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This year and next year, HUF 181 billion will be available in the Economic Development and Innovation Operational Programme (GINOP) Plus to support innovation in small and medium-sized enterprises, announced Balázs Hankó, Minister of Culture and Innovation.

The Hungary Innovation Summit kicked off this year's Innovation Week in Budapest. Organised by the Hungarian Innovation Agency, the Summit featured presentations, workshops and panel discussions with national and international experts discussing the future of innovation, the societal challenges of new technologies and internationally successful models for building innovation ecosystems.

Hungary is the guest of honour at one of the world's most prestigious innovation events, the Pujiang Innovation Forum in Shanghai, China. Hungary will be represented by a 40-member delegation of policy makers, scientists, business and academic leaders at the event, which will take place from 7-10 September. The delegation will be led by László Bódis, Deputy State Secretary for Innovation at the Ministry of Culture and Innovation and CEO of the Hungarian Innovation Agency.

From September, the Hungarian Startup University Program (HSUP) will be available again in more than 30 higher education institutions. The two-semester course aims to broaden students' knowledge of innovation and to encourage them to create start-ups based on their own projects. From the 2024/25 academic year, the programme will be relaunched with a completely renewed curriculum and will be available in English, the international language of innovation, as successful start-up founders need to be able to pitch to foreign investors, customers and other partners.

An international conference will open Hungary Innovation Week, a series of events organised by the Hungarian Innovation Agency (NIÜ). The Hungary Innovation Summit is the flagship event for those interested in innovation, technological developments and innovative ideas. The Summit keynote speaker will be Jon Medved, founder and CEO of the global venture capital platform OurCrowd. The Hungarian government aims to make Hungary one of the top ten most innovative countries in Europe by 2030.

The Hungarian Innovation Agency (NIÜ) aims to increase the potential of the Hungarian innovation ecosystem in Singapore by supporting the market expansion of innovative projects and companies and promoting an innovation-centric culture. The NIÜ offers participation in the Singapore Agri-Food Tech Expo 2024 to facilitate the entry of Hungarian companies into the Singapore market, providing valuable insights into the market's characteristics and business culture, including networking, training on local characteristics, consumer behaviour and trends.

There is a growing number of innovative young people and businesses in Hungary, but many of them need help to turn their ideas into a successful product or service. The Hungarian Innovation Agency's (NIÜ) IMPULSE programme, which supports Hungarian businesses and start-ups to exploit their innovations with high market potential through group and personal mentoring and knowledge transfer, helps them to do this.

Knowledge-sharing, networking and advocacy are the main objectives of the International Association of Science Parks (IASP), which brings together more than 350 organisations from 77 countries and of which the Hungarian Innovation Agency (NIÜ) has become an official member. As a result of IASP membership, university-based Science Parks will have access to international experience, best practices, data and a vibrant network of contacts, further strengthening their key role in connecting universities and the economy.

Since its launch in the spring, nearly 30 innovative companies have participated in XPAND, the Hungarian Innovation Agency's (NIÜ) programme to help them enter foreign markets. The 10 best prepared companies have already participated in international innovation and technology events supported by the NIÜ, which have led to nearly 200 business meetings with foreign partners. In September, they will have the opportunity to present and network in China again, and in the coming months in Germany, Kazakhstan, the United States and Singapore. Workshops to prepare for foreign markets will be launched again in August, for which the NIÜ invites applications from innovative companies and start-ups via the agency's website.

The Enterprise Horizon programme, the Hungarian Innovation Agency's (NIÜ) latest service, provides information to help innovative businesses successfully participate in Horizon Europe, the world's largest R&D and innovation programme, and build international consortia. The first workshop (START) will take place on 4 July 2024 at the NIÜ.

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.

The Hungarian Innovation Agency (NIÜ) has become an official member of The European Network of Innovation Agencies (TAFTIE), the European network of national innovation agencies, and will gain an even wider international network of contacts, opening up even more opportunities for cooperation, support and knowledge transfer for Hungarian innovative businesses, start-ups, universities and research institutes.