International Seminar on Technology Innovation and Intellectual Property was successfully held on the afternoon of April 27th. The event is supported by Nanjing Jiangbei New Area, and co-organised by Cambridge University - Nanjing Centre of Technology and Innovation, Nanjing Jiangbei New Area CBD Construction Management Office, Cambridge Enterprise - Cambridge University’s Intellectual Property Commercialisation Organisation, and China-University Intellectual Property Operation Platform.

Coinciding with the 21st World Intellectual Property Day, the seminar invited over 90 intellectual property experts and scholars on-site and over 10 online from overseas institutions such as Cambridge University, Cambridge Enterprise, and Leuven University, as well as domestic universities such as Peking University, Nanjing University, Zhejiang University and Nanjing University of Science and Technology. Through remote dialogue, participants focused on exploring the complete path of intellectual property creation, cultivation, protection, application and service from the perspective of universities and the practice of scientific and technological innovation to resolve crises during the epidemic.

Zhu Yu, President of the Jiangsu Science and Technology Innovation Association and member of the National Intellectual Property Expert Advisory Committee, and Nie Yongjun, Director of the Science and Technology Innovation Bureau of Nanjing Jiangbei New Area, participated and addressed at the seminar. Leaders from Nanjing Jiangbei New Area CBD Construction Management Office, Cambridge Enterprise, and the Centre attended the meeting.

To protect intellectual property rights is to protect innovation. The "14th Five-Year Plan" outline clearly points out the implementation of the strategy of strengthening the country with intellectual property rights, better protecting and encouraging high-value patents, and fostering patent-intensive enterprises. Zhu Yu emphasized that Jiangsu Province is accelerating the development in the field of intellectual property rights and implementing the innovation-driven development strategy. University is an important part of the technological innovation system. The technology transfer of universities plays an important role in integrating innovative elements and promoting industrial technological innovation.

The Centre's intellectual property work is inseparable from the nourishment of the local innovative soil. On behalf of the Jiangbei New Area Management Committee, Nie Yongjun expressed his gratitude to the guests who participated in the seminar. He said that focusing on the construction of "two areas and one centre", the New Area is building an innovative highland with a complete intellectual property protection chain, an intellectual property protection system in place, and a reputation for intellectual property creation and utilization. It has established Nanjing Intellectual Property Protection Centre, Intellectual Property Court, Overseas Intellectual Property Rights Protection Alliance, and released platforms for original certified intellectual property protection, trade secret notarization protection, etc., building a system of intellectual property rights that are “converging” with international leading level. He hopes to promote international intellectual property cooperation in the New Area and help the New Area create a source of innovation through Cambridge Nanjing Center and the seminar.

In the keynote speech session, online guests focused on explaining the achievements and experiences of universities, governments, and industries in innovation and collaboration from the perspective of the epidemic, and summarised feasible paths suitable for international technology transfer and transformation.

Tomas Ulrichson, Director of UCI Policy Evidence Unit, University of Cambridge, took examples of vaccine research, respiratory equipment prototype development, support for small and medium-sized enterprises under the epidemic, medical resource management and logistics efficiency improvement, etc., to strongly illustrate that facing urgent technical challenges, the partnership ecosystem has been formed among enterprises, government, and investors. With decades of research and knowledge base, the university is at the centre of rapid response and providing practical solutions.

Paul van Dun, Director of Research & Development, KU Leuven, and Tony Raven, CEO of Cambridge Enterprise, focused on sharing the triple helix model among universities, government and industry. Director Dun said that basic research in universities can bring about innovation. With government and corporate research funds, universities can contribute to society in the form of entity-enterprise cooperation, intellectual property and patent licensing, and the creation of spin-off companies. Tony Raven shared that the epidemic shows that the triple helix composed of universities, industry, and government can cross the valley of death between university research and product development at an astonishing speed of deployment, and promote basic research beyond barriers such as early feasibility studies, technology verification and prototype development, early market testing, product development, marketing and sales, and finally achieve global deployment.

Daping Chu, Tenured Professor of Cambridge University and CEO of the Centre, took the practice of the CAPE of the University of Cambridge as a case to share the valuable experience of "transnational technological innovation collaboration for industry". He emphasized that the essence of innovation and entrepreneurship is globalization. Technology research and development must follow the rules of the application orientation, improving people's lives, insisting on stability and reliability, reducing manufacturing costs, and crossing discipline markets and national boundaries.

On-site guests focused on local practices and practical needs. Zhu Yu systematically explained the measurement standards, generation channels, development dilemmas, and cultivating operation procedures of high-value patents. He said that China is transforming from a giant country in intellectual property rights to a great power in intellectual property rights. Strengthening the cultivation and transfer of high-value patents is an important way to improve the efficiency of scientific and technological input and output and promote the high-quality development of patents, which requires the close integration of the scientific and technological innovation system and the patent system, and strengthening the top-level design of intellectual property protection.

Director Tang Heng suggested that alumni groups should be used as a point to give play to the radiant driving and spillover effects of alumni resources. Break through the barriers to transformation between outstanding scientific research achievements of universities and market industries through the establishment of venture capital funds, entrepreneurial alliances, etc.; Director Wang Xiaoxu suggested that the "Internet + Intellectual Property Big Data" model should be adopted to empower universities to transfer technology and promote the matching between university patents and corporate needs.

The seminar reached its climax in the roundtable discussion session of "International Technology Transfer Talent Training". Focusing on a series of topics such as how to use the innovative resources of scientific research institutions and enterprises, how to integrate Cambridge's international innovation resources with China, how to carry out international high-end training, and the discussion of international technology transfer models and paths, Director Tang Heng, Dong Xinkai, Vice Dean of School of Intellectual Property of Nanjing University of Science and Technology, Director Wang Xiaoxu, and Professor Daping Chu had a lively discussion.

As the first scientific and technological research and development and achievement transformation institution established by the University of Cambridge outside the UK, the Centre regards intellectual property work as a key guarantee for innovation and development and deepening of industry-university-research collaboration. Next, the Centre will continue to leverage its advantages as resource platform and strengthen the training of professional talents and high-quality development of its own patents, contributing to the implementation of the strategy of strengthening the country with intellectual property rights.