21 20 HKUST Annual Report 2020-2021 LAB TO MARKET USING INNOVATION TO BENEFIT SOCIETY Setting Ideas and Concepts to Work The University sustains and advances its robust innovation pipeline with adequate protection and vigorous promotion of HKUST intellectual property (IP). Over the year, the University’s nurturing of the technopreneurial spirit, and incubation and acceleration of new companies, raised the number of HKUST active start-ups and spin-offs to 290, of which 19% leveraged University technologies. The yea r a l so saw t he se t t i ng up o f a new I P management team to strategical ly ident i fy IP wi th strong commercialization potential and opportunities to optimize development of the University’s patent portfolios. Reengineering the existing process significantly enhanced efficiency, facilitating industrial collaboration and helping to generate a record number of new license agreements over the year, which tripled to 23. Patents used totaled 91, an increment of 3.6 times compared with the previous year. The Bridge Gap Fund, which assists faculty in preparing their technologies for licensing, the formation of start-ups, and industry collaboration, supported a total of 14 projects wi th up to $500,000 each, covering biotechnology, materials, electronics, IoT, and robotics. This represented an increase of over 25% from the previous year. The Fund also launched its Seed Project Support Scheme in 2021 to encourage young faculty to translate research into viable IP and enhance its commercialization prospects. Start-up Support In 2014, the Innovation and Technology Commission (ITC) launched the Technology Start-up Support Scheme for Universities (TSSSU) to provide six local universities with support for technology-focused start-ups. With TSSSU funding, HKUST awardees can further commercialize HKUST technologies to benefit society. Around 92% of the 2020 awardees have participated in incubation programs organized by Hong Kong Science and Technology Parks Corporation and Hong Kong Cyberport Management Limited, an increase of more than 20% compared with the previous TSSSU round. The awardees have also undergone notable business development, with around 86% receiving external funds and creating around 50 jobs and training opportunities. TSSSU 2021 attracted a record-high 54 applications, bringing total University applications to the scheme in the past eight years to 324. With 19 start-ups recommended to the ITC by the HKUST vetting committee, the total number of HKUST-affiliated TSSSU start-ups rose to 78. Meanwhile, in its second year of operation, the HKUST Entrepreneurship Fund (E-Fund) team worked with the Technology Transfer Center (TTC) and Entrepreneurship Center (EC) to support University start-ups by providing practical training, mentorship, and coaching to teams being incubated by the Bridge Gap Fund. The fund also assisted HKUST start-ups and companies admitted to the Hong Kong Science and Technology Parks and Cyberport incubation programs by helping to establish connections with co-investment partners and advisors. There are currently 13 such partners under the E-Fund’s coinvestment model, managing an investment pool of more than $7 billion and investing approximately $25 million in E-Fund portfolio companies. Spurring Greater Bay Area Entrepreneurship HKUST Mainland platforms in Nansha, Shenzhen, and Foshan currently support a total of 70 start-up and spinoff companies, and various entrepreneurial programs. At the HKUST Shenzhen platforms located at Nanshan and Futian respectively, the Blue Bay Incubator has successfully established an ecosystem of support schemes to foster HKUST entrepreneurs and start-ups at different stages of the journey from concept to commercialization. In 2020-21, start-ups supported by Blue Bay, a National Makerspace （國家備案眾創空間）accredited by the Ministry of Science and Technology, totaled 47. Partnerships to Enhance Living and Livelihoods Through HKUST R and D Corporation, the University partnered with 49 local and global companies from the US, South Korea and Japan, as well as nine Hong Kong government departments to carry out downstream technology development and services in 2020-21. The new project contracts signed are worth $103.1 million. Some highlighted projects include: FIRST AUTONOMOUS VEHICLE TRIAL ROLLED OUT ON CAMPUS Hong Kong’s first autonomous vehicle (AV) trial without an operator on board commenced at the HKUST campus in late 2020, with support from the Hong Kong government’s Transport Department. The electric vehicle was designed by Prof. LIU Ming, Director of HKUST’s Intelligent Autonomous Driving Center, and his team of students. Equipped with all-terrain 3D mapping and large-scale visual and sensor navigation, among other technologies, the vehicle can plan its route after collecting data on the road and detect on-road obstacles. It will eventually be used to deliver food and mail throughout the campus. • Multiple research and development contracts for nextgeneration wireless communication systems for a leading global networking and telecommunications technology provider. • A Mainland aviation company’s utilization of HKUST lowfrequency noise reduction technology in airplane engine casing. • Collaborations with the Hong Kong government to deploy eco-friendly wastewater treatment technologies. New project contracts signed worth $103.1 million
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