RYNAN Technologies JSC wins the first prize in the Qualcomm Vietnam Innovation Challenge 2023 for its smart insect monitoring system. — Photo courtesy of the organiser
Qualcomm Technologies Inc, a subsidiary of Qualcomm Inc, has announced the top three winners of the third season of the Qualcomm Vietnam Innovation Challenge (QVIC).
RYNAN Technologies JSC, which designs and makes a smart insect monitoring system, won first prize.
XB Technology Company Limited won second prize with its drone delivery based on cellular connectivity, and Benkon Corp, with its energy saving solution for air conditioners, won third prize.
They won cash prizes of US$100,000, $75,000 and $50,000, respectively.
QVIC 2023 attracted the participation of 141 companies around the country, which was the highest number of applicants in the programme's history.
A jury of experts chose 10 shortlisted companies in February this year based on unique innovation, technology differentiation and localisation, intellectual property opportunities and business model to move to the incubation stage.
In the incubation period from March to August, Qualcomm Technologies provided them with workshops and training in intellectual property – how to patent, protect and monetise their inventions – as well as entrepreneurship skill development, with a range of topics covered such as customer discovery, business modeling, financial planning and budgeting, fundraising, branding and pitching skills.
They also received technical support related to their innovations, including access to Qualcomm Vietnam’s lab in Hà Nội and consulting on product development during the incubation period.
Alex Rogers, President of Qualcomm Technology Licensing & Global Affairs, said: “The continued success of this programme shows the creative strength of Việt Nam’s technology startup ecosystem. We look forward to continuing our work with leading Vietnamese OEMs and mobile network operators to support the industry and government in realising Industry 4.0 policy in ‘Make in Vietnam’ objectives.”
Phạm Hồng Quất, General Director of the Ministry of Science and Technology’s National Agency for Technology Entrepreneurship and Commercialisation Development, said: “Việt Nam's technology startups have enhanced their breakthrough mindset in research and development of technology solutions to be able to gradually solve challenges from large corporations. QVIC is a pioneering initiative in supporting the national innovation startup ecosystem in the direction of open innovation.”
Launched in 2019 with the support of the Ministry of Science and Technology, QVIC aims to incubate innovative startups in promising new technology areas such as 5G, IoT, robotics and drones, artificial intelligence, smart cities, wearable devices and multimedia technologies.
Utilising the programme’s patent filing incentive, startups have filed 29 patents and over 86 patents, on their own. — VNS