OPENING & WELCOME REMARKS
Mayor Frank Scarpitti, City of Markham
Mayor Frank Scarpitti was elected as Mayor of Markham in 2006, 2010, 2014, 2018 and 2022. He is Markham’s longest serving Mayor.
Mr. Scarpitti was first elected to Markham Council in 1985, as a Regional Councillor. In total, the people of Markham have elected him 10 times. He has served on both the Councils of the City of Markham and York Region for 30 years.
Mayor Scarpitti serves on York Regional Council and is the current Chair of York Region Rapid Transit Corporation (VIVA Transit). He is also Co-Chair of the New Inclusion Table, Vice-Chair of Transportation Services for York Region and sits on the Board of Directors for York Telecom Network.
He serves as a member of the board of Alectra, one of the largest municipally-owned electrical utilities in North America.
Mayor Scarpitti gives his time to a number of non-profit organizations related to health, social programs, arts and culture. As Co-Chair of Markham Stouffville Hospital's Capital Campaign, his efforts contributed to surpassing the hospital's $50 million fundraising goal.
He led Markham’s initiative to secure the Markham Pan Am Centre and attract a Markham campus for York University.
He is a strong advocate of internet voting, used in Markham since the 2003.
Mayor Scarpitti and his wife Nancy have three children.
Mr Gavin Yeung is the Acting Director of the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office (Toronto) (HKETO). HKETO (Toronto) is the official representative of the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People’s Republic of China in Canada. Its mandate is to foster closer ties between Hong Kong and Canada, with a particular focus on economic and trade relationships.
Gavin joined the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People’s Republic of China in 2017 as a member of the Administrative Officer Grade. Before joining the HKETO (Toronto) in December 2024, Gavin had worked in various bureaux and departments, including the Innovation, Technology and Industry Bureau, Development Bureau and the Home Affairs Department.
Gavin received his Bachelor of Social Science degree from the University of Hong Kong.
PANEL DISCUSSION I: AI & ROBOTICS TECHNOLOGIES
San Wong, Founder of R2C2 Limited, is an AI and Robotic Engineer. San graduated from the University of California, Irvine, with a Master’s Degree in Electrical Engineering and a research focus in computer vision AI. San joined a research center in Hong Kong, where he worked on AI projects with logistic robots. He was involve in logistic robot development, simulated self-driving car development, and robotic-human-interaction.
San founded R2C2 and formed a team with rich robotic and automation development experience. The company has become the first and only Boston Dynamics SPOT developer in Hong Kong. R2C2 recently became the Honoree of the CES Innovation Award 2025 in Robotics. It is the first Hong Kong robotic company to achieve this achievement.
Vivek Burhanpurkar is CEO and founder of Cyberworks Robotics and one of the earliest pioneers of the field of autonomous mobility. He is credited with writing the world's first academic thesis paper on indoor autonomous navigation for dynamic unknown environments while at the University of Toronto in 1984. He also published some of the earliest scientific research papers on the topic in peer reviewed SME and IEEE journals and international conferences. He founded the world's first industrial autonomous mobile robotics company with global sales across Asia Pacific and EU. He also served as a Managing Director of CRS Robotics, a TSX traded tech company with over 300 engineers.
Vivek currently serves as founder and CEO of Cyberworks Robotics, a globally leading provider of breakthrough autonomous self-driving technology for third party industrial products ranging from People Movers to Floor Scrubbers. Vivek has worked with heads of State and Fortune 500 CXOs across the EU and Asia. He has been the subject of over 200 independent journalistic feature articles in major publications including the New York Times, LA Times, Washington Post, Globe and Mail, The Guardian, Financial Times, Financial Post and Profit, as well as syndicated television newsmagazines.
