To cultivate future leaders in biomedical innovation, National Taipei University of Technology (NTUT) recently held the “International Biomedical Entrepreneurship PBL Workshop.” The six-day program brought together academic and industry experts from Japan and the United States, offering intensive training in international exchange and entrepreneurship. Using the Problem-Based Learning (PBL) approach, the camp aimed to enhance students’ ability to transform biomedical technologies into market-ready applications.

The workshop was led by Dr. Hsu-Wei Fang, Director of NTUT’s Center for High-Value Biomedical Materials Research and Commercialization, who previously participated in entrepreneurship programs at the University of California, Berkeley. With a deep understanding of the synergy between scientific research and entrepreneurial thinking, Dr. Fang invited professionals from academia, industry, and venture capital to serve as lecturers and mentors. The goal was to inspire students not only to engage in scientific inquiry but also to commercialize their innovations, charting their own paths in entrepreneurship and career development.

Organized by NTUT, the event was co-hosted by the National Health Research Institutes (NHRI), National Taiwan Normal University (NTNU), University of Tsukuba (Japan), and the National Institute for Materials Science (NIMS, Japan). Participants included graduate students, professors, postdoctoral researchers, and industry mentors from Taiwan, Japan, and the U.S. The entire workshop was conducted in English, underscoring its strong international perspective.

NTUT noted that the first two days focused on the commercialization process of biomedical materials and academic research. Students participated in a technical pitch competition, where they proposed potential startup ideas, such as biodegradable fast-acting hemostatic agents, ultra-sensitive rapid drug detection kits, metal-organic framework (MOF) microneedle patches for scar treatment, and wound-healing products for pets. These ideas became the basis for group discussions and hands-on projects in the following days.

From Day 3 to Day 5, a team of entrepreneurship experts from the U.S. took over, led by Berkeley entrepreneurship mentor GiGi Wang and Helen Chen, co-founder of Alixia. Topics covered included product innovation analysis, intellectual property, financial planning, marketing, fundraising strategies, and teamwork. On the final day, each startup team delivered a results presentation and pitch, showcasing a week of learning and innovative proposals.

Chinese Resource：https://udn.com/news/story/6929/8680716