PIC W

What is this about?

The Wallonia-China Innovation Platform (or "Plateforme d'innovation Wallonie-Chine" in French, abbreviated as "PIC-W", or "FenWei" in Chinese) was launched in 2011 by the Walloon Government.

In order to set up a global innovation network for the benefit of Wallonia, the Region concluded new international partnerships for innovation with economical actors from the primary markets (United States, China, etc...). The PIC-Wis the result of an agreement with China. It was officially launched in October 2011 at the initiative of China, in Shanghai, a top-rank technology city.

The spirit of this platform:

valorization of innovations resulting from fundamental Walloon researches in application in China for the pertinent technologies in order to test their sustainability on the Chinese market, to adapt them to this market, and to benefit from the Chinese technological, economical and financial assets to accelerate their worldwide development;
a control of industrial, commercial and financial risks, including those related to intellectual property.

Who is involved?

Any technologically innovating enterprise interested in the Chinese market.

Besides the interest for technologies, transferred with the control of financial and industrial risks, the project also participates in the forging or reinforcement of important relations with the Chinese ecosystems for higher education, action-oriented research institutes, venture capital funds and industrial investors.

This Innovation Platform forms a privileged entrance point to the Chinese market for more mature technological projects that have already reached the industrial phase in Wallonia.

More precisely?

The pilot committee selects two to four projects per year, with an incubation period of two years per project.

The technologies that are candidate for Technology Transfer to China are selected amongst those successfully incubated in Wallonia (spin-off, start-ups and innovation SMEs).

In 2012, the platform already selected two company projects: the IRE-ELIT project, specializing in radiotherapy, and the project by Sovitec, world leader in glass beads.

Contact and information

Silvano dAgostino