The Inventors
WESLEY NG Founder and CEO, Casetify
Sanitising our phones is one of the most overlooked habits we should be adopting now. To this end, Hong Kong start-up Casetify has launched a UV sanitiser that uses radiationfree lights to kill 99.9 per cent of bacteria as part of its #CasetifyProtects initiative. “The UV sanitiser was actually something we’ve had up our sleeve for a while now, already developed and tested by Casetify,” says Ng, adding that with the current situation, it made sense to release the product now. “We want to protect those in need and the quicker we’re able to do it, the more people we can help.”
RASHVIN PAL SINGH CEO, Biji Biji Design
As part of efforts to decentralise production of safety equipment in Malaysia, Rashvin Pal is coordinating creative professionals and suppliers of laser cutters and 3D printers to remotely make face shields for hospitals. “A community of Malaysians has banded together to ensure that those risking their lives on the front lines are well protected,” says Rasvhin Pal. “It is imperative that every organisation reimagines its relevance in this new world, and we continue to nurture and protect it with the utmost care and deeper unity.”
DR NARIN HIRANSUTHIKUL Epidemiologist
Professor Dr Narin is the head of Chulalongkorn University’s COVID-19 emergency operation centre and one of Thailand’s top experts in disease and epidemiology. His team developed a COVID-19 strip test that delivers results in 15 minutes. After more than 100 trials, tests have shown a 95 per cent accuracy rate. The strip testing service is now available at Chulalongkorn University by first registering online. He explains that while the Chula COVID-19 test strips do not replace conventional polymerase chain reaction tests, the goal is to ease the burden on hospitals as more and more people visit them to be tested.
DANNY YEUNG CEO and founder, Prenetics
Hong Kong-based genetic testing and digital health company Prenetics—better known by its signature product, CircleDNA—has announced that it will work with several collaborators to expand COVID-19 testing across the city. The nonprofit Project Screen will allow people to receive and return at-home test kits, with results in 24 hours, at a cost of HK$985, HK$300 of which will be subsidised for frontliners and their families by Prudential Hong Kong. “No one company can do it all and it’s just amazing we have the support of so many industry leaders,” Yeung says. “We felt it was our responsibility to do everything we possibly can for the community.”