Established in 1976, the Hsinchu Science Park is Taiwan's prominent hub of advanced industries, housing over 500 high-tech companies, including the headquarters of TSMC (Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company), the world's leading semiconductor company, as well as UMC (United Microelectronics Corporation - 3rd in global foundry market), ASE (Advanced Semiconductor Engineering -1st in global packaging), and MediaTek (4th in global design).
During his visit to the science park, Mayor Lee met with officials, including Deputy Director-General Chen Su-chu, and explored the research infrastructure and the experiences of the science park in transforming research and development into successful global companies.
Deputy Director-General Chen Su-chu explained, "While the Hsinchu Science Park initially received government support for research institutions, it now operates independently. Although smaller in scale compared to the Daejeon Metropolitan Science Park, it has three times the revenue and twice the employment rate."
*Daejeon Metropolitan Science Park: 15.03 million square meters, 2,356 companies; Hsinchu Science Park: 1.74 million square meters, 548 companies; revenue of Daejeon Metropolitan Science Park: approximately 21 trillion KRW, employment: 86,140; revenue of Hsinchu Science Park: approximately 67 trillion KRW, employment: 164,784.
In response, Mayor Lee stated, "Daejeon Metropolitan Science Park also needs to reduce its reliance on government support and enhance technology transfer and commercialization based on the demand-driven research and development. It is urgent to address the issue of insufficient research space and secure space for entrepreneurial activities through high-density development. For this, we need to expedite the revision of relevant laws and regulations."
Mayor Lee emphasized the cooperation between Daejeon Metropolitan Science Park and Hsinchu Science Park, highlighting their similar growth backgrounds, both developed with government support and possessing excellent universities. He expressed his desire to transform Daejeon Metropolitan Science Park, which has the potential of world-class technology and talent, into a hub for semiconductor global enterprises and proposed the expansion of cooperation between Hsinchu Science Park, representing Asia's science hub, and Daejeon Metropolitan Science Park.
Continuing his visit, Mayor Lee and the delegation also visited the Industrial Technology Research Institute (ITRI), a globally renowned applied research institute that has led the resurgence of Taiwan's semiconductor industry. They toured the research facilities guided by President Xavier Chang.
Established in 1973, before the establishment of the Hsinchu Science Park, the Industrial Technology Research Institute has contributed significantly to the development of advanced industries in Taiwan, including semiconductors, by providing research and development, startup support, and business support in supplying technology and talent.
TSMC and UMC, two major semiconductor foundry companies, are prime examples of successful companies that emerged from the research projects and received government support for entrepreneurship after being spun off from the Industrial Technology Research Institute.
Mayor Lee mentioned, "We took inspiration from the success of the Taiwan system semiconductor industry when formulating the plan to nurture the 'Daejeon National Advanced Strategy Industrial Specialization Zone.' I learned that the Industrial Technology Research Institute has spun off over 300 technology companies and transitioned more than 20,000 researchers into entrepreneurs. We must learn from the Industrial Technology Research Institute's successful model of connecting development projects to local entrepreneurship."
Mayor Lee, along with the delegation, including representatives from Daejeon City, will visit Taiwan and Singapore from the 14th to the 18th for a 4-night, 5-day schedule, where they will visit leading institutions and companies in the semiconductor and bio-industry fields.
