SINGAPORE: Infineon Technologies has joined forces with Singapore’s CapitaLand Investment and South Korea’s Hyundai Motor Group in a bid to help startups across Asia develop innovative solutions and applications for sustainability, future mobility, smart cities and smart factories.

       The German semiconductor giant, which in 2018 opened its first global Co-Innovation Space for startups in Singapore, will offer its Asia Pacific innovation ecosystem to the two companies, in separate partnerships, to inspire startups to forge new efficient electrification and digitalisation solutions, Infineon said yesterday.

       Chua Chee Seong, president and managing director of Infineon Technologies Asia-Pacific, said: “This is the first time Infineon is collaborating with the two industry titans to empower our communities of start-ups to deliver innovations that can make life easier, safer and greener.”

       Since 2018, a total of 11 startups have graduated from the Co-Innovation Space and some of their solutions and applications were showcased yesterday at Infineon’s OktoberTech Asia Pacific, an event held annually by the company as a symposium for corporate innovators, startups, academics, investors, and policymakers.

       Gan Kim Yong, Minister for Trade and Industry, witnessed the signing ceremony of the collaboration agreements along with Dr Helmut Gassel, Infineon’s global chief marketing officer.

       In his keynote speech, Gan said that Infineon has been a valued contributor in Singapore’s pivot to sustainability and the republic’s efforts to innovate.

       He added that Infineon’s Co-Innovation Space enables the company to partner local startups to co-develop products and solutions that not only target new growth markets, but also contribute towards sustainability.

       As an example of the programme’s success, Gan highlighted the company’s partnership with local startup Ampotech to embed cybersecurity features in its energy monitoring solutions for commercial and residential applications based on Infineon’s hardware security technologies.

       Infineon has also partnered two other Singapore startups, V-Flow Tech and Spectronik, he said.

       “I encourage our semiconductor companies and industry partners to actively partner us, as well as with each other, to develop and test-bed new solutions, and leverage innovation to achieve our sustainability goals,” Minister Gan said.

       Infineon will collaborate with CapitaLand’s Smart Urban Co-Innovation Lab, which is supported by Ascendas Real Estate Investment Trust, Infocomm Media Development Authority and Enterprise Singapore, on innovations for sustainability including energy management and urban farming.

       The Lab in Singapore Science Park is South-East Asia’s first industry-led platform focused on smart city solutions that brings together various industry players to help seed new market opportunities.

       Infineon and the Lab will also bring communities of startups together for sustainability-themed engagements such as workshops, technology demos and networking sessions.

       With Hyundai – a global corporation with a value chain based on automobiles, steel, construction, logistics, finance, IT and service – Infineon aims to support startups working on innovations in future mobility, smart cities and smart factories.

       Startups selected by Hyundai and Infineon will be offered the opportunity to be in Infineon’s Co-Innovation Space in Singapore.

       Subsequently, the collaboration will also be expanded globally. — The Straits Times/ANN