COVER STORY • 封面專題 2022 UMAGAZINE 25 • 澳大新語 16 collaboration system. The company takes care of the final phase of transferring our IPRs.’ Cultivation Platform for Innovation and Entrepreneurship Most professors and students lack commercial experience. That is why UM has included cultivation platforms in the ‘5-in-1’ system as the fourth type of platform. The Centre for Innovation and Entrepreneurship (CIE) under the ICI provides various types of support, training, and services to students and professors who want to start a business. In 2019, which marked the 20th anniversary of the handover of Macao, the CIE received approval from the Ministry of Science and Technology to join China’s national system of co-working spaces. Around 30 business teams, founded by UM students and faculty members, have been incubated in the CIE. When incubation is completed, the teams continue to exist as registered companies to contribute to the industrial diversification of Macao. ‘With shares in many start-up companies incubated at UM, UMTec is playing an important role in the transfer of the university’s IPRs,’ says Prof Ge. Implementation Platform for Industry-Academia Collaboration The fifth and last type of platform under the ‘5-in-1’ system is the implementation platform. Many teams incubated at the CIE have been connected by UMTec to companies for cooperation. Meanwhile, teams with products or technologies that are more mature and closer to market needs can approach potential partners directly. Many products developed by UM research teams are still in their initial stages, but they show great promise for applications. In this context, the university would recommend they seek further development at the Zhuhai UM Science & Technology Research Institute (ZUMRI). As the university’s demonstration base for industry-academia collaboration in Hengqin, the institute has access to rich research resources in mainland China. In essence, ZUMRI is serving as UM’s implementation platform for industry-academia collaboration.As of today, the institute has about 160 ongoing or completed projects. They include over 110 projects funded by national, provincial, and municipal agencies and over 50 collaborative projects with enterprises. ‘The innovation, service, management, cultivation, and implementation platforms together form a fairly complete ecosystem for industry-academia collaboration. Sometimes researchers wonder what the next step will be for their research projects. With this system in place, we can show them exactly what the next step is.’ says Prof Ge. Partnerships with Over 50 Companies UM has transferred its research results in several key areas, including materials, biomedical sciences (including traditional Chinese medicine), the Internet of Things for smart city development, artificial intelligence, big data, and humanities (such as translation systems). UM actively collaborates with over 50 commercial partners, which are based in the mainland and Macao. The university’s local partners include Macao’s electricity company CEM, telecommunications provider CTM, and Nam Kwong (Group) Company Limited. In addition, UM signed a strategic collaboration framework agreement with Boardware Information System Limited in 2021 on the establishment of a joint laboratory. The university is also actively planning a joint laboratory with Akrostar Technology, a Macao-based chip unicorn company. ‘UM has extensive collaborations with public and private enterprises across Macao. One can easily see the university’s role in promoting technological and industrial innovation in this city.’ Right People, Right Time, and Right Place UM has a vital role to play in helping the government promote technological innovation and transfer research results. According to Prof Ge, UM has encountered the right people in the right place at the right time, which will help the university fulfil its responsibility as a comprehensive public university. ‘The timing is right as UM is able to grasp the unprecedented opportunities brought about by the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area (GBA) for collaborative development. The Guangdong-Macao In-Depth Cooperation Zone in Hengqin established in 2021 has also given the university new impetus. We are in the right place because Macao is a core city of the GBA, and our university is located on Hengqin island,’ says Prof Ge. ‘The Macao SAR government attaches great importance to industry-academia collaboration. It has become clear to people from all sectors that economic diversification is essential for Macao’s future development. Industry-academia collaboration
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