Iran’s Vice Presidential Office for Science and Technology is planning to launch innovation houses in all provinces in collaboration with private investors to promote the startup ecosystem.
Speaking at a press conference on Saturday, Parviz Karami, an official with the vice presidential office, said the innovation houses will support entrepreneurs whose businesses are not classified as knowledge-based, IRNA reported.
“Many startups are innovation-based but their business does not require high technology and their final product is also simple compared to specialized knowledge-based companies. These innovative teams and startups don’t receive adequate state support. The initiative aims to cover the gap and financially back such startups,” Karami said.
Out of over 6,000 tech units active in the country, 1,096 are innovative teams working on e-commerce, audiovisual industries, tourism, entertainment, design, architecture and herbal medicine, he added.
The innovative houses are mandated to provide mentorship, investment and consultation to entrepreneurs for boosting their activities.
Karami said the scheme has already been launched with two innovation houses under construction in Zahedan and Chabahar in Sistan-Baluchestan Province.
The scheme will be extended to Bushehr, Isfahan, Tabriz, Tehran, Zanjan and Qazvin, in which the necessary tech infrastructures are established. Then it is expected to cover the whole country in the long run, he added.
University-Based Tech Centers
As the outstanding achievements of technology ecosystem has lured different sectors to make investments in the field, universities have also stepped in to extend support to tech teams.
Last week, three tech centers were inaugurated at the Tehran-based Amirkabir University of Technology by Sorena Sattari, the vice president for science and technology.
Established in energy and physics, space science and civil engineering departments, these tech centers are geared toward commercializing the students’ ideas through legal, technical and market analysis consultancy.
Counting the three new centers, the university is now home to eight workspaces for innovative teams.
Hossein Hosseini, the university’s deputy for research and technology, said the tech centers are aimed at promoting entrepreneurship and technological innovation among the students and faculty members.
Besides forming innovation centers and attracting tech teams, universities can utilize their scientific edge to help startups.
Such efforts are a synergetic move to advance the tech ecosystems of Tehran and other Iranian cities.
In late January, Sharif University of Technology in Tehran and Astan Quds Razavi, a charitable organization in Khorasan Razavi Province, launched an innovation factory adjacent to Ferdowsi University of Mashhad.
The center is specialized in the renovation of medical equipment and clinical devices, which will help save $420 million annually.
In addition, Zanjan University of Medical Sciences, located in the namesake province, has joined the vice presidential office to invest 320 billion rials ($1.3 million) in an innovation center to develop unique ideas and commercialize tech-based plans in a wide range of health fields.
Golestan University of Medical Sciences also hosts an innovation center working on health technology, which offers virtual visits for clinical diagnosis and post-treatment support and consultancy services.
The center is also providing technical, scientific and commercial support to innovative teams and aiding efforts to commercialize their ideas.
Nationwide Efforts
Over the past few years, numerous tech parks and innovation factories have been established throughout the country to offer shared workspace and other facilities to tech units.
There are seven tech parks in Tehran Province, most of which are backed by major Iranian universities, including Tarbiat Modares University, University of Tehran, Sharif University of Technology, Iran University of Medical Sciences, Shahid Beheshti University and Islamic Azad University.
These tech parks carry the name of universities backing them.
Innovation factories in Tehran, such as Azadi and Highway, have also attracted numerous tech teams and startups.
Azadi Innovation Factory was launched in August 2018 at an abandoned chemicals factory near Azadi Square, west of Tehran. The center is backed by the Vice Presidential Office for Science and Technology and is managed by Sharif University of Technology.
Highway, the capital's second innovation factory, is under construction. The factory is being established in an old building near Nobonyad Square on the northeastern flank of Tehran.
Tehran is not alone in its push for establishing innovation factories and tech parks. Numerous centers have also been launched across Iran.
The vice presidential office is developing innovation factories in Iranian metropolises like Zanjan, Isfahan, Tabriz, Karaj and Yazd to expand startup and knowledge-based ecosystems.
At the innovation factories, startups and knowledge-based companies find legal, technical and financial help to develop their activities.
With the extension of infrastructural and financial support, those who are active in the tech ecosystem are propelling Iran’s domestic production sector to end the economy’s oil dependency and help overcome sanctions.
