Recently, the Yangtze Delta "Join" Sci-Tech Innovation & Entrepreneurship Competition 2024, themed "No Innovation, No Future", has kicked off. 24 teams representing innovative projects in the sectors of high-end equipment and intelligent manufacturing, new energy and new energy vehicles will compete for top honors in the Shanghai circuit of the competition. The competition aims to identify, foster and support innovative and pioneering projects, and to promote the cultivation of innovative talents and the creation of a robust ecosystem for the sci-tech innovation industry in the Yangtze River Delta.

The Yangtze Delta "Join" Sci-Tech Innovation & Entrepreneurship Competition 2024 has 235 projects shortlisted for the preliminary round, an increase of 51% compared to the previous season, with 95 in the angel category and 140 in the growth category. The competition's influence spans the Yangtze River Delta and extends nationwide. 58% of the entries are from outside Shanghai, up 76% from the previous season.

All the entries are from the six key sectors of the Science and Technology Innovation Board. An overwhelming majority of the entrants are recognized as sci-tech companies or high-tech companies. Among them, next-generation information technology projects lead with 34%, followed by bio-industry and bio-pharmaceutical projects with 28%, high-end equipment and intelligent manufacturing projects with 14%, new energy and new energy vehicle projects with 12%, and new materials, energy conservation and environmental protection projects, as well as pan-technology projects with 12%. In the growth category, all the entries possess their own patents, either granted or pending, with an average of 7.38 patents per project, and the vast majority of their owners are designated as sci-tech companies or high-tech companies.

Guided by the philosophy of "management empowering sci-tech innovation", driven by both technology and management, the School of Management, Fudan University (FDSM) has created an innovation empowerment ecosystem characterized by symbiosis, self-consistency, evolution and spillover effects. Based on the common needs of sci-tech innovation companies and its core resources, the school has created a holistic ecosystem for sci-tech innovation empowerment that covers research, investment and financing, industries and corporate services, aiming to help sci-tech innovation companies establish valuable industry connections, gain more external resources and support for entrepreneurship, and promote the success of technology ventures.

Through representative programs such as the Yangtze Delta "Join" Sci-Tech Innovation & Entrepreneurship Competition, Fudan Sci-Tech Innovation Entrepreneurs Camp, Fudan MBA Sci-Tech Innovation Youth Executive Camp and the Innovation Leadership Enhancement Class for Tech Companies, FDSM has developed a full-chain, multi-dimensional matrix of products for talent selection, cultivation and training, which addresses the management and talent cultivation needs of sci-tech innovation companies throughout their lifecycles. Over the past four years, the initiative has reached and empowered nearly 500 sci-tech innovation companies across the country, according to Cen Cen, Director of the Sci-Tech Innovation Office at FDSM and Director of the Yangtze Delta "Join" Sci-Tech Innovation & Entrepreneurship Competition.

Coinciding with the preliminary round, the Sci-Tech Innovation Pioneer Entrepreneur Training Camp was inaugurated. By integrating resources of the government, universities, research institutions and businesses, the camp aims to enhance the transformation and application of technological outcomes, and to promote the high-quality development of technological innovation.

During the event, Lu Xiongwen, Dean of FDSM, joined Jin Huajun, Founder of Shanghai Juncell Therapeutics Co., Ltd.; Huang Hongwei, an alumnus of Fudan University and CEO of Virogin Biotech Co., Ltd.; and Liang Dongke, Chairman of Shanghai INT Medical Instruments Co., Ltd., in a profound dialogue on the theme of "Dual Drive of Management and Innovation".

"Sci-tech innovation is not just a strategic option, it is also a requisite for national development," said Lu. "In the past, China's rapid economic growth relied on globalization and export-oriented economic strategies, but now it must achieve self-reliance and break through technological blockades through sci-tech innovation." He noted that the success of many sci-tech innovation companies does not come easy, and entrepreneurs have braved innumerable trials and adversities. Therefore, FDSM has launched a training camp for founders of sci-tech innovation companies. Through case studies and practical teaching, it helps them master management knowledge and apply it flexibly to meet the various challenges in the entrepreneurial process.