GENEVA, July 19 (Xinhua) -- Five small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) from China, Japan, the Netherlands and Singapore were declared the first-ever winners of the World Intellectual Property Organization's (WIPO) new Global Awards on Tuesday.
They were cited for their exceptional use of intellectual property (IP) to make a positive impact at home and abroad.
WIPO Director General Daren Tang handed out the award to the five winners: Hydraloop of the Netherlands, Lucence of Singapore, Raycan and Shylon of China, and Splink of Japan.
These enterprises have been specializing in early cancer detection, energy-saving lights, water recycling, dementia diagnosis and enhanced medical imaging, respectively. Tang said that the five winners will benefit from the WIPO's support to help their businesses grow.
The seven-member Global Awards jury selected the five winners from a list of 272 submissions from 62 countries.
The Chinese company Shylon was founded in 2010 in Shanghai to provide architectural lighting solutions using LED (light-emitting diode) technology. Back in 2021, China's Ministry of Industry and Information Technology recognized the company as a "technologically advanced SME" of the year.
Raycan, which was founded in the city of Suzhou in east China's Jiangsu Province in 2009, specializes in the development and production of radiation detection and imaging equipment. It has become a leader in the field and has applied for and obtained over a hundred patents in the United States, Germany, Japan and other countries.
Singapore-based Lucence is a precision oncology company committed to bringing clarity to cancer care. Splink from Japan is a software company developing artificial intelligence-based (AI) tools to help medical doctors diagnose early dementia and other neurodegenerative diseases in conjunction with data and field experts. Hydraloop of the Netherlands designs and produces IoT (Internet of Things) connected scalable greywater recycling products for real estate.
The WIPO Global Awards recognize SMEs that aim to ensure that intellectual property rights support innovation and creativity all over the world, for the benefit of everyone. The winners can participate in a personalized mentorship program that helps them use IP to grow their business, and receive other forms of support and sponsorship to facilitate their access to funding and business growth. ■
