Deputy for Scientific, Technological, and Knowledge-Based Economy of the President Emphasizes Investment for the Future of Knowledge-Based Companies

The Deputy for Scientific, Technological, and Knowledge-Based Economy of the President highlighted that investing in the future of knowledge-based companies is high-risk, but we embrace this risk because the country’s development is intertwined with the growth of these companies, and under the current conditions, we support knowledge-based ventures.

According to IDEA, Rouhollah Dehghani Firouzabadi, the Deputy for Scientific, Technological, and Knowledge-Based Economy of the President, during the first session of the National Next Technology Award, stressed the significance of knowledge-based companies in the country’s growth and development, stating: ‘Knowledge-based companies have made a significant impact in the country to the extent that issues like sanctions have been marginalized, leading the country towards self-sufficiency.’

Firouzabadi emphasized the support for the technology ecosystem in the country and continued: ‘Our goal is to provide proportional and balanced support for all knowledge-based companies. We aim to prioritize the dimensions and size of these companies, as each company, depending on its scale, requires specific forms of support. Also, in terms of timing, we must draw upon past experiences and strive to create value in the future.’

As explained by the Deputy for Scientific, Technological, and Knowledge-Based Economy of the President, the remarkable events witnessed in the country in recent years are the result of efforts made over the past 30 to 40 years.

Firouzabadi clarified the purpose of this event, stating that despite the high-risk nature of investing in the future, encouragement, company development, and planning for the future are among the goals of the national ‘Next’ event (Innovative Top Entrepreneurs for Development).

Continuing, Shaghayegh Haghjuy Javanmard, the Head of the Strategic Technology Development Center of the Deputy for Scientific, Technological, and Knowledge-Based Economy of the President, noted that the Isfahan Science and Technology Town, as the founder of the country’s technology parks, annually holds the Sheik-Baha’i National Innovation Festival intending to promote innovation and technology. She added: ‘This science and technology town intends to design a new event named “Next” to contribute to the development of global emerging technologies in the country and encourage ecosystem elements to engage more seriously in the direction of entry and investment in this branch of technologies.’

Javanmard described the goal of this event as the encouragement, identification, and support of the country’s innovators in developing their product portfolios using global emerging technologies.

The Head of the Strategic Technology Development Center of the Deputy for Scientific, Technological, and Knowledge-Based Economy of the President stated: ‘In this event, targeted support is intended for ideas that capable biosphere companies have successfully demonstrated and have proven the maturity of their technology. This is meant to be the source of creating new products in the basket of the country’s knowledge-based products, with a high level of technological depth.’

Javanmard also noted that the most important goal of this event is to expand research and development activities and focus on driving technologies that manifest themselves in advancements and innovations in various fields and different systems today.

Javanmard stated: Based on the monitoring of global emerging technologies and considering the comprehensive scientific map of the country and the Strategic Technology Development Centers of the Deputy for Scientific, Technological, and Knowledge-Based Economy of the President’s Office, the first cycle of the National Next Technology Award is being held in three domains.t

According to the Head of the Strategic Technology Development Center of the Deputy for Scientific, Technological, and Knowledge-Based Economy of the President, the first domain of this competition is Artificial Intelligence, Robotics, and Industry 4.0. She added: This domain includes areas such as generative artificial intelligence, trustworthy artificial intelligence, reinforcement learning, decision management, machine vision, natural language processing, virtual agents, robotics, cyber defense, and computational biology.

The Head of the Strategic Technology Development Center also highlighted the second domain of the event, which encompasses Connectivity, Communications, and Microelectronics. It includes the development of the national information network infrastructure, fifth-generation mobile communication, network security, electronics, microelectronics, integrated circuits, IoT and smart automation, quantum communications, and satellite systems, electric, connected, autonomous vehicles, and blockchain technology.

Javanmard noted that the host of this national event is the Isfahan Science and Technology Town, stating: This award is dedicated to companies that have previously demonstrated their capabilities and had at least five billion Tomans in sales last year, along with having something to say in new technologies.

The awards given to the winners include three selected plans in the written topics. The first-place winner will receive 5 billion Tomans and 15 billion Tomans in facilities, the second-place winner will receive 3 billion Tomans along with 9 billion Tomans in facilities, and the third-place winner will receive 2 billion Tomans along with 6 billion Tomans in facilities.