On June 22, local time, the UK branch of the 2016 Pujiang Innovation Forum, hosted by the Department of International Cooperation of the Ministry of Science and Technology of China, the Department of International Knowledge and Innovation in Asia and the Pacific of the UK Department of Business Innovation and Skills, and the Shanghai Science and Technology Commission, was held in London's Gibson Hall, attended by officials and experts from Chinese and British government departments, the financial and investment community, universities and other research institutions, and smart manufacturing and other fields. Shanghai Innovation Centre (London) and Shanghai Technology Exchange (London) were unveiled at the forum and will be located in Cocoon Networks' London incubator. Through a combination of "going out" and "coming in", the two centres will act as "hubs" to facilitate the transfer of outstanding scientific and technological achievements between China and the UK, as well as the exchange of capital. Docking will help Shanghai build a science and technology innovation center with global influence.

As the host country of the 2016 Pohang Innovation Forum, the UK is one of the most innovative and efficient countries in the world, and the financial sector has a high international standing. London, the capital, is one of the world's top five innovation centers, with a total of 123 Nobel Prize winners working here; it has well-known universities such as Imperial College, and is surrounded by two famous universities, Oxford and Cambridge; there are nearly 90,000 technology companies, employing up to 580,000 people.

China-UK artificial intelligence results displayed at the London sub-forum Municipal Science and Technology Commission for the picture

At the forum, Professor Luo Shougui of Antai School of Economics and Management, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, pointed out in his speech titled "Comparative Study of London and Shanghai Innovation Ecology" that London and Shanghai are both international financial and trade centers, as well as concentrations of foreign direct investment, private equity investment and venture capital. In terms of technological input and output, both cities are among the top global metropolises. For example, Shanghai and London are among the top 10 metropolises in the world in terms of per capita research and development (R&D) spending, at US$520 and US$593 respectively. As a result, the two cities have vast room for cooperation in areas such as science and technology innovation and finance.

As a vehicle for the cooperation between the two sides, Shanghai Innovation Center (London) and Shanghai Technology Exchange London Branch will be located in CQC Global London Incubator. CQC Global is Europe's first Sino-European cross-border incubator and accelerator with Chinese background, and is also a platform for equity investment and technology transfer. The C Holdings incubator is located in the European Technology and Innovation Centre building in London's Tech City, which covers an area of 6,500 square meters and is the largest technology and innovation centre building in Europe. After a rigorous screening process, Chinese and British companies that settle in CSC can receive high-quality incubation services and various resources. For example, in terms of research and development, employees have access to cyber labs and life science labs; in terms of financing, they can negotiate with a number of venture capital funds, including the £500 million Sino-British Hi-Tech Joint Investment Fund and the £100 million China-EU Cross-Border Mergers and Acquisitions Fund. The Shanghai Innovation Centre (London) is listed in Science & Technology Control, enabling more research teams in Shanghai and London to benefit from these services and resources to better develop in the UK or enter the Chinese market.

The London branch of the Shanghai Technology Exchange (STX) will collaborate with Science Control Global to select European research results that are technologically advanced, undervalued and in line with the development needs of Chinese enterprises, and conduct technology and intellectual property transactions to bring these results to Shanghai, opening a channel for technology transfer between Europe and China. Mr. Yin Gaode, President of the London Development Agency, Mr. Jiang Sunan, Minister Counsellor of the Chinese Embassy in the UK, and Mr. Fraser, Director General of the International Department of the UK Department for Business Innovation and Skills attended the forum and delivered speeches.

Source: Xinhua News Agency Photo Editor: Xiang Jianying

Source: Shanghai Watch