Washington moved closer to another military escalation with Tehran after President Donald Trump warned that the United States could resume strikes within days if Iran fails to accept terms for ending the war. Trump said he had called off a planned attack shortly before a final decision, presenting the delay as a narrow opening for diplomacy rather than a retreat from military pressure. “I hope we don’t […]
The collaboration is grounded in a shared early commitment to institutional tokenization. Franklin Templeton launched the first U.S.-registered mutual fund to use a public blockchain to process transactions and record share ownership in 2021. DigiFT has built one of Asia’s most comprehensively regulated platforms for institutional tokenized asset distribution — holding licences in both Singapore and Hong Kong, including Type 1 and Type 4 licences from the Securities and Futures Commission of Hong Kong. This partnership brings those two track records together: DigiFT will serve as a key distributor across Asia, with both organisations committed to expanding the scope of their work together over time.
The partnership arrives at a decisive moment. In 2025, tokenized real-world assets distributed on public blockchains grew from approximately USD 5.5 billion to USD 18.6 billion, with tokenized U.S. government securities emerging as the leading institutional category. This growth underscores a structural inefficiency in digital markets, where institutional capital is frequently held in non‑yielding stablecoins or on‑exchange balances, while traditional fund infrastructure remains constrained by defined settlement cycles. The Benji Technology Platform and its related tokenization products are designed to address this gap by supporting the tokenization of U.S. government securities strategies that accrue yield continuously, including intraday accrual, through Franklin Templeton’s patent‑pending Intraday Yield mechanism. It also supports 24/7 transferability between permissioned wallets and near‑instant on‑chain settlement, enabling a range of potential institutional treasury management, payment and settlement use cases, and deployable off‑exchange collateral for institutional market participants.
Henry Zhang, Founder and Group CEO of DigiFT, said: “DigiFT was built with a specific conviction: that institutional investors deserve access to the world’s best on-chain financial instruments, through a platform that meets the regulatory standard they require. The partnership with Franklin Templeton reflects that conviction and marks the beginning of a long-term strategic collaboration to bring tokenized solutions to market.”
Chetan Karkhanis, SVP, Digital Asset Partnership Development at Franklin Templeton, said: “The partners we choose reflect our long-term commitment, not just our near-term distribution objectives towards bringing the benefits of blockchain and tokenization to the industry. DigiFT’s leadership and innovative edge, together with the institutional infrastructure they have built, provides a strong foundation for this partnership. This marks the beginning of what we expect to be an expanding and enduring collaboration.”
Hashtag: #DigiFT
https://www.digift.io/
https://www.linkedin.com/company/digifttech/
https://twitter.com/DigiFTTech
https://www.youtube.com/@DigiFTtech
The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.
President Donald Trump has put a planned attack on Iran on hold after Gulf leaders urged Washington to allow negotiations more time, while warning that the US military remains ready for a “full, large scale assault” if no acceptable deal is reached. The decision marks a critical pause in a confrontation that has drawn the US, Iran, Israel and Gulf states into one of the most volatile […]
Addressing Growing Complexity in Modern Engineering Validation
As industries adopt emerging technologies such as wide bandgap power devices and high-speed digital interfaces, engineering teams are facing increasingly complex validation, debugging, and compliance challenges. Signal integrity, power integrity, and measurement accuracy have also become more critical across modern product development environments, particularly as systems operate at higher speeds and tighter tolerances.
Despite wider access to advanced test equipment, many teams may still rely on legacy measurement approaches or have limited exposure to newer testing methodologies and tools. At the same time, accurately interpreting measurement results and identifying root causes continue to require strong application knowledge and practical measurement experience.
Genetron’s Deminars are primarily designed for engineers and technical teams involved in research and development, product validation, debugging, and system development. Rather than focusing purely on product features or theoretical discussions, the sessions are structured around practical engineering challenges commonly encountered during development and testing processes.
Hashtag: #Genetron
The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.
Genetron Corp is a Singapore-based provider of test and measurement solutions supporting engineers, researchers, and innovators across Asia. The company offers a range of equipment and application-focused solutions, including oscilloscopes, protocol analysers, and power analysis systems designed for precision, reliability, and integration into complex development environments. In addition to supplying equipment, Genetron provides technical consultations, application expertise, and practical engineering education initiatives for comprehensive post-sales support.
Arabian Post Staff -Dubai ADNOC Distribution and Americana Restaurants International PLC have agreed to open up to 200 quick-service restaurants across fuel and mobility sites in the UAE, Saudi Arabia and Egypt, deepening a push to turn service stations into broader dining, retail and convenience destinations. The strategic partnership announced on Tuesday will bring brands from Americana Restaurants’ portfolio into ADNOC Distribution locations, including standard service stations […]
The event comes amid renewed momentum for New Zealand’s Active Investor Plus (AIP) Visa, following changes introduced in April 2025 to simplify the program and attract more international capital into the New Zealand economy. As of 5 May 2026, Immigration New Zealand had received 688 applications under the new settings, representing a potential total minimum investment of $4.015 billion.
