Arm China, AI start-up RabbitPre among mainland Chinese tech firms expanding in Hong Kong

A growing number of mainland Chinese tech firms are tapping Hong Kong for research talent and overseas expansion, as the Asian financial hub moves to attract Big Tech and start-ups to boost its technology sector.

Arm China, the Chinese unit of British semiconductor firm Arm Holdings, would establish a chip intellectual property research and development centre in Hong Kong in 2026 that would focus on artificial intelligence and robotics, Arm China senior technical director Zou Wei said last month.

The new centre would be located at the Hetao Shenzhen-Hong Kong Science and Technology Innovation Cooperation Zone, and aimed to recruit around 100 people within three years, according to Zou.

Arm China is among the fifth batch of companies brought to Hong Kong by the Office for Attracting Strategic Enterprises (OASES). It had so far drawn more than 102 firms, which were expected to bring around HK$60 billion in investment and create about 22,000 job opportunities, executive director Bryan Peng said in November.