CDIB Capital Innovation Accelerator (Innovation Accelerator), which is dedicated to building a new entrepreneurial platform for Taiwanese entrepreneurs, has held 80 events since its opening in the Nangang Software Park last year. More than 2,000 people participated in related activities. President of CDIB Capital Ho Chun-Huei said that the Innovation Accelerator Fund has invested in six new startups since its establishment, and has successfully used Taiwan's advantages to become the best platform for innovation and entrepreneurship in Taiwan.
CDIB Capital Innovation Accelerator is committed to becoming the best platform for innovation and entrepreneurship in Taiwan. It actively connects entrepreneurs with various resources by providing talent, funds, strategies and cross-border resources. It also provides comprehensive and complete resources to entrepreneurs by combining partners with different specialties. Take “When the Internet of Things Meets AI Forum: Smart Retail,” which attracted over one hundred people, for example. It was co-hosted by StarFab Innovation Accelerator and KPMG. StarFab introduces the resources of mature enterprises and uses a big-carrying-small entrepreneurial model to help more than 70 startup teams collaborate with 18 mature companies. Meanwhile, KPMG provides financial, tax guidance and overseas market development channels for startups to jointly create a complete entrepreneurial system for startups.
At 'When the Internet of Things meets the AI Forum: Smart Retail', industry experts and members of new ventures share their experiences, enabling in-depth analysis of the industry. The participating industry experts from Acer and Alibaba talked about the domestic and international examples of “digital signboard” and “new retail”, respectively, from online to offline and from virtual to physical, through the collection and analysis of big data, all aimed at creating a formula for success. The event invited three new ventures to talk about their technical content in smart retail. WayGo Financial Technology uses Bluetooth technology to create self-service equipment with a code-scanning payment mechanism, which can add payment functions to existing equipment and service channels. Beseye's artificial intelligence security camera platform solves the pain points of physical channels and provides security analysis and customer analysis. Starwing’s precise indoor positioning technology can be used for navigation, guided tours, personnel equipment management and sports entertainment, which fully demonstrates the unlimited potential of smart retail.
Ho Chun-Huei, president of CDIB Capital, said that the planned fund size for the Innovation Accelerator Fund is NT$1.5bn. The fund is managed by CDIB Innovation Management, a joint venture of CDIB Capital’s subsidiary CDIB Capital Management and Meet ,a media group startups. Since its establishment one year ago, the Innovation Accelerator Fund has invested in six startups in sectors ranging from AI, the internet of things, the mobile Internet and next-generation e-commerce. Most of the startups feature rapid growth and light assets. Most notably, the Fund has invested in a number of young entrepreneurs with globalized perspectives.
Ryan Guo, President of the Innovation Accelerator Fund, pointed out that he has observed a new trend: technology-driven upgrades and optimizations of existing industries, such as the use of AI in financial services and smart retail, or the use of next-generation communications technology in IoT applications, including smart healthcare and smart factories. His advice to new entrepreneurs is to make good use of Taiwan's existing ICT (information and communication technology) advantages and rapidly expand market share through cooperation with large corporate channels.
Ho Chun-Huei, president of CDIB Capital, emphasized that CDIB Capital Innovation Accelerator is a new type of entrepreneurial platform, which marks the development of a new plan of action for CDF in the venture capital business, which, in addition to integrating resources, enables start-ups to share resources anytime and anywhere. In addition to providing free operational spaces for start-ups, it also increases the opportunities for companies and investors to communicate through various entrepreneurial community activities, and tailors entrepreneurship coaching according to the needs of investors. Ryan Guo pointed out that the ultimate goal of Innovation Accelerator is to bring the products and services of Taiwan's startups to the global market through its accumulated industry network.