The growing demand reflects a broader shift in global wealth movement, as high-net-worth individuals increasingly seek jurisdictions that offer political stability, transparent governance, quality of life and long-term optionality for their families and capital. For many investors, New Zealand’s appeal lies not only in residency access, but also in the opportunity to participate in investments that support business growth, innovation and economic resilience.
Mr Scott Wehl, Founder of RAM Group and Director of RAM New Zealand, said the Hong Kong briefing provided an important forum for partners and investors to better understand the investment and migration opportunities available through the AIP programme.
“New Zealand continues to attract strong interest from global investors seeking stability, transparency and long-term opportunity,” said Mr Wehl.
“Our Hong Kong briefing was designed to help partners and investors better understand the opportunities that the AIP program offers, and how RAM’s income-focused strategies can support both investor objectives and the broader New Zealand economy.”
Supporting New Zealand’s real economy through private credit
A key focus of the briefing was the role private credit can play in supporting New Zealand’s real economy. Private credit can help broaden the country’s business funding ecosystem by providing an additional source of secured, non-bank capital for businesses seeking funding for growth, working capital, expansion or other productive business needs.
The RAM New Zealand Credit Fund is an approved managed fund under the AIP Growth category and may also be included as part of a Balanced category investment portfolio. The Fund is designed to provide investors with consistent income and capital stability through exposure to secured, asset-backed credit investments in New Zealand.
Through this strategy, RAM seeks to direct offshore investor capital into productive domestic investment while maintaining a disciplined focus on risk management, downside protection and portfolio diversification.
“The RAM New Zealand Credit Fund provides an AIP-aligned investment pathway focused on secured, asset-backed New Zealand credit,” said Mr Wehl.
“For investors, the Fund is designed to deliver regular income and capital stability, with liquidity aligned to AIP investment timeframes. For New Zealand, the strategy can support the real economy by directing offshore investor capital into domestic private credit and helping provide secured lending to New Zealand businesses.”
RAM’s credit approach is centred on disciplined credit selection and robust portfolio construction. The firm’s New Zealand credit capability is supported by a highly experienced team with more than 200 years of combined credit market experience, guided by leading credit experts and senior leaders with deep knowledge of New Zealand’s financial markets.
“Our approach is grounded in strong governance, prudent credit assessment and a clear focus on capital preservation, which is particularly important for investors seeking stable, income-focused outcomes across market cycles,” said Mr Wehl.
In addition to the RAM New Zealand Credit Fund, RAM also offers the RAM New Zealand Bond Fund, which may be included as part of a Balanced category investment portfolio. The Fund invests in a portfolio of floating-rate, investment-grade bonds issued by established banks and New Zealand entities, and is designed to prioritise capital stability while generating regular income.
With a long-term commitment to New Zealand, RAM will continue to leverage its international presence, investment capability and experience in income-focused strategies to support global investors and contribute to the continued development and diversification of New Zealand’s capital markets.
Hashtag: #RAM
The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.
Real Asset Management (RAM) is an alternative asset manager, providing investment solutions in Credit, Real Estate, and Private Equity markets, for institutions and wealthy families globally. RAM was founded in 2010 and has a pan-Asia presence of 7 offices in Auckland, Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Shanghai, Hong Kong and Manila.
RAM provides more than 25 investment strategies and has a team of over 230 finance professionals managing over NZ$9.8bn in assets. RAM is registered as a financial services provider in New Zealand (FSP1011247). We also provide a global set of investment solutions through our group companies licensed by the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (AFSL 484263), and the Securities & Futures Commission of Hong Kong (CE BGL803).
For more information about RAM New Zealand, please visit https://ramgroup.co.nz/
A chance photograph taken on a remote Queensland property has returned Ptilotus senarius to scientific view after 58 years without a confirmed record, turning a plant long treated as presumed extinct into a live test case for smartphone-powered biodiversity discovery. The small, slender shrub, a member of the Amaranthaceae family, had not been collected since 1967 and was known only from preserved herbarium specimens before horticulturalist and […]
Held under the theme “Run · Build · Protect: Driving the Future with the Power of AI,” the forum showcased how enterprises across Asia Pacific are rethinking traditional infrastructure strategies and adopting integrated cloud platforms designed to simplify operations, strengthen security, and support long-term AI-driven growth.
A major focus throughout the event was the growing market demand for VMware alternatives following industry-wide changes to licensing and infrastructure costs. Sessions explored how organizations are seeking more flexible, cost-efficient virtualization platforms that can support both traditional enterprise workloads and future AI-driven operations. Discussions also highlighted SCMT (Sangfor Cloud Management Tool), designed to support seamless VMware migration to Sangfor Cloud.
During the forum, Sangfor showcased its integrated cloud infrastructure platform, combining compute, storage, networking, organization , and built-in cybersecurity into a unified architecture designed to reduce operational complexity and simplify migration from legacy virtualization environments.
The event also highlighted Sangfor’s AI-ready infrastructure capabilities, including support for virtual machines, containers, AI workloads, and integrated storage management through a single platform.
