Amidst post-pandemic and global supply chain challenges, the world is facing rapid demand for new technologies, and the best source of these innovations are our research communities. To promote the innovation economy, the National Science and Technology Council (NSTC) has long been committed to supporting young scholars in technological entrepreneurship and pROViding them with comprehensive training. The annual "From IP to IPO" Program, directed by NSTC and run by the Science & Technology Policy Research and Information Center (STPI) of NARLabs, achieves this by helping scholars and researchers sow the seeds of innovative technology through six months of entrepreneurial training. The first round of the 2023 From IP to IPO Program has now been successfully completed, with the finalists' award ceremony held at C.C.Work-Star C in Taipei on June 30. Three teams, Anivance AI, Taiwan Aqua Breeding Team, and MICTS, were awarded Outstanding Entrepreneurship Awards and received corporate sponsorship of NT$1 million. This honor not only recognizes outstanding entrepreneurship in high tech, but is also an important cornerstone for startup teams entering the market.
SPTI has held the From IP to IPO Program since 2013, identifying and cultivating competitive startup teams and young researchers. By connecting them with professionals from various fields, as well as science parks and local and international experts, the program pROVides participants with three important foundations for early-stage commercialization of their products: patent arrangement, financial assessment, and profit model refinement. Teams master commercialization in two business training camps and five practical courses, and at the same time, take advantage of a platform for online business matchmaking and a round-the-clock coaching hotline. SPTI is dedicated to becoming a key partner for startup teams as they develop innovative technologies and take their first steps in the entrepreneurial world. This year's talented entrepreneurs have successfully completed their professional training, and at the awards ceremony, were able to show off their technological achievements.
Combining research and technology with innovative R&D to solve market obstacles, these outstanding teams have taken their first steps in entrepreneurship. During the first stage of the Program, 40 excellent research teams were initially selected. After six months of training, seven of the most promising teams were selected as finalists. The judges ultimately selected three teams for the Outstanding Entrepreneurship Award based on market trends, the content of their technology, and their entrepreneurial determination.
At the ceremony, the honorary pROVost of the Program and chairman of the StanShih Foundation, Mr. Stan Shih, encouraged young scholars to get involved in innovation and entrepreneurship and emphasized that innovation centers around creating value and putting it into practice. To get results, it is necessary to continuously explore and persevere, and at the same time, be courageous enough to push through difficulties and bottlenecks to meet market demand and to create more value for the global community.
Since its inception, the From IP to IPO Program has nurtured more than 800 startup teams who have established 351 companies. It has also led to more than NT$7.876 billion in venture capital investment, making it a crucial bridge to connect early-stage startups with private industry. NSTC hopes that innovative technologies will contribute toward creating a positive feedback loop for Taiwan's industries and drive the domestic market. NSTC also expects that teams will challenge themselves to achieve even higher goals and begin international deployment of scalable technologies from the start of their journey, leveraging future-oriented scientific knowledge and interdisciplinary resources to solve global problems and promote Taiwan's sustainable growth.
