Executive Yuan approves Asian Silicon Valley plan

2016/09/10

The Executive Yuan approved Sept. 8 a promotion plan for the Internet of Things-focused Asian Silicon Valley, a comprehensive industrial development initiative to transform northern Taiwan’s Taoyuan City into an international hub of tech innovation.

“Together with other efforts to promote Taiwan’s digital economy, the Asian Silicon Valley project aims to increase the country’s share of the global IoT market to 4.2 percent by 2020 and 5 percent by 2025, up from 3.8 percent in 2015,” National Development Council Deputy Minister Kung Ming-hsin said.

The plan will commence this year and run until 2023, with the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Ministry of Science and Technology allocating a budget of NT$11.3 billion (US$360 million) for the program in 2017.

According to the NDC, the goal of the project is to produce roughly 100 successful ventures, comprising research and development centers set up by large corporations as well as startups that complete an initial public offering or are purchased by other enterprises. The initiative also aims to cultivate three Taiwan-based global system integration companies, encourage two international corporations to invest in the nation, and create an e-learning platform for IoT-related industries.

Under the promotion plan, the government will employ four strategies to link Taiwan to global tech centers and attract startups from across Asia. First, it will work to create a robust environment for entrepreneurs and startups by fostering innovative talent, facilitating the development of capital markets and revising related laws.

Second, it will establish a one-stop center to promote the integration of its R&D capabilities with California’s Silicon Valley and other innovation hubs around the world, while actively participating in the formulation of international standards and the certification of IoT technologies.

Third, the government will work to integrate Taiwan’s hardware advantages into software applications as well as commercialize research conducted by local academic institutions. Finally, it will establish a high-quality internet environment and build test beds for smart technologies, with priority given to the development of applications in the fields of health care, logistics and transportation.

The Asian Silicon Valley initiative is one of President Tsai Ing-wen’s five major industrial development objectives. The government also plans to cultivate the development of the biotechnology and pharmaceuticals, green energy, national defense and smart machinery sectors as part of a wide-ranging strategy to revitalize Taiwan’s economy by fostering investment and innovation.

Source: Taiwan Today (http://taiwantoday.tw/ct.asp?xItem=247798&ctNode=2194&mp=9)