Keith Lee, Cloud Business Director, Sangfor Technologies, said: “Across the region, organizations are reassessing legacy virtualization strategies and looking for platforms that can provide greater flexibility, operational simplicity, and long-term scalability. Businesses today need infrastructure that combines cloud, security, AI readiness, operational efficiency and friendly licensing policies within a single platform. This is driving growing interest in next-generation VMware alternatives that can support both current enterprise requirements and future AI-driven growth.”
Lee added that Sangfor continues to expand investment across Southeast Asia, with Thailand identified as one of the company’s fastest-growing markets in the region.
The forum also featured discussions around infrastructure resilience, cloud-native applications, Zero Trust security strategies, and AI-powered operations, alongside customer case studies and live demonstrations showcasing enterprise transformation initiatives across both public and private sectors.
Sarayut Siragulthiraphong, Presales Consultant, Sangfor Thailand, added: “Successful AI adoption requires more than just AI applications themselves. Organizations also need infrastructure that is secure, scalable, and capable of supporting evolving workloads.”
Sangfor was joined by partners including Cohesity, Veeam, Sundray, IT Green, VR Comm, VST ECS, and TechHub, highlighting a collaborative ecosystem supporting enterprise transformation across Asia Pacific.
Sangfor will continue the Executive Forum series across key markets in the region, with upcoming events planned:
For more information, please visit https://www.sangfor.com
Hashtag: #SangforTechnologies
The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.
Sangfor Technologies is a global provider of cloud infrastructure and cybersecurity solutions, headquartered in Shenzhen (China). Founded in 2000, the company serves over 100,000 customers worldwide across 22+ countries and regions. Sangfor delivers AI-enabled cloud infrastructure that integrates compute, storage, network and built-in security into a unified platform, helping organizations simplify digital and AI transformation.
With a strong focus on innovation and customer success, Sangfor is also recognized as a proven VMware alternative, offering enterprise-grade solutions for infrastructure modernization, migration, and operational efficiency.
For more information, visit https://www.sangfor.com
Dubai will host a high-level Africa investment forum on 22 October 2026 as Invest Africa and the Government of the United Arab Emirates move to deepen trade, finance and technology partnerships across one of the world’s fastest-growing economic corridors. The Africa Debate – UAE, organised in collaboration with the UAE Ministry of Foreign Trade, will bring senior figures from government, finance, industry and development institutions under the […]
HONG KONG SAR – Media OutReach Newswire – 18 May 2026 – Bupa Hong Kong today announced the launch of Bupa Care Bridge Health Insurance Scheme, a new medical insurance solution designed to support Hong Kong residents whose lives increasingly span Hong Kong and Mainland China, and who are seeking affordable, practical health protection that covers both major medical events and everyday healthcare needs.
Cross‑border healthcare has become a growing reality for many Hong Kong people. In 2024 alone, Hong Kong residents made approximately 700,000 medical visits in Shenzhen, reflecting rising familiarity with receiving medical services across the border for efficiency, convenience and follow‑up care. At the same time, most continue to rely on Hong Kong for routine outpatient consultations, ongoing care and long‑term health management.
Bupa Care Bridge is designed around this reality. The scheme provides inpatient coverage across Hong Kong and Mainland China, while anchoring outpatient and preventive care in Hong Kong, where everyday healthcare is most frequently accessed. Designed with affordability in mind, the scheme offers two plan levels and flexible deductible options that allow customers to balance premium levels with the degree of protection they need, making the plan relevant to young adults, cross‑border professionals and retirees, including those managing healthcare costs over the long term.
Rather than positioning outpatient care as an optional add-on, Bupa Care Bridge embeds outpatient services within the medical plan itself, helping customers manage everyday healthcare costs more predictably while maintaining comprehensive inpatient protection.
Key features of Bupa Care Bridge include:
The scheme also supports preventive care, offering access to health check‑ups to encourage early detection and ongoing health monitoring, helping customers take a more proactive approach to managing their health rather than reacting only when serious illness occurs.
By combining affordable everyday outpatient care in Hong Kong with cashless inpatient protection across borders, Bupa Care Bridge supports both short‑term healthcare needs and longer‑term health planning in a more connected region.
Bupa Care Bridge Health Insurance Scheme is now available for enrolment. For more information, please visit www.bupa.com.hk/en/care-bridge.
Hashtag: #保柏香港 #BupaHongKong #跨境醫療 #CrossBorderHealthcare #GreaterChina
The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.
Established in 1947, Bupa’s purpose is helping people live longer, healthier, happier lives and making a better world. We are an international healthcare company serving over 68 million customers worldwide. With no shareholders, we reinvest profits into providing more and better healthcare for the benefit of current and future customers. Bupa has businesses around the world, principally in Australia, the UK, Spain, Poland, Chile, Hong Kong SAR, India, Türkiye, Brazil, Mexico and New Zealand. We also have associate businesses in Saudi Arabia.
