Small and medium-sized enterprises from China, Japan, the Netherlands and Singapore are the first-ever winners of WIPO's new Global Awards program, which recognizes exceptional enterprises and individuals using intellectual property (IP) to make a positive impact at home and abroad.
In an awards ceremony held during the July 14-22 WIPO Assemblies, Director General Daren Tang handed trophies to representatives of the five winners (in alphabetical order): Hydraloop from the Netherlands, Lucence of Singapore, Rycan from China, Shylon from China, and Japan-based Splink.
A group of seven eminent jurors from around the world selected the winners from among 272 submissions spanning 62 countries. These awards celebrate innovative commercial solutions, based on IP rights, which promote economic, social and cultural progress.
The inaugural Global Awards celebrated small and medium-sized enterprises, which constitute the backbone of the worldwide economy, and will focus on youth and women in the coming years.
"Early cancer detection, energy-saving lights, water recycling, dementia diagnosis and enhanced medical imaging: The winners of the inaugural WIPO Global Awards are each working to build a better world. Now our five winning SMEs will benefit from WIPO's support to help their business to grow," Mr. Tang said.
"I am proud that the newly launched WIPO Global Awards program is supporting exceptional individuals and enterprises using IP for positive change, while building a community of role models in keeping with our vision to ensure that IP use can benefit everyone, everywhere," he said.
WIPO Global Award Jurors on the Prize
"As a seasoned investor in startups, and now as a juror, I look for companies that excite me emotionally, that will have real impact. I can see that the new WIPO Global Awards program will help exceptional enterprises and individuals generate that kind of buzz that leads to business success."
- Dr. Amin Badr-El-Din (Jordan)
"These competitions are important to promote creativity, talent and create inspiration. They can really help to positively transform people's lives, especially in Latin American countries, where there is so much talent waiting for an opportunity." "
- Mr. Gastón Acurio (Peru)
"The Global Awards is a way to amplify the importance of IP as an asset, because people in many places don't know that intangibles - like a mortgage - create value. I believe this program will be impactful in a lot of countries."
- Mr. Julius Akinyemi (Nigeria)
"It is so important today to celebrate and put a face on innovation, to actually share the stories of those successful inventors, entrepreneurs who leverage IP to start a business, create jobs and opportunities. That is what is so exciting about this program."
- Mr. Louis Foreman (USA)
"What this competition does, is that it really makes the inventors think about going global from day 1. The world is much smaller than we think - every one of us can create ideas that make a difference. Bring your ideas to our competition!"
- Ms. Karoli Hindriks (Estonia)
About the WIPO Global Awards Program
The Global Awards program takes root in WIPO's mission to ensure a world where intellectual property rights support innovation and creativity from anywhere, for the good of everyone. These independent, jury-selected awards recognize and support those whose skills contribute to progress and improve people's lives. Winners receive a personalized mentorship program to help them to use IP for business growth, as well as other forms of support and sponsorship to facilitate their access to funding and business growth.
Meet the 2022 WIPO Global Awards Winners
About Hydraloop - The Netherlands
Hydraloop is a multi-award-winning venture that designs and produces decentralized, consumer-friendly, IoT-connected, compact and scalable greywater recycling products for residential and commercial real estate, reducing water consumption by up to 45 percent. Hydraloop has a global partnernetwork of more than 120 partners in 50+ countries. Headquartered in the Netherlands, Hydraloop has offices in the United States and Middle East, as well as representatives in Canada and Australia.
About Lucence - Singapore
Lucence is a precision oncology company committed to bringing clarity to cancer care. Lucence makes ultrasensitive liquid biopsy tests to provide doctors and their patients life-changing information to enable earlier detection and effective treatment. Headquartered in Palo Alto, Lucence supplies personalized cancer care services through twin CLIA-licensed laboratories in the United States and Singapore.
About Raycan - China
Founded in 2009, RAYCAN Technology Co., Ltd. (Suzhou) specializes in the development and production of radiation detection and imaging equipment. Armed with new digital sampling technology based on independent research and development, RAYCAN became the leader of all-digital radiation detection and imaging technology. The company has applied for and obtained over a hundred patents in the United States, Germany, Japan, and other countries.
About SHYLON - China
Founded in 2010 in Shanghai, SHYLON is professional in architectural lighting, using totally LED technology, dedicated to the design, production and marketing in outdoor lighting. SHYLON condenses the strategic advantages of "One Brand, Global Market, Superhigh Optical Architecture, Zoomneo Color Algorithm, Anecast Laser Projection " and is identified as "Technologically Advanced Small and Medium-sized Enterprises of 2021" by Ministry of Industry and Information Technology.
About Splink - Japan
Splink Inc. is developing AI software to help not only the sick but healthy individuals by assisting medical doctors with diagnosis of early dementia and other neurodegenerative diseases in conjunction with data and field experts. It provides with hospitals, medical AI products, such as "Brain Life Imaging" for brain checkup and "Braineer" for neurologists.
About WIPO
The World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) is the global forum for intellectual property policy, services, information and cooperation. A specialized agency of the United Nations, WIPO assists its 193 member states in developing a balanced international IP legal framework to meet society's evolving needs. It provides business services for obtaining IP rights in multiple countries and resolving disputes. It delivers capacity-building programs to help developing countries benefit from using IP. And it provides free access to unique knowledge banks of IP information.
