PALO ALTO, Calif., Jan. 14, 2025 /PRNewswire/ — A news report from Business Next Media Corp.:
Today, Taiwan marked an important step forward in the global startup landscape by opening an overseas Startup Hub in Silicon Valley. The move demonstrates the Taiwanese government’s continued commitment to leading Taiwan’s innovation ecosystem to the world. Liu Chin-ching, Minister of the National Development Council of Taiwan, was invited to attend the opening event and witnessed the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between Dennis Liu, Managing Director of Startup Island TAIWAN Silicon Valley, and Sibyl Chen, General Manager of Berkeley SkyDeck Accelerator, which will deepen the linkage between Taiwan and the U.S.’s startup resources. The opening event was well attended by the innovation community, including U.S. companies such as Google, Qualcomm, Japan’s JETRO, and Taiwan’s TSMC and Delta, as well as local venture capitalists, university representatives, and teams of outstanding Taiwanese startups, demonstrating Taiwan’s innovative energy in planting its flag in Silicon Valley and its determination to connect with the global startup community.
Taiwan is recognized as a global leader in technology and innovation, especially in the semiconductor field, where it enjoys a global market share of over 60%. In fact, Taiwan’s strength and achievements in innovation are not limited to its renowned manufacturing capabilities. In recent years, Taiwan’s unique market environment and technological soil have fostered a vibrant ecosystem of new ventures, creating a cluster of entrepreneurs developing cutting-edge technologies in a wide range of fields.
In his speech, Minister Liu said that Taiwan’s technology and innovation capabilities are evident to the world. Significant contributions to important development trends such as AI and digital transformation are proceeding apace, and the energy of new venture development is also rapidly increasing, with nearly 10,000 new ventures currently in operation. In recent years, global startups have faced the challenge of a capital winter, and the amount of global startup fundraising in 2023 has declined by nearly 40% compared with the previous year. But Taiwan’s startup fundraising in 2023 has grown against the trend, reaching a record high of US$2.8 billion, with a growth rate of 9.8%.
According to Minister Liu, Taiwan has allocated US$4.56 billion (NT$150 billion) to accelerate the development of its startup ecosystem over the next four years, underscoring Taiwan’s commitment to promoting innovation, fostering entrepreneurial talent, and enhancing global competitiveness. The funds will be used to establish funding programs with universities to promote research, partner with top companies to enhance industry expertise, and more. These initiatives are aimed at establishing Taiwan as a base center for leading-edge technologies and international collaboration.
Minister Liu emphasized the importance of this collaboration, “The opening of the Silicon Valley Startup Hub marks an important step in Taiwan’s efforts to partner with U.S. industry to promote innovation. By promoting the connection between Taiwan’s thriving entrepreneurial community and Silicon Valley, we are building a two-way bridge between the creative ecosystems of the two places, promoting exchanges and collaborations, and moreover, ensuring that our new start-ups will be able to compete and thrive in the global arena.”
In recent years, Taiwan’s government has invested heavily in fostering a strong startup ecosystem through a series of targeted initiatives, including grants, loans and industry awards. These efforts have yielded significant results in the form of a thriving ecosystem of about 10,000 active start-ups in a wide range of sectors, including health technology, energy, sustainability, agriculture, hardware, media and entertainment, and sales and marketing. Strong government-supported programs, including the Asia Silicon Valley Development Plan 3.0, further strengthen this ecosystem by connecting startups to international resources, investors and markets. By creating an environment that encourages innovation and entrepreneurship, Taiwan has become a key player in the global startup ecosystem.
In addition, Taiwan brings unique strengths to Silicon Valley that go beyond world-class advanced manufacturing, a resilient and flexible supply chain, and continued investment in research and development of transformative technologies, including artificial intelligence, biotechnology, and green energy. These strengths are complemented by Silicon Valley’s unrivaled innovative capabilities, creating a close partnership of synergy and collaboration. By combining Taiwan’s industrial strengths with Silicon Valley’s venture capital and disruptive startup ecosystem, this collaboration is expected to drive technological breakthroughs, enhance global competitiveness, and lay the groundwork for sustainable growth in the future.
The establishment of the Startup Island TAIWAN Silicon Valley Hub marks an important step in connecting Taiwan’s thriving startup ecosystem with the global stage. Startup Island TAIWAN will be a two-way bridge between Taiwan and Silicon Valley’s entrepreneurial ecosystem and a hub of talent by providing local communities with co-working space, education and training, conferences, networking events, professional consulting, and entrepreneurial landing services. Through initiatives such as the Employment Gold Card program, Taiwan has strengthened its position as a center for talent, technology and entrepreneurship, and has collaborated to make a positive impact and pave the way for a more connected and innovative future.
SOURCE Business Next Media Corp.
