Jui Lim, CEO of the Singapore Innovation Agency (SGInnovate) visited the Hungarian Innovation Agency (NIÜ), where he met with the head of the agency, László Bódis. The meeting was also attended by László Korányi, Deputy CEO of NIÜ, Judit Pach, Hungarian Ambassador to Singapore and István Szabó, Deputy CEO of HUN-REN.
Singapore is a strategically important country for Hungarian innovation not only because it is a leader in global innovation, so our country can learn from them in many areas, but also because it opens the door to the entire East Asian region. This is why the NIÜ has chosen Singapore as one of the target countries for its XPAND programme to help companies enter foreign markets.
During the meeting, the parties reviewed the issue of technology transfer between universities and research institutes: Jui Lim said that as the new head of the National University of Singapore's TTC, he faced similar challenges in 2013 as the Hungarian ecosystem is facing now. He confirmed that the NIÜ's TTC project is building on the very success factors that have led to success in Singapore. These are:
- the commitment of the university's senior management,
- the technology transfer activity operated as a separate company,
- the inclusion of the TTC leader in the university top management,
- the development of an appropriate incentive scheme,
- a strong demonstration of innovation in the academic progress of the university.
The meeting also discussed the Singapore Public Venture Capital model, the XPAND programme, and the NIÜ's initiative to support innovative entrepreneurs, HSUP, as well as the HSUP Advanced programme, which will be launched in the autumn.
The parties agreed to further strengthen innovation ties between Hungary and Singapore in the future.
