Thirty-two Taiwanese start-ups plan to attend the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas next month and the nation’s booth at the trade exhibition is to be the third-largest after those of France and the Netherlands, Minister of Science and Technology Chen Liang-gee (陳良基) told a news conference in Taipei on Tuesday.
The CES, which is to take place from Jan. 9 to Jan. 12, is the world’s biggest annual consumer electronics show, where technology giants and start-ups demonstrate their cutting-edge developments, Chen said, adding that this is the first time the ministry has convened a delegation to join the show.
The start-up teams are to present technologies that connect to five trends: artificial intelligence, Internet of Things, “smart” wearables, “smart” biotechnology and medicine applications, and virtual reality and augmented reality applications, he said.
Photo: Huang Yao-cheng, Taipei Times
Ministry officials are to host a “Taiwan night” networking event with foreign guests, including delegates from the Royal House of the Netherlands and the French Ministry for the Economy and Finance, Deputy Minister of Science and Technology Hsu Yu-chin (許有進) said.
The ministry expects a commercial value of about NT$300 million (US$10.1 million) from the teams’ participation in the convention, Hsu added.
Robotelf Technologies Co has been awarded the Robotics and Drones Innovation Award for its home security robot.
Equipped with face recognition and “big data” collection technology, the robot can enhance long-term care services, children’s education and security monitoring, and analyze consumer behavior, the company’s overseas sales representative David Luo (駱威郡) said while demonstrating a beta version on Tuesday.
The robot costs about NT$20,000, less than similar models, which sell for NT$40,000 to NT$100,000 or more, Luo said.
The company is refining its robotics and autonomous systems while expanding its applications, he added.
In related news, a three-day “Future Tech” exhibition organized by the ministry and the Taipei Computer Association opened yesterday and is to run through tomorrow at Taipei World Trade Center Hall 3.
The show features 109 new technologies related to “smart” applications, biotechnology, medicine, electronics and chemical engineering, the ministry said.
Nipah virus infection is to be officially listed as a category 5 notifiable infectious disease in Taiwan in March, while clinical treatment guidelines are being formulated, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) said yesterday. With Nipah infections being reported in other countries and considering its relatively high fatality rate, the centers on Jan. 16 announced that it would be listed as a notifiable infectious disease to bolster the nation’s systematic early warning system and increase public awareness, the CDC said. Bangladesh reported four fatal cases last year in separate districts, with three linked to raw date palm sap consumption, CDC Epidemic Intelligence
The manufacture of the remaining 28 M1A2T Abrams tanks Taiwan purchased from the US has recently been completed, and they are expected to be delivered within the next one to two months, a source said yesterday. The Ministry of National Defense is arranging cargo ships to transport the tanks to Taiwan as soon as possible, said the source, who is familiar with the matter. The estimated arrival time ranges from late this month to early next month, the source said. The 28 Abrams tanks make up the third and final batch of a total of 108 tanks, valued at about NT$40.5 billion
Two Taiwanese prosecutors were questioned by Chinese security personnel at their hotel during a trip to China’s Henan Province this month, the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) said yesterday. The officers had personal information on the prosecutors, including “when they were assigned to their posts, their work locations and job titles,” MAC Deputy Minister and spokesman Liang Wen-chieh (梁文傑) said. On top of asking about their agencies and positions, the officers also questioned the prosecutors about the Cross-Strait Joint Crime-Fighting and Judicial Mutual Assistance Agreement, a pact that serves as the framework for Taiwan-China cooperation on combating crime and providing judicial assistance, Liang
A group from the Taiwanese Designers in Australia association yesterday represented Taiwan at the Midsumma Pride March in Melbourne. The march, held in the St. Kilda suburb, is the city’s largest LGBTQIA+ parade and the flagship event of the annual Midsumma Festival. It attracted more than 45,000 spectators who supported the 400 groups and 10,000 marchers that participated this year, the association said. Taiwanese Designers said they organized a team to march for Taiwan this year, joining politicians, government agencies, professionals and community organizations in showing support for LGBTQIA+ people and diverse communities. As the first country in Asia to legalize same-sex
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