Competition Notice

I. Background

In line with the important arrangements of the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China on expanding international scientific and technological exchanges and cooperation, and to implement the important initiative put forward by President Xi Jinping at the China-CEEC Leaders' Summit on deepening cooperation in science, technology, and innovation, this plan has been formulated to give full play to the leading role of scientific and technological innovation in promoting high-quality development and international cooperation, further deepen the connectivity of innovation resources and practical cooperation among innovation entities between China and CEEC countries, and build an open innovation cooperation network oriented toward the future.

At present, science, technology, and innovation cooperation between China and CEEC countries is accelerating from mutual learning and exchange toward project cooperation, achievement transformation, and industrial synergy. There is an urgent need to establish a high-level international platform for innovation cooperation, promote the cross-border flow of innovation resources, and advance practical cooperation in greater depth. To this end, this edition of the competition focuses on young science and technology talents and innovative projects. Leveraging China's complete industrial supporting system and market scale advantages, it aims to widely gather high-quality innovation resources from CEEC countries, accelerate the introduction and cultivation of high-quality, high-potential international cooperation projects, promote the deep integration of innovation chains, industrial chains, talent chains, and capital chains, and strive to build the competition into an important window for youth science, technology, and innovation exchange between China and CEEC countries, an important platform for gathering international innovation resources, an important vehicle for cross-border transformation of scientific and technological achievements, and an important brand for building innovation cooperation mechanisms.

II. Competition Theme

III. Organizing Committee

An organizing committee will be established, composed of the hosts, organizers, and supporting organization.

IV. Eligibility and Requirements

(1) Project Fields

This competition covers projects in new materials, artificial intelligence and robotics, life and health, and related fields.

(2) Competition Categories and Eligibility

The competition is open to universities, research institutes, enterprises, and other social organizations in China and CEEC countries. Projects compete in either the Entrepreneurship Group or the Innovation Cooperation Group, and each project may register for only one category. Project leaders should generally be no older than 45 (born on or after January 1, 1981).

1. Entrepreneurship Group

This category aims to promote exchange among young start-ups from China and CEEC countries, share entrepreneurial experiences, and seek cooperation opportunities and capital support.

• (1) The participating project must not yet be registered as a company in China or a CEEC country, or must have been established for no more than 3 years (registered on or after January 1, 2024) and must be a non-listed company. Registered capital should generally not exceed RMB 36.5 million or EUR 5 million, and 2025 revenue should not exceed RMB 36.5 million or EUR 5 million.
• (2) The project must demonstrate innovation and high growth potential, and must hold intellectual property rights for the participating project without ownership disputes.

2. Innovation Cooperation Group

This category encourages and supports research institutes, universities, and enterprises in China and CEEC countries to leverage their respective strengths in frontier research, application development, and technology industrialization.

• (1) The project must be jointly submitted by legally registered enterprises, universities, research institutes, or other R&D-capable entities from China and a CEEC country. The Chinese and foreign entities must have no equity relationship. Only one Chinese entity and one CEEC entity may jointly apply.
• (2) The project must be jointly carried out by the Chinese and foreign parties through cooperation involving technology, funding, personnel, information and materials, advanced equipment, proprietary resources, or other forms of contribution. Responsibilities of both parties in the project must be clearly defined in an agreement or letter of intent for cooperation.
• (3) The Chinese and foreign project leaders should have a strong academic standing or technical advantages in the relevant field and possess the organizational and coordination capabilities required to complete the project.
• (4) The Chinese and foreign project teams should each have no fewer than 3 core members.

3. General Requirements

• (I) Each project must have no fewer than 3 core members (including 3) and generally no more than 6. Among the core members, nationals of CEEC countries should account for no less than 50% (including 50%). Joint teams composed of participants from China, CEEC countries, and other countries are encouraged.
• (II) Participants must strictly comply with the laws and regulations of the People's Republic of China and CEEC countries, and observe public order and good customs in China and CEEC countries.
• (III) Projects that won awards in previous editions of the China-CEEC Youth Innovation and Entrepreneurship Competition are not eligible for this edition.

4. Competition Language

The official languages of the competition are Chinese and English. Teams must submit registration forms, commitment letters, business plans, and project presentation slides in both Chinese and English as required for the preliminary round. Projects entering the final round must present and defend in Chinese or English. Simultaneous interpretation in Chinese and English will be provided at the final.

V. Evaluation Criteria (Proposed)

Judges will review the technological advancement of the project, feasibility of implementation, industrialization prospects, team capability, and related factors. The evaluation criteria are as follows:

Evaluation Item	Entrepreneurship Group	Innovation Cooperation Group
Technological Advancement	30	30
Feasibility of Implementation	20	20
Team Capability	15	20
Industrialization Prospects	20	20
Financial and Investment Value	15	10
Total	100	100

VI. Competition Process (Proposed)

VII. Awards

• 1. Awards will be presented separately in the Entrepreneurship Group and the Innovation Cooperation Group.
• 2. The competition plans to offer Grand Prize, First Prize, Second Prize and Third Prize awards, with multiple winners to be selected.

VIII. Competition Support

Award-winning projects will receive prizes and honors, with opportunities to access project application recommendations, innovation and entrepreneurship policy support, investment and financing resources, industry matchmaking, incubation services, and international exchange and cooperation opportunities.