Wu Jingshen, vice president of HKUST (Guangzhou), speaks during the launch ceremony. [Photo/Southern Metropolis Daily]

The launch ceremony for the 2021 HKUST One Million Dollar International Entrepreneurship Competition started on May 21 in Guangzhou's Nansha district, making it the sixth of its kind to be held there.

This year's event is being hosted by Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST) and the HKUST (Guangzhou) with the HKUST Fok Ying Tung Research Institute.

The previous five events held in Nansha attracted nearly 1,500 teams to compete in and as a direct result, 48 entrepreneurial projects settled down in the district.

Wu Jingshen, vice president of HKUST (Guangzhou), said at the launch ceremony that more and more international entrepreneurial teams were coming to Nansha with the opening of this year's competition.

The contest -- mainly covering innovation sectors such as artificial intelligence and integrated circuits -- has gradually developed into a regional competition for boosting entrepreneurial cultural development among young people in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area.

In addition, the competition is expected to be a window for young folk in Hong Kong and Macao to peer into the future development of the Greater Bay Area and let them to chase more opportunities in Nansha.