Houston innovation summit beefs up lineup

For the second year, the US China Innovation and Investment Summit (UCIS), scheduled for May 15 to 17, will be better and bigger in many ways than its inaugural summit last year, according to Chen Hongsheng, consul and director of science and technology at the Chinese Consulate General in Houston.

The UCIS is organized by the Houston-based US China Innovation Alliance (UCIA) and China Science and Technology Exchange Center (CSTEC), an affiliate of China's Ministry of Science and Technology.

In addition, 26 governmental entities and other organizations from China and the US are enlisted as co-organizers of the event with more than 30 sponsors, said Chen.

A notable addition to this year's summit is the InnoSTARS Competition. "Last year the summit introduced more than 100 US innovation projects to Chinese companies. This year, we hope to attract higher-quality US innovations and provide better investment opportunities for the Chinese investors through competition," Chen said.

The competition is still accepting entries, with a deadline of May 1. UCIS will pick 50 to 60 technologies from the pool and take them on the road to China.

In addition, the UCIS managed to connect with the South by Southwest (SXSW) Conference's China Gathering to have its top 10 projects enter the InnoSTARS competition.

"The summit will pay all the travel expenses to have the winners pitch their ideas to Chinese companies in two or three cities for a week. We will pre-match each of them with 20 to 30 Chinese companies for better results. Much more work will be needed after the summit," Chen said.

After the roadshow is over, the summit will pick the top 10 winners.

The 2017 UCIS also picked Chinese companies such as CRRC Corp, BAIC Group and cities like Zhengzhou, Wuhan, Harbin to seek relevant technologies. CRRC is making a major investment in intelligent motor technology, while BAIC is looking at driverless technology.

"We want more compatible and better matches for innovations and investors. There are a lot of small to medium enterprises in the US. They don't know China well or lack access to the Chinese investors. UCIS hopes to become a platform for them and connect them to Chinese investors," Chen said.

According to the UCIS organizers, following the 2016 summit, 43 projects found potential partners for further discussion, and a few such projects are moving forward.

In addition, the Houston Technology Center (HTC) opened offices in Beijing and Wuhan, while Shanghai's IHealthgo opened an office at the HTC.

This year, more than 500 people from about 150 US companies and institutions as well as about 150 Chinese companies in healthcare, IT, environmental protection, new energy, advanced manufacturing, modern agriculture and new materials will attend the summit.

mayzhou@chinadailyusa.com