Bupa has been a health insurance specialist in Hong Kong since 1976, offering one-stop solutions across domestic and international health insurance, and healthcare services. Our comprehensive medical insurance schemes are tailored to meet individual needs, and we provide health solutions for companies of all sizes. We also have a team of registered nurses, health management professionals, and doctors who provide various expert healthcare support.
Our healthcare provision arm, Quality HealthCare Medical Services (QHMS), became part of Bupa in October 2013. QHMS offers Western Medicine, Traditional Chinese Medicine, Diagnostics & Imaging, Physiotherapy, Mental Health and Wellness services via a network of over 1,650 provider service points in Hong Kong.
For more information, visit www.bupa.com.hk/en/.
The sharpest pressure has fallen on long-dated Japanese government bonds, where the 30-year yield has climbed above 4 per cent, reaching a record since the maturity was introduced in 1999. The 10-year yield has also risen to around 2.8 per cent, its highest level in nearly three decades, marking a decisive break from the low-yield era that defined Japan’s markets for much of the post-deflation period.
The selloff has rippled across global debt markets. US Treasury yields have moved higher, with the 30-year yield testing levels above 5 per cent, while Germany’s benchmark bonds and UK gilts have also weakened. Bond prices move inversely to yields, meaning the surge in yields reflects heavy selling by investors who are demanding greater compensation for inflation, fiscal risk and uncertain central bank policy.
Rising oil prices are the immediate catalyst. Brent crude has moved above $100 a barrel as geopolitical tensions in the Middle East disrupt energy flows and heighten concerns over import costs for major economies. For Japan, which relies heavily on imported energy, the oil shock carries a particularly direct inflationary threat. A weaker yen has amplified the impact, increasing the local-currency cost of fuel, food and other imported goods.
Japan’s inflation backdrop has become more difficult for policymakers. Consumer prices have remained above the Bank of Japan’s 2 per cent target for an extended period, while corporate goods prices have shown persistent pressure from energy, raw materials and logistics costs. Investors are now pricing in a greater chance that the central bank will raise interest rates again, possibly as early as its next policy meetings, after years of extraordinary accommodation.
Fiscal concerns are adding to the strain. Tokyo is preparing additional spending to cushion households and businesses from rising fuel and utility costs, but fresh borrowing could worsen concerns over debt sustainability. Japan’s public debt is already among the highest in the developed world, making long-term bond investors more sensitive to any increase in issuance. The prospect of larger supply has hit demand for longer maturities, where insurers, pension funds and banks traditionally played a stabilising role.
The Bank of Japan faces a delicate balance. Raising rates too quickly could unsettle growth and worsen losses in bond portfolios held by financial institutions. Moving too slowly could allow inflation expectations to become entrenched and place further pressure on the yen. The central bank has already scaled back its dominance of the bond market compared with the period of yield-curve control, leaving prices more exposed to market forces.
Global investors are also reassessing the role of government bonds as a safe asset. During earlier market shocks, US Treasuries, German Bunds and Japanese government bonds often rallied as investors sought protection. The current episode is different because the shock is inflationary rather than deflationary. Higher energy prices reduce household purchasing power, raise business costs and complicate the task of central banks that had hoped to cut rates or keep policy steady.
The selloff has implications beyond financial markets. Higher sovereign yields raise funding costs for governments already facing pressure from defence spending, ageing populations, energy subsidies and climate-related investment. They also affect mortgage rates, corporate borrowing and equity valuations. Technology shares and other growth-sensitive assets tend to come under pressure when long-term yields climb, because future earnings are discounted more heavily.
Japan’s shift is especially important because its low yields long encouraged domestic investors to buy overseas bonds. As yields rise at home, insurers and pension funds have less incentive to take currency risk abroad, potentially reducing demand for US and European debt. That repatriation effect could intensify volatility in global markets if Japanese institutions continue to rebalance portfolios.
Arabian Post Staff -Dubai Abu Dhabi’s Mubadala Energy has joined a $9.75 billion financing package for the Commonwealth LNG export project in Louisiana, giving a major Gulf investor a deeper role in the expanding United States gas export market as buyers seek long-term energy supplies outside traditional Middle East routes. The investment is tied to Caturus, the US energy platform developing the project in Cameron Parish, where […]
Washington’s defence establishment is confronting a sharper supply-chain warning after President Donald Trump left Beijing claiming major trade progress, while China kept key controls on materials vital to US weapons, aircraft, satellites and advanced electronics. Trump ended his two-day visit by declaring that he had reached “fantastic trade deals” with President Xi Jinping, saying the understandings would benefit both economies. The commercial package pointed to tariff discussions, […]
Qatar Science & Technology Park has launched a $30 million Tech Venture Fund to back early-stage deeptech companies headquartered in Qatar, positioning the initiative as a new capital channel for founders working in artificial intelligence, robotics, biotechnology, advanced materials and clean technology. The fund, unveiled by the Qatar Foundation member in Doha, will invest in startups with measurable social or climate impact and will operate alongside a […]
By Nitya Chakraborty Now that the U.S. President Donald Trump is back to Washington DC. After his two day summit talks in Beijing on May 14 and 15, it is appropriate to decode the gains of the summit. There were four major issues– Taiwan, Iran war, trade deals and facilitating more business for the American […]
The article Decoding Global Geopolitical Impact Of Trump-Xi Summit In Beijing appeared first on Latest India news, analysis and reports on Newspack by India Press Agency).
