科技新闻

政府已于2017年9月15日推出「创科创投基金」。该计划现正接受风险投资基金申请成为共同投资伙伴(截止日期:2018年1月15日)。简介会将于2017年10月3日于香港科学园举行，欢迎风险投资基金出席。

The new EcoStruxure IT Advisor simplified deployment – creating instances in the cloud or on-premise- and gain immediate insights

Bank of China (Hong Kong) backed virtual bank livi has appointed Michael Wang as its first CEO to drive its establishment in Hong Kong.The virtual bank, which also has the backing of JD Digits and the Jardine Matheson Group, is gearing up to launch later this year.The company's new CEO Michael Wang has more than 20 years' experience in the financial industry, as well as digital banking expertise and executive management experience. In his new role, Wang will be responsible for overseeing livi's business direction and strategy. This strategy will be based on a principle that money is a tool that can be more easily managed to help customers save smartly and spend consciously. “The name, livi, reflects our goal of living side by side with our customers. We are dedicated to simple banking and delivering a safe and personalized banking experience. We will do this through harnessing the latest technology and collaborating with partner businesses to build a secure open-banking platform,” he said.“livi is a values-based bank, founded on doing what is right by our customers and our staff. We are also committed to being transparent and sincere as we build long-term, stable relationships with our customers, partner businesses and employees. We are a team that never settles and will go above and beyond to deliver a positive banking experience for people in Hong Kong.”The virtual bank is continuing its hiring activities ahead of its launch later in 2019. Caption: Michael Wang_Livi

livi -- the virtual bank backed by BOC Hong Kong, JD Digits and Jardines -- has appointed 20-year financial industry veteran Michael Wang as CEO

The acquisition will give the US-based cyber security vendor access to technology used to test the effectiveness of cyber security controls

Hong Kong-based Nikko Lift and Escalator and Arrow Electronics jointly developed an IoT-based monitoring device to track safety of the city’s aged lifts

The new 24/7 online service is aimed at elevating the security posture of Hong Kong enterprises by protecting endpoints from sophisticated cyberattacks

At the Cisco Connect Greater Bay Area 2019, local SMBs are advised to take the wireless-first strategy to leapfrog the development of their IT infrastructure for digital transformation

Check Point Software Technologies Ltd., a global provider of cybersecurity solutions, today announced that it will provide a comprehensive cybersecurity curriculum to Singapore Polytechnic as part of the Check Point SecureAcademy education program worldwide.As Singapore continues to transform the nation through technology, having secure, trusted and resilient cybersecurity nation-wide is the quintessential vision. Cyber threats and crimes are becoming more sophisticated, while organizations are warming up to a healthy awareness for the need for cybersecurity capabilities. Against the polarity of cyber threats and cybersecurity expertise, Singapore is set to face a potential shortage of up to 3,400 cyber-security professionals by 2020. Globally, an estimated 3.5 million unfilled positions will be expected by 2021.From classroom to careerIn an effort to address the massive shortfall in cyber security professionals worldwide, the Check Point SecureAcademy program is designed to advance students from classroom to career.The program aims to arm students with the ability to recognize and resolve IT security threats, develop hands-on experience with security solutions and acquire employable real-world skills to protect networks. Upon completion of the course, students will earn a globally recognized credential in cybersecurity with an industry-recognized certification assuring expertise in the field anywhere in the world. Students who pass the certification exam upon completion will be extended an interview opportunity for employment at Check Point global offices or its network of more than 5000 affiliates.“The cyber security industry is plagued by a talent gap in which there are significantly more jobs to fill than there are qualified candidates,” noted Shay Solomon, director for cybersecurity education services, Check Point Software Technologies. “Our mission is to bridge that gap by creating more opportunities for formal learning and professional development in which students walk away with not just a deeper understanding of industry-leading solutions, but also a tangible path to employment.” Caption: Image from iStockPhoto/TethysImagingLLC

The magazine closes tomorrow, ending more than three decades of covering local IT industry news.

Thailand’s KASIKORNBANK (KBank) has chosen InstaReM to power cross-border payments for the bank’s clients across select markets.KBank clients will be able to realize faster turnarounds, while providing certainty on delivery times and payout amounts.Silawat Santivisat, Senior Executive Vice President of KASIKORNBANK, said, “This is an important partnership for KBank at an exciting stage in our evolution. We are continuing to expand our cross-border payment capabilities into key markets across the world, as we are witnessing increasing demand from our customers. We are confident that InstaReM’s services will complement our offering and further strengthen our capabilities in serving our clients.”Announcing InstaReM’s partnership with KBank, Prajit Nanu, co-founder and CEO of InstaReM said, “We are delighted to be working together with KBank to power their outward remittances. This relationship further cements InstaReM’s position as a leading provider for cross-border transactions.” 

