitation. As a result, the Hong Kong government and estate managers have conducted pre-move-in site visits and organized regular community events.
Conclusion
The summit highlighted how local governments can promote development through effective strategies and the collaborative efforts of the public, private, and academic sectors, particularly from a housing perspective. It also serves as an important platform for stakeholders to exchange ideas on urban innovations, reflecting the government’s dedication to fostering innovation.
Credit: Hong Kong Housing Bureau