The measure, effective from 16 May for three months, applies to selected motor vehicles including passenger cars, jeeps, vans, buses, goods transport vehicles, ambulances, electric vehicles and hybrids. Vehicles for which letters of credit were opened on or before 15 May are exempt, limiting the immediate disruption for importers who had already committed payments before the order took effect.
The surcharge is levied on the applicable customs import duty, rather than directly on the total value of a vehicle. For many private vehicles, the customs import duty had stood at 30 per cent, meaning the added surcharge raises that component to 45 per cent. Other taxes and levies, including excise duties, value-added tax and sector-specific charges, mean the final tax burden on imported cars can be far higher than the headline customs duty figure.
Deputy Finance Minister Anil Jayantha Fernando said the step was designed to encourage buyers to delay vehicle imports rather than halt the trade outright. He said the government was responding to a sharp rise in import expenditure and added pressure on foreign reserves. “Given the current pressure on foreign exchange, we want people to delay their imports by three months,” he told reporters in Colombo.
The decision marks a swift policy adjustment by President Anura Kumara Dissanayake’s administration as Sri Lanka attempts to balance consumer demand, revenue needs and currency stability after years of severe economic strain. Vehicle imports were heavily restricted after the island’s 2022 financial collapse, when the country ran short of foreign exchange and struggled to pay for fuel, food and medicines. The gradual reopening of imports was seen as a sign of economic normalisation, but it has also revived concerns about the pressure placed on the balance of payments.
Sri Lanka remains dependent on imported fuel, leaving the economy exposed to swings in global crude prices. Tensions across the Middle East have pushed energy costs higher, forcing authorities to reassess import priorities. Fuel prices have already climbed sharply this year, adding to the cost of transport, electricity generation and logistics. The government is trying to prevent higher oil bills from draining reserves at a time when the country remains under a $2.9 billion International Monetary Fund programme.
The rupee has weakened against the US dollar this year, with official figures showing a fall of about 4.5 per cent since January. Central Bank Governor Nandalal Weerasinghe has warned lawmakers that the currency could remain under pressure unless global oil prices ease or the country reduces energy imports. That warning sharpened the policy case for curbing non-essential import demand, particularly in high-value categories such as vehicles.
Vehicle importers and consumers are likely to face a tougher market over the next quarter. The surcharge may delay purchases, reduce showroom availability and raise prices for buyers who choose to proceed. Importers with confirmed letters of credit before the cut-off date may have a temporary advantage, while new buyers could defer orders until the surcharge expires, provided the government does not extend it.
The policy also carries revenue implications. Vehicle imports are a lucrative source of tax income, and Sri Lanka has relied on trade-related levies to support public finances during its recovery. A surcharge may increase tax collected on each imported vehicle, but lower import volumes could offset that gain if buyers hold back. The government’s calculation appears to prioritise currency defence and reserve management over short-term market expansion.
Arabian Post Staff -Dubai Money managers have lifted bullish copper wagers to their highest level in five months, reinforcing a powerful rally that has pushed New York futures to record territory and sharpened debate over whether the market is pricing a durable supply squeeze or a crowded speculative trade. Hedge funds and other large speculators raised their net-long position in Comex copper by 16 per cent to […]
Ethereum is entering a critical trading phase as BitMine Immersion Technologies pushes its corporate treasury close to 5 per cent of the network’s total supply, sharpening debate over whether concentrated accumulation can support prices or magnify volatility. The token was trading near $2,227 on Saturday, after slipping during the session from an intraday high above $2,310. The move kept ether above the $2,100 level watched by some […]
Dubai Culture and Arts Authority and the Roads and Transport Authority have opened applications for artists, designers and architects to transform more than 40 road tunnels across the emirate into public art landmarks, widening the city’s effort to embed culture into everyday urban movement. The Dubai Tunnels Initiative is inviting Emirati and UAE-based creative professionals to submit proposals from 11 May to 15 June 2026. The programme […]
Arabian Post Staff -Dubai ADNOC has exchanged two strategic collaboration agreements with partners from India, widening Abu Dhabi’s role in crude storage, LPG supply and energy-security planning at a time of volatile shipping routes and rising fuel demand across Asia. The agreements were announced in Abu Dhabi on 15 May 2026 during Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to the UAE, in the presence of President Sheikh Mohamed […]
HONG KONG SAR – Media OutReach Newswire – 15 May 2026 – As artificial intelligence (AI) sweeps across the globe, how should humanity redefine the core competencies needed to shape the future? Funded by The Hong Kong Jockey Club Charities Trust and organised by AFTEC, Knowledge Exchange 2026—Artistic Intelligence: Shaping Human Achievement opens today for two days at Hong Kong’s newest cultural landmark—the East Kowloon Cultural Centre—marking the venue’s first major international arts education event. As a flagship annual initiative of the AFTEC Jockey Club Creative Futures Project, the forum has attracted nearly 260 educators, artists and stakeholders to explore how creative teaching and learning can inspire learning, spark creativity and nurture talent, laying the foundation for a better future.
