incubator.sme

The concept of the "Incubator " originated in 1959. At that time, the United States, aiming to promote the development of local SMEs, stimulate economic activity, and create employment opportunities, established government subsidy policies. These policies encouraged academic institutions and private organizations to leverage their resources to assist early-stage entrepreneurs. The goal was to create an environment conducive to nurturing new products, businesses, and technologies, as well as facilitating entrepreneurship and business transformation.

The primary functions of this policy include:

• Reducing the costs and risks associated with the entrepreneurial process to increase the success rate of startups.
• Supporting industry incubation programs to develop new technologies and products.
• Guiding the commercialization of research and development results.
• Providing a collaborative environment for academia and industry.
• Offering testing services to accelerate product development.
• Advising businesses on talent development, information access, and operational management.

To align with the government’s "Asia-Pacific Operations Center Plan," the SME Administration under Taiwan's Ministry of Economic Affairs introduced the SME Innovation Policy. In 1996, the government issued the "Guidelines for Encouraging Public and Private Institutions to Establish SME Innovation Incubators." These guidelines utilized the SME Development Fund to encourage and guide institutions in integrating existing software, hardware, practical experience, and professional resources to support enterprise innovation and entrepreneurship, accelerating industrial upgrading.

In January 1998, in response to the Ministry of Economic Affairs' initiative to support domestic SMEs, our university established the Innovation Incubator Center of the Chinese Culture University. The center actively utilized existing resources within the university and collaborated with related industries in technology and market intelligence. Since 2009, the center has undertaken the "U-START Program for College Graduates’ Entrepreneurship Services" initiated by the Ministry of Education. This program assists colleges and universities nationwide in promoting innovation and entrepreneurship, driving the trend of campus entrepreneurship in Taiwan. Beginning in 2012, the center has further supported the Ministry of Education in implementing innovation and entrepreneurship-related courses in universities to cultivate entrepreneurial talent with both professional and entrepreneurial skills, embedding an innovation and entrepreneurship culture within campuses.

Building on its capacity to coordinate and plan government policies related to innovation and entrepreneurship, the center has, since 2014, expanded its role to support domestic innovation incubator centers. The center serves as the Innovation Incubation Coordination Center for the Small and Medium Enterprise Administration, aiming to enhance industry-academia collaboration, innovation, entrepreneurship, and incubation environments on campuses, thereby boosting the nation’s overall competitiveness in human resources.

The Program Office (Innovation Incubation Coordination Center) acts as a communication bridge between the SME Administration and incubation organizations. Through professional management and oversight, the office monitors the incubation ecosystem and manages three core modules: industrial accelerators, corporate accelerators, and aging industry accelerators. These efforts guide incubation organizations and coworking spaces to support innovation, startups, and young entrepreneurs in key industries. Simultaneously, the office promotes youth entrepreneurship in local areas and fosters a culture of corporate participation in startups, driving the vibrant development of Taiwan’s startup ecosystem.

The Program Office also facilitates the application, clarification, and drafting of grant resources for incubation organizations and coworking spaces. It oversees project management, conducts on-site inspections, and addresses issues and needs in real time. By continuously refining its advisory role and management mechanisms, the office ensures adaptive and effective support for all stakeholders.

Since its inception, the concept of SME incubators has led to the establishment of nearly 2,000 centers in Europe and the United States, primarily within academic institutions. These centers have successfully nurtured a significant number of SMEs. Following the 1990s, Asian countries such as Japan, Singapore, Hong Kong, and mainland China also adopted this policy. Japan primarily relied on private investment, while Singapore and Hong Kong implemented a government-led public-private partnership model. In mainland China, incubators were predominantly set up by schools or research institutions.