Q: Who owns the future? A: It is not the nation most successful at innovation...it is the nation that successfully commercializes advanced technology.

On Tuesday evening at the World Trade Center's annual China Town Hall event, I will present my view on how the US and Chinese entrepreneurs, innovators and financiers can work cooperatively towards the joint goal of commercializing emerging and advanced manufacturing and services technologies. Our newly formed US-China Center for Advanced Technology Venture Creation was created following the execution of an agreement between the Center and the Jiangsu Association for International Science and Technology Cooperation on April 19, 2017. Our agreement evolved out of a year long series of meetings I held with over a dozen advanced technology delegations to the US. During each of our delegation meetings, we not only examined new ways for China to improve upon China's rapidly improving entrepreneurship track record and commercialize practices... but we also worked on ways to improve upon current US-China joint technology development and capitalization efforts.

Our agreement with JIAISTC is intended to create a bridge between the US and China that will allow US firms to coordinate venture creation, entrepreneurship efforts,technology licensing and other complex technology-based enterprises to grow and prosper together at the very earliest stages of venture creation to full market penetration in both nations. At present, only a relatively small percentage of patented technology is ever commercilzed. We think that our joint efforts can improve the odds of successful commercialization of emerging and advanced technologies.

On Oct. 18th, Chinese President Xi Jinping’s speech opening the 19th congress of the Chinese communist party pledged to make China a “country of innovators” and create global competitors in aerospace, cyberspace, clean energy, Internet and transportation. This speech was filled with references to “artificial intelligence”, “big data” and “innovation”. To achieve this goal, Xi said China should strengthen fundamental research, provide more support for small and medium enterprises (SMEs) by protecting intellectual property. “Innovation is the primary force driving development and it is the strategic support for a modern economy,” Xi announced.

The "Game is afoot" and President Xi's speech was music to the ears of technologist and venture capitalist in China. This Technological Exuberance in China can mean great things for American innovators and entrepreneurs too - if you just learn to play the game.

Please join us tomorrow at our China Town Hall meeting and we can discuss how advanced technology in the US and China will reinvent our world as we now know it...and how will this global tech revolution impact our economy. Our featured speaker is former UN Ambassador Susan Rice. Dr. Liu, the Director, UB Confucius Institute, and John Manzella, President and Ceo, World Trade Center, Buffalo Niagara will also be presenters as outlined in the tpwn hall agenda.