Bringing Together Education and Cultural Leaders to Build a Cross-Disciplinary Creative Network
The opening ceremony was officiated by Ms Winnie Yip, Head of Charities (Culture & Sports Cluster; Community Engagement), The Hong Kong Jockey Club.
In her opening speech, Ms Winnie Yip, Head of Charities (Culture & Sports Cluster; Community Engagement), The Hong Kong Jockey Club, said: “The Club has been supporting the AFTEC Jockey Club Creative Futures Project since 2021. The results have been truly encouraging. The programme has strengthened participating students’ understanding of and care for others, while deepening their interest in arts and interdisciplinary learning. With the second phase now underway, we look forward to further supporting the growth and transformation of students and teachers.”
The opening ceremony also featured Prelude in Light, Sound & Video, a multimedia work created by students of the School of Theatre and Entertainment Arts at The Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts (HKAPA), setting the stage for the forum and showcasing the creative potential of the younger generation.
Ms Lynn Yau, Chief Executive Officer of AFTEC and Project Director of the AFTEC Jockey Club Creative Futures Project, said: “In an era dominated by artificial intelligence, we need to redefine the unique value of humanity more than ever. AFTEC has always been committed to training teachers and creative practitioners, nurturing the ‘5Cs’ core competencies—Creativity, Critical Thinking, Communication, Collaboration, and Contribution—through systematic teaching strategies. By integrating creative learning into school curricula, we nurture a new generation equipped with resilience and problem-solving skills, while actively building a cross-disciplinary learning network. We are deeply grateful for the vision and support of The Hong Kong Jockey Club Charities Trust and the participation of our partners from various sectors, allowing us to collaboratively shape human achievement through Artistic Intelligence and mould the future with creativity.”
Redefining AI — Nurturing Irreplaceable “first-class humans”
The highlight of the forum’s first day was the first cross-city dialogue, a keynote entitled Creative Cities, Creative Mindsets: Bath, Hong Kong, New Delhi. Ms Kate Cross MBE, Director of The Egg at Theatre Royal Bath, United Kingdom; Ms Jigyasa Labroo, CEO and Co-founder of Slam Out Loud, New Delhi, India; Professor Anna CY Chan, Director of The Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts; and Ms Lynn Yau, Chief Executive Officer of AFTEC, delivered the keynote together. The four creative visionaries highlighted that Artistic Intelligence is an indispensable competency for humanity in the age of AI, and shared how global frameworks can be adapted to local practice across the three cities’ distinctive educational and cultural ecosystems to cultivate young people’s imagination, empathy and meaning-making — core competencies for navigating an ever-changing future.
Ms Kate Cross introduced the School Without Walls programme, a groundbreaking initiative that immerses students in cultural venues for seven weeks, significantly enhancing their writing, emotional expression, and self-directed learning abilities. Ms Jigyasa Labroo shared Slam Out Loud’s work, which, through over 100 hours of arts-based social-emotional learning (SEL) curriculum, has successfully boosted the confidence, curiosity, and emotional regulation of 700,000 children across two Indian states. Professor Anna CY Chan, from the macro perspective of higher education and talent cultivation, emphasised the bridging role of Artistic Intelligence between professional arts training and primary/secondary creative education. Ms Lynn Yau showcased how the AFTEC Jockey Club Creative Futures Project transforms artists into “Teaching Artists,” shifting schools’ vision from “Arts Provisioned” towards being “Arts Empowered,” enabling Hong Kong students to demonstrate stronger vitality in cross-disciplinary learning.
The session also featured internationally acclaimed arts educator Professor Anne Bamford OBE, FCGI, Director of the International Research Agency; Professor Anne Mette Hjort, Director of The Research Centre for Creative Arts and Public Value, The Education University of Hong Kong; Mr Victor Kwok, Deputy Research Director of Our Hong Kong Foundation and Committee Member of the All-China Youth Federation; and Ms Heidi Lee, Executive Director of Hong Kong Ballet, as respondents. They offered diverse perspectives from policy research, cultural promotion and professional development, exploring how the arts and creativity can nurture outstanding talent of the future through structured and sustainable educational approaches in Hong Kong.
Collaborative Workshops—From Theory to Practice
The forum also featured collaborative workshops, where participants experienced first-hand how educational visions can be translated into practical teaching plans in an interactive setting.
In today’s (15 May) sessions, Creative Classroom LIVE!, led by teaching teams from Tin Shui Wai Methodist Primary School and Tuen Mun Government Primary School, brought authentic teaching plans to life in the theatre, allowing participants to experience the transformative power of creativity in local schools’ setting. Professor Anne Bamford OBE, FCGI, Director of the International Research Agency, facilitated the session The How Factor Lab: Designing Arts-rich Learning that Lasts?, discussing how the arts can be incorporated into education through sustainable policy and teaching strategies to establish a long-term and stable creative ecosystem in schools and communities.
