TAIPEI (TVBS News) — A delegation from Wallonia, Belgium, has arrived in Taiwan this week to participate in the annual Taiwan-Belgium Joint Business Council Meeting. The visit, led by the Wallonia Export-Investment Agency (AWEX), underscores a growing interest in fostering business and academic innovation ties between Taiwan and the Wallonia region of Belgium.
The delegation also visited Taiwan's industry, academic, and innovation counseling units and will hold the Taiwan-Belgium (Wallonia) Innovation Forum on June 7, the last day of InnoVEX, in collaboration with the National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University.
Innovation Across Borders
The delegation, known as the Wallonia Tech Taiwan program, comprises six startup companies from Wallonia, including AWIT, e-peas, D2D3, intoPIX, Open Engineering, and Mekanika, along with WSL, and two educational institutions, Brussels Engineering School (ECAM) and Université catholique de Louvain's Open Hub innovation center.
Philippe Tzou, head of the Wallonia Export-Investment Agency of the Belgian Office Taipei, highlighted Taiwan's leading development in the high-tech industry, attributing it significantly to the government's generous funding for applied science research and development. He noted that Belgium also boasts impressive achievements in bridging industry and academia.
Among the showcased innovations are Open Engineering's core software technology, OOFELIE, a multi-physics simulation software developed by the University of Liège's Institute of Aerospace and Mechanical Engineering, and e-peas' alternative energy harvesting technology, stemming from low-power semiconductor research at Université catholique de Louvain's ICTEAM. These examples illustrate the successful commercialization of academic research in Belgium.
Additionally, 21-year-old entrepreneur Andrew Willems, founder of AWIT, shared his journey from developing team collaboration systems in Minecraft with friends to creating customized ERP systems during the pandemic, showcasing the potential of self-taught programming skills.
The Taiwan-Belgium (Wallonia) Innovation Forum will take place on June 7, from 1 to 3 p.m., at the InnoVEX Center Stage in Nangang Exhibition Hall 2, Floor 4. This event promises to further highlight the collaborative potential between Taiwanese and Belgian innovators, setting the stage for future partnerships in technology and sustainable development.
