The finals of the Second Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area Post-Doctoral Innovation and Entrepreneurship Competition will be held in Nansha, Guangzhou, from November 23 to 25.
The competition is divided into four regions: Guangdong (including provinces outside Guangdong), Hong Kong, Macao, and overseas. A total of 356 projects from the overseas region have signed up, marking a year-on-year increase of 100%, with about 600 PhD and post-doctoral candidates participating, coming from 21 countries such as the United States, the United Kingdom, Germany, and France.
In the Hong Kong and Macao region, 191 projects and over 460 participants, including more than 370 PhDs, have registered, representing a 10% increase compared to the previous year.
The event has attracted a total of 3,351 PhD and post-doctoral project teams and over 10,000 participants.
The competition features seven major tracks: new-generation information technology, semiconductors and integrated circuits, biomedicine and big health, high-end equipment manufacturing, new materials and new energy, marine research and application, and other industrial fields. There are 70 total awards with a total prize pool exceeding RMB 10 million.
It is introduced that the participating projects are linked to over 2,000 intellectual property rights, and many technologies are being premiered or showcased for the first time.
Taking robotics technology as an example, the participating projects cover various scenarios such as underwater exploration, medical assistance, and manufacturing processes. In the low-altitude economy sector, projects related to low-orbit satellite communications, low-altitude intelligent networks, and drone batteries have registered.
The competition has also invited 15 eminent academicians such as Zhong Nanshan, Tang Tao, and Lionel M. Ni, as well as eight industry leaders such as Wang Chuanfu and Dong Mingzhu, to jointly form the expert steering committee of the competition, serving as innovation mentors or entrepreneurship mentors.
During the finals, events such as PhD and post-doctoral achievement exhibitions, project conversion matchmaking sessions, talent recruitment, and academic exchanges will be held simultaneously. Currently, 268 units have registered to participate in the job fair on November 25, offering over 6,000 PhD and post-doctoral positions.
More than 500 competition projects have expressed strong intentions to land in Guangdong, with 87 projects intending to locate in Nansha and seven projects already completing registration.
Thus far, Nansha currently has 39 PhD and post-doctoral research work platforms, 370 various innovation platforms, 22 new-type research institutions, and over 1,100 high-tech enterprises, with a research and development investment intensity reaching 5.46%.