Day Two Highlights — The Many Dimensions of Artistic Intelligence
On the second day of the forum (16 May), discussions will build upon the first day’s highlights and continue to delve deeper into the theme of Artistic Intelligence. In the keynote The Real AI: Artistic Intelligence and the Future of Human Potential, Professor Anne Bamford OBE, FCGI, Director of the International Research Agency, will discuss how the integrated development of personal cognitive, creative, social and digital capabilities can unlock human potential and shape a new generation equipped with innovation and adaptability, calling on education systems, cultural institutions and communities to collaborate in ensuring that young people maintain their unique edge in the age of AI.
Two collaborative workshops will also take place. School Without Walls: Changing Sites of Learning, led by Ms Kate Cross MBE, Director of The Egg at Theatre Royal Bath, United Kingdom, will demonstrate how learning spaces can be extended beyond school campuses to curate meaningful and personalised arts education experiences through the School Without Walls programme. What if We All Had a Voice? The Possibilities of the Arts in Social-Emotional Learning, led by Ms Jigyasa Labroo, CEO and Co-founder of Slam Out Loud, New Delhi, India, will share how locally rooted curriculum resources that address social issues can be developed to empower children to use creativity to tackle life and societal challenges and to weave their dreams.
Mutual Growth—Frontline Teachers and Artists Share Their Journeys and Learning
The forum also invited schools and creative practitioners from the AFTEC Jockey Club Creative Futures Project to share their practical experiences. In the panel discussion From Traditional to Creative Teaching, Vice Principal Kiley Tse of Ho Lap Primary School (Sponsored by Sik Sik Yuen), Ms Katherine Ip of Hong Kong and Macau Lutheran Church Primary School, and Ms Jourdan Wong of Cheung Sha Wan Catholic Primary School will share insights and explore the far-reaching impact of creative teaching and learning on teachers’ personal growth, students, the learning environment, and the overall creative learning culture of schools.
Another panel discussion, From Introspective Artists to Communicative Teaching Artists, features creative practitioners Ms Grace Cheng; Mr Reds Cheung of Laichankee; Ms Cally Yip of Passoverdance; and Ms Priscilla Lai, Lead Creative Practitioner of the AFTEC Jockey Club Creative Futures Project. Their sharing proves that the Project’s collaborative model not only benefits schools—teachers’ and creative practitioners’ artistic practices are also nourished through the teaching process, fostering mutual growth and grooming the community of practice of teaching artists in Hong Kong.
Creative Learning Arts Awards — Celebrating Local Education Transformation
To showcase the Project’s impact over the years, the forum will host the Creative Learning Arts Awards ceremony, recognising outstanding schools, teachers and creative practitioners, and celebrating the remarkable progress of the local education community in advancing creative thinking and whole-person development.
For more information, please visit:
AFTEC Jockey Club Creative Futures Project: https://creativefutures.aftec.hk/home-en/
Knowledge Exchange 2026—Artistic Intelligence: Shaping Human Achievement: https://creativefutures.aftec.hk/knowledge-exchange/ke2026/
Hashtag: #AFTEC
The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.
Funded by The Hong Kong Jockey Club Charities Trust, the AFTEC Jockey Club Creative Futures Project is a multi-level creative learning scheme designed to provide a much-needed system-led approach to creative thinking in educational institutions from tertiary to primary.
Based on a successful pilot (2021 – 2024), the key focus in this expanded version is in training teachers and creative practitioners.
With practical strategies for professionals to teach across the curriculum based on the 5C’s—Creativity, Critical Thinking, Communication, Collaboration, and Contribution— creative practitioners join teachers for in-school classes to co-design and co-create lesson plans for use in classroom throughout the year.
Advancing creative learning and arts education in Hong Kong
Creativity allows us to recognise potential within ourselves and the world around us. It promotes problem-solving, nurtures relationships, cultivates resilience, and can transform lives in countless ways. At AFTEC, we work with students, educators, and creative practitioners to plant the seeds of creativity in our community.
As a proudly homegrown Hong Kong organisation, we nurture the city’s greatest natural resource — its people. Through co-designed, collaborative, and inclusive bilingual education programmes, we create supportive environments where young minds are free to explore, express, and flourish. We spark imagination, build confidence, and foster a sense of growth and belonging together.
Website: www.aftec.hk
TORONTO, CANADA/HONG KONG SAR – Media OutReach Newswire – 15 May 2026 – Hong Kong and Toronto-headquartered enterprise AI company Votee AI, together with its Toronto-based research lab Beever AI, today open-sourced Beever Atlas — an LLM Knowledge Base shipping in two editions: an Apache 2.0 Open Source Edition for individuals, and an Enterprise Edition for teams (banks, government agencies, and large organizations with high-security requirements). Beever Atlas automatically transforms personal and team chat across Telegram, Discord, Mattermost, Microsoft Teams, and Slack into a structured Neo4j knowledge graph, auto-generated wiki, and MCP-ready memory layer for any AI assistant.
