HuaGong Model: Driving a Hundred-Billion Sci-Tech Innovation Economy through the 'Point-Line-Surface' Strategy

When it comes to South China University of Technology, you may think of it as the “cradle of entrepreneurs” and the “cradle of engineers.” It is also known as the “Whampoa Military Academy of the new energy vehicle industry.”

Over the 70-plus years since its formal establishment, South China University of Technology has cultivated 600,000 outstanding talents. Zeng Qinghong, Chairman of GAC Group; He Xiaopeng, Chairman of XPeng Motors; Shen Hui, Chairman of WM Motor; He Xiaoqing, President of Changan Ford; Huang Hongsheng, Founder of Skywell Auto; and Zeng Yuqun, Chairman of CATL, are all alumni of South China University of Technology.

Behind the Mass Creation of Wealth Lies Her Unique Innovation DNA。

In scientific research and exploration, South China University of Technology pursues high-quality outcomes.

In 2022, South China University of Technology was approved for 299 projects under the National Natural Science Foundation of China, and 14 projects plus 43 sub-projects under the National Key R&D Program. Focusing on critical technological bottlenecks, the university successfully developed clean production and water pollution control technologies covering all processes in pulp and paper manufacturing, which won the First Prize of the National Science and Technology Progress Award in 2019. It pioneered the “dynamic surface antifouling” strategy and developed a series of biodegradable polymer-based dynamic surface antifouling materials along with supporting protective technologies. Additionally, it established a technical system for high-toughness ultra-thin asphalt wearing courses...

These achievements actually stem from the university.Ample Funding, Exceptional Talent, and Comprehensive Platforms。

In the 2023 national university budget, South China University of Technology12.5 billion yuanRanked 16th. With ample funding, universities can purchase research equipment, build laboratories, and recruit high-caliber faculty.

To attract outstanding scientific research talent, South China University of Technology offers generous compensation and benefits. According to the university’s official website in May 2023, more than 80% of newly enrolled postdoctoral fellows receive an annual salary exceeding RMB 260,000. Meanwhile, the university provides ample research support to researchers, encouraging them to apply for various national and Guangdong Provincial research projects and talent programs. Selected participants in these talent programs enjoy even more favorable compensation during the funding period, with annual packages reaching up to RMB 470,000.

Attracting talent cannot rely solely on economic incentives. South China University of Technology has consistently placed great emphasis on platform development. It is reported that the university has jointly established29 national-level research platforms, 231 ministerial and provincial-level research platforms, a cluster of research and innovation platforms has been established, centered on national-level scientific research platforms such as State Key Laboratories, to build a full-chain framework encompassing “basic research–technological breakthroughs–international cooperation.”

The application, management, and strategic layout of intellectual property rights constitute the first step in the commercialization of scientific and technological achievements.

In 2022, South China University of Technology once again revised and issued"South China University of Technology Intellectual Property Management Measures"documents, continuously improve rules and regulations, and further stimulate inventors’ enthusiasm for implementing and utilizing patents.

In fact, South China University of Technology established an Intellectual Property Office and a Patent Affairs Center at an early stage, creating dedicated positions and staffing them with full-time personnel to coordinate and manage the university’s intellectual property work.

In practice, South China University of Technology has explored a series of models for the commercialization of patent achievements. First, the universityClassification and Grading of Patent Achievements, prioritize the commercialization of patents with greater market value.

To support the enhancement of patent quality and patent commercialization, South China University of Technology annually allocates over RMB 10 million in special intellectual property funds. By adjusting its patent subsidy measures and incentive policies to increase the proportion of invention patents, the grant rate for invention patents, and patent transfer targets, the university effectively stimulates the intrinsic motivation of faculty and students to improve patent quality and promote patent commercialization.

In 2021, South China University of Technology filed 3,186 patent applications, including 2,794 invention patent applications, accounting for 87% of the total; it was granted 2,802 patents, including 2,186 invention patents, representing 78% of the total grants.

Subsequently, the school thenAdopt patent pool bundling, assignment, licensing, and equity contribution for enterprise establishment....and other models to revitalize patent assets. For target enterprises, we strengthen technical exchanges, provide targeted intellectual property services for key companies, address their technical challenges, establish long-term cooperative relationships, and even co-establish enterprises for the commercialization of technological achievements.

Regarding revenue incentives, South China University of Technology stipulates that over 90% of the proceeds from patent transfers and licensing agreements shall be awarded to the inventors. In the case of the "aramid paper patent achievements," the university allocated 80% of the acquired equity, valued at approximately RMB 53.472 million, as rewards to the research team. The team holds these shares directly, ensuring that the university’s researchers truly reap the benefits of their innovations.

