Week 36: Delegation follows Royal Invitation to Thailand, Topping-Out Ceremony of Chemical Invention Factory

Germany and Thailand are linked by strong trade relations, innovation, a spirit of scientific enquiry and technological expertise. Within South-East Asia, Thailand is currently a leader in innovation and is particularly well-positioned in the fields of logistics and aviation, advanced manufacturing and electromobility, as well as health and wellness. Furthermore, the Thai government actively supports start-ups and invests in science and development. Meanwhile, Germany possesses extensive expertise in applied research, technology transfer and start-up support. Building on this foundation, the two countries now wish to create synergies.

This initiative was recently launched following an invitation from the Royal Thai Embassy in Berlin, in particular from His Excellency Chittipat Tongprasroeth. He welcomed a German delegation comprising six experts from the fields of the start-up ecosystem, deep technology, green technology and innovation for a week-long visit to Bangkok. Also part of the delegation was Katharina Heinrich, a start-up consultant at Science & Startups. The delegation met with representatives from Thailand’s start-up hub and the Mayor of Bangkok, amongst others, and attended the TechSauce conference. All with the aim of strengthening cooperation between the countries and fostering mutual understanding. Further information is available here.

At the weekend, Berlin’s innovation and start-up scene celebrated the topping-out ceremony for a venue that is unique in Europe, just one year after construction began: the Chemical Invention Factory – John Warner Centre (CIF). Located in the heart of the Charlottenburg campus of the Technical University of Berlin, it is set to serve as a new research and technology transfer infrastructure upon completion, creating the conditions for science and industry to collaborate even more effectively. In what will then be Europe’s largest laboratory infrastructure for science-based technology transfer and pre-start-up teams, researchers will have the opportunity to further develop findings under real-world conditions, validate applications and turn scientific ideas into viable start-up ventures. There will be a particular focus on the field of chemistry. The construction of the CIF thus ties in with both the state’s research policy strategy and the federal government’s chemistry agenda.