技术创新挑战如何打开新解决方案的大门（英）

How the Technology InnovationChallenge Opens the Door KEY POINTS •In 2019, the Asian DevelopmentBank (ADB) created theTechnology InnovationChallenge (TIC) with $4.5million in funding from theHigh-Level Technology Fund, asa new and unique modality tosupport technology innovation. INTRODUCTION •By late 2025, the TIC hadsupported 11 proof-of-conceptprojects in energy, urbandevelopment, transport, andhealthy oceans, providingreal-world testing conditionsthat helped technologyproviders, ADB teams, andDMCs jointly de-risk innovation The Asian Development Bank (ADB) is changing how it supports its developing membercountries (DMCs) to better enable innovation, promote private sector engagement, andbecome a more solutions-focused service provider. When an ADB project team alreadyknows the technology they want to deploy, the relevant suppliers can be reached and In response to this need, the Technology Innovation Challenge (TIC) was created in2019 as a new and unique modality to identify and select innovative technologies tosolve a predefined problem. This competition fosters partnerships between internationaltechnology providers and local partners, and de-risks technology adoption in newenvironments. It facilitates knowledge transfer by piloting innovative solutions andincreases the visibility of lesser-known technologies in DMC contexts. The TIC The TIC is structured such thatit can accommodate pitchesfrom entities of differentsizes and levels of maturity,widening ADB’s knowledge base The TIC aims to accelerate the use of innovative technologies in DMCs and attracttechnology providers through a grant-making system that provides funding for pilotdemonstrations. These can be technologies that are brand new but have been tested inother countries, existing technologies combined in a new way, or technologies not yet The model demonstrates howstrategic grant funding cancatalyze private investment andpromote technology adoption inchallenging markets, supportedby clear evidence of what works,more targeted engagementwith innovators, stronger The TIC tests the viability of innovative technologies under real-world DMC conditions.It offers advantages for all three parties (Figure 1). For the technology providers, it enablesthem to engage with ADB and take their technology to new markets together with Notes: In this publication, “$” refers to US dollars. ADB recognizes “Bombay” as Mumbai.This publication was prepared by Susann Roth, advisor, Department of Communications andKnowledge Management (DOCK), Asian Development Bank (ADB); Rika Hayashi, principal knowledgemanagement specialist, DOCK, ADB; Emeli Möller, innovation challenge specialist consultant, DOCK,ADB; Jane Parry, knowledge management expert consultant, DOCK, ADB; Ian Agsalda, associate ISBN 978-92-9277-725-8 (print)ISBN 978-92-9277-726-5 (PDF)ISSN 2071-7202 (print)ISSN 2218-2675 (PDF)Publication Stock No. BRF260086 HOW THE TECHNOLOGY INNOVATION local partners, with a reduced level of risk. For DMCs, it providesknowledge and insight for new technology solutions, and the fundedpilots can reduce the risk of larger-scale implementation failure. ForADB, it offers a new way to engage and partner with technologyproviders and creates potential lending opportunities. The The TIC begins with a development problem that is consistentwith country priorities (Figure 2). This development challenge isthen posted on a dedicated platform, and technology providers are The TIC is aligned with ADB’s Strategy 2030, which supportstechnology adoption in DMCs by de-risking the adoption ofinnovative technologies and expands ADB’s private sectorpartnerships by connecting innovators to DMC markets.1 The selected technology providers are expected to co-invest intesting and independent verification of results, and commit toa commercial model for future scale-up and implementation. How the Technology Innovation Challenge Opens the Door to New Solutions Technology Providers The technology provider must maintain a reference site ormake data available for DMCs and for future ADB projects. Theco-investment approach ensures that both ADB and the selected Interested providers can monitor the ADB Challenges platformfor upcoming innovation challenges and engage with ADB atinnovation and networking events across the region to gain insightsinto DMC priorities and emerging development needs. Successful The awardee can receive a grant of up to $450,000 and mustcontribute at least 10% of the project costs. The project isimplemented over a period of 12 to 18 months, monitoredclosely by ADB. An independent verification process assessesthe viability of the solution to solve the predefined problem DMCs partner with ADB to identify pressing developmentchallenges aligned with national priorities that innovativetechnologies could solve. DMCs facilitate pilot implementationby expediting regulatory approvals and permits, and actively HOW TO GET INVOLVED IN A The TIC offers multiple pathways fo