Votee AI (Votee Limited) is headquartered in Hong Kong and Toronto, with operations across Asia. Beever AI is its dedicated AI research lab based in Toronto.
Answering a Viral Call from the AI Industry
Andrej Karpathy — OpenAI founding member and former director of AI at Tesla — shared a viral post on X about “LLM Knowledge Bases” that drew tens of millions of impressions. Karpathy’s core argument: LLMs need structured, evolving knowledge — not just raw context windows or vector similarity search. He concluded with a direct call to the industry:
“I think there is room here for an incredible new product instead of a hacky collection of scripts.”
Beever Atlas is that product — built first for teams, with an Open Source edition for individuals.
Karpathy’s prototype starts with curated file ingestion, relies on Obsidian and an LLM coding agent (Claude Code / Codex), and is single-user and largely manual. Beever Atlas takes a fundamentally different starting point: team chat. Because the bulk of organizational knowledge lives — and dies — in the unstructured conversations inside Telegram, Discord, Mattermost, Microsoft Teams, and Slack.
“Hong Kong has always been known for property and finance,” said Pak-Sun Ting, Co-Founder and CEO of Votee AI. “Beever Atlas is proof that world-class AI infrastructure can emerge from an HK-headquartered company and be shared openly with the world. Every growing organization faces the same silent liability: conversational knowledge loss. Beever Atlas turns this perishable resource into a compounding organizational asset.”
Key Differences from Karpathy’s Local Approach
Beever Atlas extends the LLM Knowledge Base pattern in six fundamental ways:
OpenClaw and Hermes Agent Integration — Upcoming Feature for the Open-Source Edition
Beever Atlas will ship a dedicated update in Q2 2026 for OpenClaw and Hermes Agent. The integration lets both tools read and write to a user’s Beever Atlas memory layer natively — making it among the first MCP-native knowledge backends purpose-tuned for these workflows. Solo developers and small teams will be able to point either tool at a personal or shared Beever Atlas instance and have it cite, retrieve, and chain across the entire conversational memory.
The Technical Bet: Structure Beats Similarity
“The key technical decision was to treat agent memory as a knowledge engineering problem, not a retrieval problem. Structure beats similarity — a typed graph of who works on what is more useful to an AI than vector search over a Slack archive,”
– Jacky Chan, Co-Founder and CTO of Votee AI (developer of the first fully pre-trained open-source Cantonese LLM)
Beever Atlas ships with a native MCP server, letting AWS Kiro, Qwen Code, Cursor, or any AI assistant query team knowledge directly — making it the memory layer that every downstream AI agent has been missing.
Built for Sovereignty — 100% On-Premise, Bring Your Own LLM
Beever Atlas runs entirely in customer environments as a Docker stack. Zero telemetry. AES-256-GCM encryption at rest. Private channels are filtered by default. Teams bring their own LLM via LiteLLM — running locally through Ollama (Gemma, Qwen, Llama) or via 100+ supported cloud providers. Built for teams where organizational knowledge is too sensitive for third-party cloud.
Two Editions: Open Source for Individuals, Enterprise for Teams
Beever Atlas ships in two editions:
1. Permission Mirroring — The “Don’t Leak Secrets” Feature
Most AI tools struggle with permissions. If an AI reads a private HR channel and a junior employee asks a question, the AI might accidentally reveal private salary information.
Beever Atlas closes this gap.
2. Identity & Multi-Tenancy — The “IT Setup” Feature
About how users log in and how data is separated.
3. Audit & Compliance — The “Legal/Regulator” Feature
Large organizations need to prove what happened if something goes wrong.
4. Trust & Safety — The “Anti-Hacker” Feature
Protects the AI from being manipulated.
5. Managed Cloud + Federation — The “Deployment” Feature
Where the software physically runs and what it connects to.
Part of Votee AI’s Sovereign AI Infrastructure
Beever Atlas is part of Votee AI’s broader Sovereign AI infrastructure. Votee AI delivered the first fully pre-trained open-source Cantonese LLM, published the first Cantonese LLM benchmark, HKCanto-Eval, at ACL 2025 CoNLL, and in 2025 successfully validated its platform through the Hong Kong Monetary Authority’s FSS 3.1 Pilot programme.
Turn the Team’s Chat Into a Living Wiki
Beever Atlas is available immediately at github.com/Beever-AI/beever-atlas under the Apache 2.0 license. A managed cloud version is planned for H2 2026.
Availability
– LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/beever-ai
– X: https://x.com/Beever_AI
– Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/beever_ai
– Medium: https://medium.com/@beeverai
– dev.to: https://dev.to/beeverai
– Substack: https://substack.com/@beeverai
– Discord: https://discord.gg/unuPZrrE
Shipped by the Whole Team
Hashtag: #VoteeAI
https://votee.ai/https://www.linkedin.com/company/voteehttps://x.com/votee_ai
https://www.instagram.com/votee_aihttps://www.threads.com/@votee_aihttps://substack.com/@voteeai
The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.
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