CYCU’s Industry Accelerator & Incubation Center distinguished itself at the 2025 Triple E Awards, winning the “Innovative and Entrepreneurial University of the Year” presented by the Accreditation Council for Entrepreneurial and Engaged Universities (ACEEU). It is the first university incubation center in Taiwan to receive this honor and the only university in Taiwan awarded this year, highlighting CYCU’s outstanding contributions to entrepreneurship education and startup support.
Headquartered in Germany, the Triple E Awards are adjudicated by more than 40 university leaders and experts from academia and industry worldwide, with the support of ENQA and INQAAHE. The awards recognize universities for advancing entrepreneurship, societal engagement, and their role in regional ecosystems. This year, universities from over 30 countries competed, and the ceremony was held on September 12 (Taiwan time) at the Czech University of Life Sciences in Prague. CYCU achieved a global 4th place ranking in the “Innovative and Entrepreneurial University of the Year” category, with Director Ching-Hang Kao of the Office of Industry-Academia Operations accepting the award on behalf of the university.
Over the years, CYCU has integrated government and university resources to help students anticipate industry trends and strengthen entrepreneurial practice. Through interdisciplinary courses, proposal competitions, and professional mentoring, it has fostered a vibrant startup culture. Since the establishment of its Incubation Center in 1997, CYCU has successfully nurtured more than 250 enterprises, assisted 9 companies in going public, and generated over NT$4 billion in cumulative investment.
In addition to introducing international resources and the entrepreneurial spirit of Silicon Valley, CYCU established the on-campus Knowledge Navigation Science Park as a hub for emerging startups and partnered with the Taoyuan City Government to operate the Youth Entrepreneurship Base, mentoring over 60 startups annually. These efforts actively connect local and global ecosystems and drive industrial upgrading.
CYCU’s achievements are also reflected in students’ hands-on performance. The student-founded spinoff EZeeTech not only received support from the Ministry of Education’s U-start Program, but also won the Asia Championship at the inaugural Erupture Global Entrepreneurship Hackathon. Representing Asia at the global finals at UC Berkeley, the team earned third place worldwide. Composed mainly of junior students from Electrical Engineering and Commercial Design, the team showcased CYCU students’ strength in cross-disciplinary integration and innovative applications.
CYCU’s Office of Industry-Academia Operations explained that the Triple E Awards recognize higher education institutions for their achievements in Entrepreneurship, Engagement, and Excellence in Higher Education, hence the name “Triple E.” Director Yung Chang emphasized that CYCU has long provided solid talent support for Taiwan’s economic growth, while its Industry Accelerator & Incubation Center delivers one-stop incubation services for innovative teams—accelerating growth “from 0 to 1 and from 1 to 100,” and injecting sustainable innovation energy into Taiwan’s startups and industries.
President Ying-Ming Lee noted that as AI-driven paradigm shifts reshape industries, CYCU draws inspiration from the spirit of Singularity University, combining capstone projects with industry collaboration, linking its incubation accelerator with global entrepreneurship resources, and cultivating talents capable of addressing future human challenges. He stressed that this award is a strong recognition of CYCU’s efforts in fostering innovation and entrepreneurship, reflecting Taiwan’s advancing innovation capacity while opening new opportunities for CYCU to deepen cooperation with the international innovation ecosystem.
