The global competitiveness rankings published by the World Economic Forum (WEF) in September 2014 placed Taiwan 14th out of 144 countries. Of special note, Taiwan ranked tenth in the world in terms of innovation competitiveness, emphasizing how the country's soft power in innovation and invention has become the driving force behind its economic development. The 2014 Taipei International Invention Show & Technomart (Taipei INST), to be held between September 18 ~ 21 at TWTC Exhibition Hall 1, will feature 1,000 booths and display more than 2000 cutting-edge inventions and patented technologies. All interested parties are welcome to visit the show and witness the innovation and inventiveness of Taiwan.
This year marks the tenth edition of Taipei INST. Since the show was first launched in 2005, it has grown from exhibiting 800 patents to its present scale of 2,000 patented inventions, thanks to the continued innovation and growth of inventors in Taiwan. This serves as clear proof of Taiwan's innovation ability. Exhibitors this year include many well-known schools and companies. The "Domestic Invention Area" will host the Taipei University of Technology, National Central University and other schools as well as well-known companies such as Chunghwa Telecom and Mackay Memorial Hospital; the "Overseas Invention Area" will feature invention organizations and inventors from 15 countries including Poland, South Korea and Thailand; the "TIPO Innovation Invention Area" will showcase 45 handpicked exhibits from the more than 400 Taiwanese gold medal winners in international invention shows in 2013. For the tenth anniversary of Taipei INST, Mr. Mark Sheahan, an internationally renowned inventor from the U.K.'s "Institute of Patentees and Inventors", Mr. Takeshi Sasaki, Vice President of the Japan Intellectual Property Association, and other industry leaders have been invited to serve as judges in the invention competition to make the competition more international and thus enhance its credibility.
To celebrate the tenth anniversary of Taipei INST, the organizers have combined the "Metallophone with Chords and Harmonics" invention of the Pingtung University of Science and Technology with indigenous culture to produce a rendition of "Happy Birthday" sung in indigenous language by a group from the Hualien Sun Dance High School. During the exhibition, more than 21 new product launch events will be held on the main stage to give local and foreign buyers as well as investors a better understanding of Taiwan's soft power in innovation and invention. The winners of this year's invention competition will be announced and the award presentation ceremony held on September 20. The presentation of gold, silver and bronze medals, as well as the platinum medal that is the highest honor of INST, will publicly acknowledge and reward the winners.
In addition, the "Technomart Area" co-organized by five government ministries will be divided into 13 theme pavilions including the Ministry of Science and Technology Pavilion, Ministry of Education Pavilion and Agricultural Pavilion. The latest exhibits in each pavilion highlight advanced R&D technologies from Taiwan industry, academia and research sectors. This year's "Technomart Area" will host a record-breaking number of international institutional exhibitors including 20 well-known industry-academia-research institutes and technology trading entities from 9 countries including the U.S., the U.K. and Hungary. During the exhibition, 10 business matchmaking sessions and symposiums will also be held. These are expected to create opportunities for networking and interchange that will take innovation and invention in Taiwan to a higher level.
Admission to the show is free and open to everyone. All visitors can enter the "Colorful Invention King" stamp-collection challenge and have the chance to win China Airlines and Eva Air tickets as well as unusual inventions sponsored by SongYan Corp., Chan Yuea Biotechnology Co., Ltd and DigiLens.
For more information on the 2014 Taipei International Invention Show and Technomart, please visit the following websites: http://www.inventaipei.com.tw/
Taipei INST Facebook fan group: www.facebook.com/INST.Taipei