Accordingly, the Decision on Awarding the 24th China Patent Awards shows that South China University of Technology (SCUT) received a total of 11 China Patent Excellence Awards, ranking first among all universities in China. Moreover, since 2009, SCUT has won a total of 50 awards as the primary patentee (including two Gold and five Silver awards), topping the list of Chinese universities in terms of total awards, while consistently focusing on cultivating and strategically laying out high-value patents in strategic emerging industries.

Since 2016, South China University of Technology has commercialized nearly 1,000 intellectual property assets through licensing, transfer transactions, and equity contributions based on valuation, generating direct revenue of nearly RMB 500 million.

If scientific research strength and patent layout have laid a solid foundation for the transformation of scientific and technological achievements at South China University of Technology, then policy guidance has further empowered this process.

In 2003, South China University of Technology issued"Several Provisions on the Establishment of Technology Enterprises by Scientific and Technical Personnel", encouraging researchers at universities to invest their research achievements in companies, with the stipulation that “when establishing technology enterprises using job-related inventions and technological achievements as equity contributions, the shares held by key scientific and technical personnel may account for up to 50%.”

In 2015, the university further formulated and issued《Several Opinions of South China University of Technology on Driving Innovation-Driven Development through Services and Further Promoting the Transformation of Scientific and Technological Achievements》. This document, known as the “Ten Provisions for SCUT,” further stimulated researchers’ enthusiasm and became fertile ground for cultivating more “research CEOs.”

After years of exploration, South China University of Technology has gradually developed the “Point-Line-Plane” SCUT Model.

In the 1980s, South China University of Technology pioneered the “Saturday Engineer” initiative. A large number of its faculty members utilized their weekends to cycle into fields and factory workshops, injecting vibrant momentum into the economic takeoff of the Pearl River Delta.

As of today, South China University of Technology continues to dispatchSci-Tech CommissionerDeepening Engagement with the Frontlines of Industry. By the end of 2022, South China University of Technology had dispatched over 1,600 person-times of corporate science and technology commissioners and nearly 10,000 student assistants serving as commissioners.

In practice, science and technology commissioners and enterprises register separately in accordance with the procedures of the South China Technology Transfer Center. Upon completion of registration and inclusion in the database, commissioners and enterprises connect via the Center’s online platform, following a process wherein enterprises post their needs, commissioners respond to these needs, and enterprises then respond to the solutions proposed by the commissioners.

More importantly, South China University of Technology places great emphasis on the welfare and benefits of its science and technology commissioners to stimulate their enthusiasm.

2008, South China University of Technology issued《Measures for the Selection and Dispatch of Enterprise Science and Technology Commissioners》, a series of incentive and safeguard measures have been formulated in terms of salary and benefits, personnel assessment, and professional title promotion. To facilitate career advancement for personnel involved in the commercialization of scientific and technological achievements, South China University of Technology has added engineering and achievement promotion tracks, and relaxed evaluation criteria for researchers serving as corporate science and technology commissioners or engaged in achievement commercialization within the university’s various demonstration zones. Meanwhile, the performance of researchers in achieving technological transfer and commercialization in enterprises is incorporated into the university’s researcher evaluation system.

Furthermore, the university provides tangible financial incentives to science and technology commissioners, thereby increasing the returns on research achievements for scientific personnel. The university has specifically formulated the “Ten Measures of SCUT” to promote the commercialization of scientific and technological achievements and foster innovation and entrepreneurship.Clearly stipulate that 70% to 95% of the proceeds from the commercialization of scientific and technological achievements shall be awarded as a one-time bonus to research personnel.

It is reported that South China University of Technology’s science and technology commissioners have been deployed to more than 1,000 enterprises across 21 prefecture-level cities in Guangdong Province. By addressing enterprise-specific needs, they have supported new product development and resolved production challenges, thereby generating economic benefits exceeding RMB 10 billion, either directly or indirectly.

If dispatching science and technology commissioners represents a one-to-many “point”-based engagement, then joining forces with leading enterprises to co-establish laboratories enables South China University of Technology to connect these “points” into a “line,” thereby forming an integrated technological innovation system that combines industry, academia, and research.

Guided by the strategic industrial layout of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, South China University of Technology has joined forces with industry-leading enterprises to develop next-generation information technology, biotechnology, and health sectors.“Academy + Research Institute + R&D Center + Industry Alliance”, integrating resources across the industry's upstream and downstream sectors.

Since 2012, South China University of Technology has signed strategic cooperation agreements with over 100 industry-leading enterprises, including Midea and Lenovo, established nearly 200 joint university-enterprise laboratories, and secured total R&D funding of approximately RMB 600 million. The university has also undertaken nearly 16,000 corporate-commissioned projects, with total funding exceeding RMB 10 billion.

