By leveraging computing facilities from leading Chinese chip companies, HKBN Ltd debuted an enterprise-level artificial-intelligence platform on Thursday, making it the first Hong Kong telecom company to provide business-facing tokenized AI services.

HKBN Group President and Chief Operating Officer Denis Yip said that the company has invested HK$100 million ($12.8 million) in the AI ecosystem establishment and operation for the “AI+ domestic computing power platform”, and plans to pour more resources into expanding token supply for both individual and business users in the future.

The platform gathered domestic computing power and advanced AI models, with a flexible “token-as-a-service” pricing plan to reduce the AI adoption costs for enterprises, Yip said. Insufficient computing power, data security concerns, and compliance risks are the three main obstacles for Hong Kong enterprises in AI adoption, he added.

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To tackle these bottlenecks, the newly launched platform is powered by graphics processing units (GPUs) that are locally hosted on the data centers at Cyberport to enhance the data security and computing power stability.

The platform will charge based on how many tokens that users consume while using of AI features, a system called “Token-as-a-Service”. The pricing starts at a minimum of HK$2.12 for input and HK$8.44 for output per 1 million tokens.

In 2024, HKBN teamed up with Suanova Technology, an AI computing power leasing company that has branches in both Hong Kong and Shanghai, and became the Suanova’s first distributor of computing power services in Hong Kong, allowing the company access to computing centers powered by AI chips from a Shanghai-based leading chip company, MetaX.

“The high cost-effectiveness of the Chinese mainland firms’ GPUs is one of the advantages for Hong Kong in developing its AI industry,” said Jackal Chau, general manager of HKBN Enterprise Solutions.

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However, Yip said, as AI+ applications gain traction in Hong Kong, the city’s high electricity rates, land rents, and labor costs will tighten the bottlenecks for local GPU deployment.

HKBN launched OpenClaw installation workshops for individual users in March, becoming the first telecommunications service provider in Hong Kong to launch an OpenClaw AI application solution. However, citing security concerns, the company will take a cautious approach to rolling out AI token services for individuals, Yip said.

Contact the writer at rayjia@chinadailyhk.com