Taiwan comes second in the world at 2022 R&D 100 Awards

Taiwan comes second in the world at 2022 R&D 100 Awards

2022-10-06

Taiwan swept the board at this year’s R&D 100 Awards, sometimes known as “The Oscars of Innovation.” Taiwanese tech developments won 12 awards, and the country came second place in the world. Today we take a look at some of the winning ideas to come out of Taiwan, and hear from officials about what the awards mean for the future of tech and industry.

This is a small piece of low temperature co-fired ceramic. It’s resistant to high temperatures and conducts reliably at high frequencies of 1 to 100 Gigahertz. The Industrial Technology Research Institute worked with a materials manufacturer to create this “9KC Green Tape LTCC,” a new solution for 5G and millimeter wave communications. Until now, Taiwan has relied on U.S. giant Qualcomm for parts like this. Now it can make its own.

Kao Shih-ming
Circuits and components material manufacturer
The product received the recognition of the R&D100 Awards. This achievement will bring us a new solution for future 5G millimeter wave applications.

Put on this augmented reality headset and the high-res micro-LED modules inside create a vivid projection on a tiny crystal screen just half an inch wide. It’s bright, high res, highly integrated, and low on energy use. All those traits make it perfect for the virtual world.

Meanwhile, this device uses AI to help detect and diagnose diabetic retinal and macular degeneration. Fourteen other common eye conditions can also be detected at the same time. Taiwanese innovations gleaned 12 honors at the R&D 100 Awards this year. Taiwan was, in fact, in second place on the awards table, ahead of Japan and European countries.

Liu Wen-hsiung
ITRI director
All innovations must be led by the market. So winning R&D 100 Awards is not the end, but the beginning. These awards indicate that our research achievements have gained recognition, but the most important thing is to bring these achievements into industry.

Lin Chuan-neng
Deputy economics minister
It’s not just this year. Since 2007, for a total of 15 years, our selections for the R&D 100 Awards have won 75 awards.

Deputy economics minister Lin Chuan-neng pointed out that Taiwan has been winning accolades for its innovations for many years. More than 90% of those award winners sold their technologies to manufacturers and can be found on the market, even spawning the creation of many new startups.

百大科技研發獎60週年台灣獲12獎居全球第二

2022-10-06

有研發界奧斯卡之稱的全球百大科技研發獎，今年邁入60周年，台灣今年參賽，不但一口氣獲得12個獎項，獲獎數更居全球第二，亞洲第一，超越歐洲和日本，一起來看看這些新創研發。

小小的低溫共燒陶瓷，除了耐熱性高外，在1到100GHZ的高頻環境中，也能有穩定輸出，這是工研院與電路及元件材料公司研發的"9KC GreenTape LTCC於5G毫米波通訊技術"，從此5G毫米波通訊元件，不必再靠高通，台灣也有國產貨。

[[電路及元件材料公司總監高世銘]]
“產品榮獲R&D100 Awards大獎的肯定，這個成果，帶來將來5G毫米波在應用的時候，一個新的解決方案。”

戴上AR眼鏡，透過安裝在裡頭的"高精密陣列之微型Micro LED全彩顯示模組"，就能將影像呈現在只有0.5吋大的晶片螢幕上，高解析、高亮度、高整合和低耗能等特性，都將被應用在元宇宙上。

而這款"眼底病變AI輔助診斷與偵測技術"，則可以透過AI，輔助醫師診斷糖尿病的視網膜與黃斑部病變，另外14種常見的眼底疾病也能偵測。今年的全球百大科技研發獎，台灣在新創科技方面獲得12個獎項，獲獎數更居全球第二，亞洲第一，超越歐洲和日本。

[[工研院院長劉文雄]]
“所有的研發呢，必須要以市場為導向，所以拿到R&D100 Awards的獎，並不是結束而是一個開始。那這些獎項呢，是代表我們研發的成果受到肯定，但最重要的是說，要把這些研發成果帶到產業去。”

[[經濟部次長林全能]]
“不僅僅是今年，我們從2007年到現在，總共15年的時間，參與R&D100 Awards這樣獎項的遴選，總共得到75個獎項。”

科技專案的研發成果，已經連續15年獲得75個全球百大科技研發獎，並且有超過9成，已技轉廠商，甚至孕育出許多家新創公司，帶動產業的效益與價值。

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With its frequent incursions, the PLA has shown that it has stopped recognizing the median line of the Taiwan Strait. That is making Taiwan reconsider what actions would be considered a “first strike” from China.

Lo Chih-cheng
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Previously, we had said that we wouldn’t be the ones to fire the first round, or be the first ones to attack. We said we would only counterattack after the enemy starts the conflict. Does that approach still stand?

Chiu Kuo-cheng
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Back then, we said that we wouldn’t fire the first round. That we wouldn’t strike unless they attacked us first. That includes artillery and missiles and so on.

Lo Chih-cheng
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But now it seems that the definition of that has changed. If they send warplanes into our airspace, that counts as the first attack.

Chiu Kuo-cheng
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That’s right.

The defense minister said that aircraft flying into Taiwan’s airspace would constitute a “first strike” against Taiwan. With cross-strait tension on the rise, the ministry is not just revising its definition of “first strike.” It has also decided to extend the duration of conscription.

Chiu Kuo-cheng
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We’ll announce the conscription changes before the end of the year. They have to be announced one year before they take effect.

Tsai Ing-wen
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We are also working to adapt our defense strategy to the changing threats we face. To this end we have substantially increased our defense spending, including on asymmetric warfare capability, weapons upgrades, and domestic vessel production. Only Taiwan’s democratically elected government has the right to represent the Taiwanese people.

In a prerecorded message on Wednesday, President Tsai Ing-wen addressed the Washington-based Global Taiwan Institute, thanking the U.S. for its assistance to Taiwan. In an interview in Hawaii last week, U.S. Pacific Fleet Commander Samuel Paparo said that the U.S. and its allies would be able to break a maritime blockade of Taiwan imposed by China. Comments of support like that in recent weeks have been seen as a signal to China that the U.S. will stand with Taiwan.

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James Moriarty
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The original documents make it clear that we would have to do something if there’s an attempt to change Taiwan’s status by force. That is, in a nutshell, what the president was saying.

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James Moriarty
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The PRC’s words and actions are deeply destabilizing. They risk miscalculation and threaten the peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait.

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In every class, each student has a tablet in their hands. The teacher stands at the front and teaches through the devices.

This lesson is on natural sciences. Using the tablet, abstract concepts become concrete and understanding opens up for kids. The Ministry of Education has launched a “Digital Learning Plan” to give every school class internet access and every child a tablet.

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Student
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That’s an insight most of us can agree with. Teachers say that if every child has a tablet, teachers must also change their styles of teaching. Force-feeding students facts is becoming obsolete.

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Wong-Zih Elementary head
I make some abstract ideas concrete. Then I can use some electric circuits and currents to make it look like a real flow is occurring. So that way, the students can establish a mental model, which is very important in scientific education. Then when they actually carry out experiments, and observe the natural environment, then they have more tools to use.

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In Kaohsiung, there are shops proclaiming to be the king of milk, the king of schoolbags, the king of pork ribs. Is anyone in Kaohsiung not a king?

King of lotus root
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Perhaps it’s also because a store called king is easy to remember and sounds pretty good. This lotus root shop has been in business 56 years. Customers say the name with the word “Dawang” sounds majestic.

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Member of public
The king of green bean soup… You probably have to be very confident to choose that name. Something like king or conqueror…

King of green bean soup
The Chinese characters don’t have many strokes. I wanted to see if a name with the word king might make more money.

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