BEYOND Expo 2023 kicks off with a grand opening highlighting Macau as an innovation bridge between Asia and the World

The highly anticipated in-person third edition of the  BEYOND International Technology Innovation Expo (BEYOND Expo) Asia’s foremost annual gathering for technology and innovation, commenced with grandeur in Macau today, on May 10. With a resounding vision of bridging Asia and the rest of the world amidst geopolitical tensions, Jason Ho, one of the co-founders of BEYOND International Technology Innovation Expo (BEYOND Expo), launched the three-day event at the Venetian Macau Convention & Exhibition Center

Esteemed business and technology heavyweights from across the globe graced the grand opening ceremony of the event organized by the Macau Technology General Association with support from government departments and enterprises from Macau, Mainland China. Under the “Technology Redefined” theme, this year’s BEYOND Expo focuses on three pivotal areas: Sustainability, Healthcare, and Consumer Tech. Over 800 exhibitors from 120 countries have converged for the event from May 10 to 12.

Addressing a captivated audience at the opening ceremony, Jason Ho expressed BEYOND’s mission to showcase a different facet of Macau by bringing together renowned experts, enterprises, and investors from home and abroad in innovation and cutting-edge technologies. “We believe Macau, historically, has been a very neutral and international city. With geopolitical tensions nowadays, we need a platform where people can exchange ideas and collaborate. We believe Macau is a perfect place for its neutrality [as] we are not competing with other countries and cities. We believe Macau can be a bridge between Asian countries and the rest of the world,” Ho added. Ho further highlighted Macau’s renowned hospitality sector and its strategic role within the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macau Greater Bay Area.

Macau Chief Executive Ho Iat Seng also emphasized the advantage of Macau’s neutrality in his opening remark, affirming the city’s commitment to optimizing innovation and technology regulations, integrating technology into traditional industries, and attracting top-notch talent.

Wang Weizhong, governor of the neighboring Guangdong province, applauded BEYOND Expo for emerging as a major technology expo in Asia within three years. Wang underscored the potential of the Guangdong-Macau In-depth Cooperation Zone in Hengqin, located nearby, to expedite technological advancements for Macau and the Greater Bay Area. “For instance, the incubators in Hengqin have nurtured over 400 startups by Macau’s young entrepreneurs. The cooperation zone now boasts 301 national-level technology firms,” Wang said. Wan Gang, president of the National Committee of the China Association for Science and Technology, affirmed China’s willingness to cooperate with global counterparts in technology and innovation.

The Expo’s opening day features a distinguished lineup of business and technology luminaries, including Jin Liqun, president of the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank; renowned scientist Pan Jianwei, an academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences; Andrew Sheng, the chief adviser to the China Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission and former chairman of the Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission; Kishore Mahbubani, a Singaporean diplomat and former president of the United Nations Security Council; and Joseph Tsai, executive vice chairman of Alibaba Group. These influential figures contributed to discussions on the future of technology in the “What Next?” talks.

Encompassing an expansive exhibition space of nearly 100,000 square meters, the three-day event hosts multinational firms, local companies, unicorn startups, new startups, and global media. The Expo has four major summits—the Sustainability Summit, Healthcare Summit, Consumer Tech Summit, and Global Investment Summit. These summits bring together scholars, experts, executives, and investors to engage in insightful panel discussions on trending topics within their respective domains.