PANEL DISCUSSION II: PROP-TECH INNOVATIONS
Leigh Newman is CEO and Co-Founder of Printerra, a PropTech | GreenTech company based in Markham, Ontario, delivering Additive Construction as a Service (ACaaS)—a platform that integrates 3D printing technology, engineering, materials, workforce training, and project delivery to modernize how we build. Leigh is leading the deployment of Canada’s first turnkey ACaaS model and advancing institutional partnerships to scale additive construction. His work aligns with the mission of this exchange: to foster international collaboration that accelerates sustainable innovation across construction and urban development.
Tony Ip is a Co-founder of RaSpect Intelligence Inspection, a leading AI-powered predictive inspection company for architecture and built infrastructure. RaSpect leverages artificial intelligence, IoT sensing technology, and robotics to provide advanced solutions for building safety and predictive maintenance, contributing to a smarter and greener built environment.
Lisa Mohapatra is the Cofounder of Bidblox, an AI-native platform transforming preconstruction for the $13T construction industry. Backed by Antler and Scale AI Canada, Bidblox automates and optimizes the bid-to-procurement process for General Contractors, AE firms, and Owners. Lisa and her company have been recognized with awards at GITEX, UpperBound, Top 20 TiEcon Silicon Valley, Top Canadian PropTech Startups of 2025 by PropTech Collective and Top25 Suffolk Startups in North America in construction. She is also a Board Member at FTBI and a frequent speaker at global forums including the G20 and ICC Chamber of Commerce.
CLOSING REMARKS
Jovan Trajceski is a seasoned analytics and digital-transformation leader with two decades of experience spanning Telecom, Energy, Banking, Financial Services, Film & Media, Fashion, Consulting, and Public Transportation across North America and Asia-Pacific.
He is currently a Global Analytics Partner at H&M Group, shaping data-driven solutions for one of the world’s largest fashion retailers. Previously, Jovan served as Head of Sales, Marketing & Partnerships (APAC) at a boutique AI consultancy, spearheading Fortune 500 C-suite engagements with L’Oréal, Dior, Kering, Schneider Electric, GSK, and AXA. Earlier, he founded an HR-Tech startup backed by Hong Kong Science & Technology Parks Corporation (HKSTP), one of Asia’s premier incubators.
He holds an MSc in Data Science (Distinction) and is a Chartered Professional Accountant (CPA Canada).
Beyond his corporate roles, Jovan chairs the Innovation Committee at the Canadian Chamber of Commerce in Hong Kong and the AI & Big Data Committee at the FinTech Association of Hong Kong. He also sits on the HKUST MSBA Corporate Advisory Board and the HKBU School of Business Advisory Committee. Jovan mentors founders at CUHK’s Deep-Tech Lab and serves on the Steering Committee of the Asia Technology Entrepreneurship Conference (ATEC).
.png)
Christopher Chen is the head of the InvestHK presence for Canada, responsible for driving foreign direct investment from Canadian companies, organisations, and educational institutions to Hong Kong and Asia Pacific.
Prior to InvestHK, he was a senior fintech professional, leading growth marketing and customer engagement initiatives for multinational insurance and asset management companies throughout Canada, Europe, and Asia.
He has lived and worked in Hong Kong, Singapore, Japan, Taiwan, The Netherlands, and Scotland. He has a Master's degree from the University of British Columbia with post-graduate fellowships at the National Taiwan Normal University and Yusof Ishak Institute/ISEAS.
Huyen Hare manages a team of talented professionals to deliver on Markham’s dynamic Economic Development Program to support job growth and shape the City’s economic competitiveness. Program activities include business development, retention and expansion (BR+E); marketing; foreign direct investment (FDI) attraction, small business support, key industry cluster development (ie. semiconductors, autotech, EV, foodtech, creative industries, advanced manufacturing), while advancing the City’s strategic priorities (ie. Markham Innovation District (MiX), new downtown project-Markham Centre, local talent development in partnership with York University Markham Campus) and collaborating with ecosystem partners (private, public, industry networks, and local accelerators) to support innovation activities.
.png)
