Three Chinese technology companies made strong stock market debuts in Hong Kong on Thursday after raising a combined HK$9.3 billion ($1.19 billion), reinforcing investor hopes that 2026 could mark a more active year for initial public offerings in the city.
All three companies traded above their offer prices in early dealings. Artificial intelligence firm Zhipu AI, also known as Knowledge Atlas Technology, opened 3.3% higher than its offer price of HK$116.20 per share and was trading around HK$116.40. Semiconductor company Shanghai Iluvatar CoreX surged 31.6% at the open from its HK$144.60 offer price and later changed hands at about HK$169.40. Surgical robotics maker Shenzhen Edge Medical posted the strongest gain, jumping 36.4% above its HK$43.24 offer price and trading near HK$55.50.
The upbeat debuts come as Chinese authorities accelerate approvals for artificial intelligence and semiconductor listings, part of a broader push to strengthen domestic alternatives to advanced U.S. technology. That policy backdrop has encouraged issuers across China’s technology sectors to tap public markets, particularly in Hong Kong, which has positioned itself as a key fundraising hub for mainland firms.
Zhipu AI, spun out of Tsinghua University, raised HK$4.35 billion in its offering, valuing the company at about HK$51 billion. The company said it plans to allocate most of the proceeds to research and development. Its cornerstone investors included JSC International Investment Fund and JinYi Capital Multi-Strategy Fund.
Shanghai Iluvatar CoreX, a designer of general-purpose graphics processing units (GPUs), raised HK$3.48 billion. Based on its offer price, the company had a market capitalisation of roughly HK$36.8 billion. It plans to channel the bulk of the funds into R&D for chips, accelerators and related software.
Shenzhen Edge Medical raised around HK$1.12 billion, with proceeds earmarked for R&D, commercialisation, manufacturing expansion and strategic acquisitions. Its cornerstone investors include Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, OrbiMed, UBS Asset Management Singapore and Tencent’s Huang River.
Thursday’s performance will be closely watched as an indicator of whether Hong Kong can extend last year’s IPO revival, when $37.2 billion was raised from 115 new listings, the strongest showing since 2021, according to LSEG data as of January 5. The pipeline continues to build, with AI firm MiniMax Group and chipmaker OmniVision Integrated Circuits set to debut on Friday.