ICICI Lombard has partnered with Microsoft to develop India’s first AI-enabled car inspection feature in its mobile app, “Insure.” The app allows customers to buy or renew policies anytime, anywhere, and will soon also simplify the process of making a repair claim.In case of lapsed policy instead of a physical inspection, customers can simply take images of their vehicle and upload them with Insure. The app then uses artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning to divide the images into frames and identify the various parts of the car to look for damage. In most cases the AI module can make a judgement very quickly, reducing the time taken for an assessment from days to mere minutes.“We had been envisioning something like this for a long period of time,” says Girish Nayak, Chief Customer Service, Operations & Technology, for ICICI Lombard. “We were not really successful working with some start-ups. Therefore, we approached Microsoft to see if we could do this together.”The two companies started collaborating where software engineers from both companies met and worked on a prototype.“The prototype gave us confidence that something like this is possible,” said Nayak.Using the Azure platform, computer vision, and machine learning (ML) technologies, they refined the process until the accuracy was fit for purpose.The feature was launched in December of 2018. Nayak said, “real time renewals of expired policies makes the customer experience consistent and convenient.”Expanding AI in auto insuranceRenewing policies online has proven to be successful — the company is currently processing between 150 to 200 cars per day — but as Nayak pointed out, using AI for renewals is just a “stepping stone” for the company. AI is a major thrust for the company, and they are very near to using AI to process repair claims as well. The solution is currently in beta stage and is expected to be launched in 2019.When a customer’s vehicle is damaged in an accident, they must surrender it to a service center so a service engineer can assess the damage and provide an estimate for repair. Then, an insurance personnel examines both the car and the estimate, and either approves, rejects or modifies individual parts of the estimate.Compare that to the new, AI-driven process; a customer will use the app to take photographs of car’s damage. Once uploaded, the system’s deep learning model and computer vision identifies in real time all the parts of the vehicle, like roof, window or bumper and then spots all the different types of damage – be it scratch, dent, crack, and so on. Most importantly, the app replies with an estimated cost quickly using historical data.With AI, the company aims to process over 80,000 simple claims every month with same-day turnaround when the module is launched towards the end of 2019.The app is also valuable to ICICI Lombard from a business perspective. Automating the process reduces the possibility of inaccurate assessments due to human error. And, increased efficiency and productivity improves the bottom line. Caption: Image from iStockPhoto

Rabobank Singapore operations has deployed Adobe Sign in a bid to embark on digital workflows within the bank.The trade services department at Rabobank Singapore first deployed Adobe Sign to streamline process.The team processes thousands of time-sensitive trade documents every year, each requiring several rounds of drafting, checking, and authorization. In the past, it could take several days to finalize a document. The deployment has allowed the team to turn documents around in a few hours, with the aim to achieve time savings.Adobe Sign works by streamlining credit line approvals, making Rabobank Singapore more responsive to client needs. Instead of circulating a stack of papers to six departments, the e-signature workflow removes friction and offers visibility into who has signed and who hasn’t.After success in the trade services department, the use of Adobe Sign was extend acrossRabobank Singapore. IT now uses e-signature workflows to streamline processing procurement and compliance documents. HR has begun using the tools to facilitate recruiting and onboarding of new employees. And with widespread adoption, the entire Singapore office serves as a model for Rabobank operations across the Asia-Pacific region.“We’re seeing amazing time savings and improved efficiencies across business units and in our interactions with the customers. Our sign-off processes are modernized, and work moves much faster now that signatures can be delivered and tracked with just a few clicks. We’ve raised the overall experience level—both internally and externally,” says Manikandan Ganesan, IT & Operations Business Manager at Rabobank Singapore.

HKSTP has opened a Sensor Lab complete with dedicated cleanroom facilities aimed at accelerating R&D into micro and nano sensor technologies

Hong Kong based Biu Chun Watch Hands & Parts Manufacturers has deployed an ERP suite from Epicor to help harness the power of automation

Pivotal Spring Runtime includes ongoing updates and support for Pivotal’s OpenJDK distribution, Spring Java projects, and Apache Tomcat