On 2 March, the launch ceremony of the Nexus for Innovation and Entrepreneurship (NIE) under the Ingenuity Lab was successfully held at the Library of the University of Nottingham Ningbo China (UNNC). NIE aims to help students form a holistic understanding of various future industries' ecosystems, identify pain points within these ecosystems, and transform opportunities into viable commercial solutions.The establishment of the NIE is an important initiative by Nottingham University Business School China (NUBS China) to strengthen students' innovation and entrepreneurship capabilities.
NIE plans to collaborate with eight innovative companies from three major industries this semester. They are Hangzhou Huahuo Media Co., Ltd., Shanghai Mihoyo Network Technology Co., Ltd., and Netease Esports X Tournaments (Shanghai Lingang) from the game live streaming industry; Hangzhou Yushu Technology Co., Ltd., Shanghai Xinsida Robot Co., Ltd., and Suzhou Leaderdrive Technology Co., Ltd. from the robotics industry; and Hozon New Energy Auto Co., Ltd., and PATEO from the new energy vehicle industry.
At the launching ceremony, Professor Sam Shen, Party Secretary of UNNC and Chairman of the UNNC Education Foundation, delivered the opening speech. He expressed his expectations for the establishment of the NIE: "The university focuses on cultivating students' innovative spirit and entrepreneurial capabilities by providing a broad stage and comprehensive support, encouraging students to actively participate in innovation and entrepreneurship activities. The establishment of the Ingenuity Lab provides students with world-class education and practical business support."
Professor Kok Wei Khong, Dean of NUBS China, gave a detailed introduction to the Ingenuity Lab. He pointed out, "In the process of entrepreneurship, there may be eight failures out of ten attempts. However, by continuously trying and making mistakes within the university, you can learn a lot from this process. The Ingenuity Lab has built an excellent platform for the exchange of academic and professional knowledge, offering world-class educational resources and support for business practice, encouraging students to learn and grow through continuous attempts." Based on this, Professor Khong encouraged students to actively participate in the activities of the Ingenuity Lab to enrich their practical experiences.
"Many ideas seem excellent, but when they are applied to the industrial chain, they often don't fit in. These situations typically reveal that entrepreneurs do not sufficiently understand the pain points of the industry. NIE aims to provide a systematic platform to plan the visit according to the structure of the industrial chain and even the entire ecosystem. This approach is to enable a comprehensive and profound understanding of the entire industry and to find the right entry point for future innovation and entrepreneurship," emphasised Dr Jin Chen, Director of NIE and Associate Professor in Entrepreneurship and Innovation.
As the students are about to begin their exploration of the industry, Dr Xiaodan Yu, also Director of NIE and Assistant Professor in Entrepreneurship and Innovation, has two expectations for them. First, she hopes that the students will prepare in advance, such as thoroughly understanding company background information, so that they can engage in in-depth discussions with the enterprises during the sharing sessions. Second, she encourages students to actively participate in discussions with their teams and supervisors, and to offer suggestions for the development of the project. At the end of the project, the students need to deliver a presentation, demonstrating their insights into the industry and their thoughts on future opportunities.
Moving forward, the Ingenuity Lab will also launch a series of new programmes to support the innovative and entrepreneurial development of students. Ms Serena Liu, the manager of the Ingenuity Lab, previewed the upcoming Plug-in Programmes, which will integrate innovative concepts and interdisciplinary knowledge. While fostering students' innovative thinking, it will also provide them with academic guidance and practical support.