To facilitate the precise alignment of technological supply with industrial demand, South China University of Technology has established a special fund for the commercialization of research outcomes, supported by the Basic Research Funds for Central Universities. This initiative leverages greater resources from leading industry enterprises to deepen industry-university-research collaboration, enabling joint efforts between the university and enterprises to tackle key challenges and deliver a substantial portfolio of innovative technological achievements.

Furthermore, South China University of Technology also encourages research teamsCollaborate with industry leaders to jointly apply for patents and establish a stable, long-term, mutually beneficial industry-academia-research partnership model., assisting leading enterprises in building patent pools for intellectual property protection. Since 2009, South China University of Technology has won a total of 50 awards as the primary patent holder.

Moving from academia to industry establishes a direct pipeline, whereas launching from an industrial park aims to build an ecosystem that includes capital and government stakeholders.

It is reported that South China University of Technology focuses on core regions in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, such as Guangzhou, Foshan, and Zhuhai, as well as the axis along both banks of the Pearl River, to establish a “Five Institutes and One Park” demonstration zone for the commercialization of scientific and technological achievements (Sino-Singapore International Joint Research Institute, Guangzhou Institute of Modern Industrial Technology, Dongguan South China Collaborative Innovation Research Institute, Zhuhai Institute of Modern Industrial Innovation, South China University of Technology Modern Industrial Technology Research Institute (Zhongshan), National University Science Park), accelerating the commercialization and industrialization of high-tech achievements.

Leveraging its geographical and talent advantages, the Research Institute is responsible for strengthening innovation initiatives such as pilot-scale scale-up, industrialization validation, and incubation of small and medium-sized enterprises, thereby providing targeted support services for regional economic and industrial development.

Taking the South China Collaborative Innovation Institute as an example, it was jointly established by the Dongguan Municipal People's Government and South China University of Technology and officially inaugurated in late 2012. The institute currently has approximately 160 permanent staff members, including six Changjiang Scholars or National Distinguished Young Scholars, one National Excellent Young Scholar, and around 40 master’s and doctoral supervisors.

Backed by a robust scientific foundation, the Research Institute has focused on establishing innovation centers in key areas such as general health, new materials, and high-end intelligent equipment. By attracting top-tier talent and integrating high-level technological research achievements, the Institute facilitates technology transfer and industrialization. To date, approximately RMB 120 million has been invested to launch or prepare 12 innovation centers, covering fields such as 3D printing materials, green functional daily chemical products, development and application of bioactive molecules, and high-value medical consumables. A total of 255 patent applications have been filed, with some patents securing social investment and incubating into high-tech enterprises. Additionally, the Institute has jointly established 26 enterprise-academia R&D centers with corporate partners and founded a wholly-owned investment subsidiary, Dongguan Huagong Collaborative Innovation Technology Development Co., Ltd.

Meanwhile, the “One Park” fully leverages its incubation and commercialization functions, focusing on introducing mature technological achievements as equity contributions to establish enterprises, attracting social capital to set up equity investment funds for making equity investments in the commercialization of the university’s scientific and technological achievements, and accelerating the growth of small and medium-sized enterprises.

To date, the park has hosted 226 enterprises and R&D institutions, with 86 companies having graduated from the incubator. It has facilitated the commercialization of 303 scientific and technological achievements, secured 186 patents, created over 5,000 jobs, and provided professional training to more than 6,500 individuals. The cumulative total output value of the park has exceeded RMB 8 billion.

Whether through deep integration with off-site research institutes or the development of science and technology parks, South China University of Technology has accelerated exchanges between its scientific research activities and external stakeholders, while enhancing the risk resilience of research outcomes during the translation process, thereby achieving mutual benefits. “"Five Hospitals and One Park"Supported by the system, South China University of Technology has incubated more than 160 companies in the past five years and received over RMB 1 billion in various funding support.

The SCUT Model features synergy across “points, lines, and planes”: at the “point” level, it facilitates direct engagement by dispatching science and technology commissioners to enterprises and jointly establishing university-enterprise R&D centers; at the “line” level, it fosters integration through the formation of strategic alliances for industry-academia-research collaboration; and at the “plane” level, it achieves broad outreach by co-establishing the Guangzhou Institute of Modern Industrial Technology and the Sino-Singapore International Joint Research Institute with the Guangzhou Municipal Government, thereby comprehensively engaging with the city’s industrial clusters.

Looking ahead, the foundation of the SCUT model lies in the accumulation of research funding, scientific talent, and research platforms. It is this research philosophy of “large teams + large platforms + major demands” that has enabled South China University of Technology to forge a “unique path of university-led innovation.”