Chongqing "Gold Medal Ally" Executive Competition Fosters Innovation and Entrepreneurship

On November 14, the Chongqing International Talent Exchange Conference held a special competition dedicated to talent-driven innovation and entrepreneurship—the “Gold Medal Ally” Executive Competition. This competition marks the debut of this event, spotlighting the essential supporting roles in the innovation and entrepreneurship ecosystem—technology managers, incubator administrators, investment managers, and professional managers. It also represents a significant step forward in Chongqing’s reform of comprehensive services supporting talent innovation and entrepreneurship throughout the entire process.

The competition featured four distinct categories, each highlighting key stages such as facilitating the transformation and implementation of talent innovations, incubating and nurturing talent and enterprises, managing their operations, and fostering investment and financing matchmaking. Since its inception in August, the event has attracted 256 outstanding domestic and international participants. Following a comprehensive multi-dimensional evaluation, 80 finalists were selected to advance and compete in the final round, demonstrating their abilities in a real-world competitive setting.

During the finals, contestants in the technology manager category meticulously developed strategies for the successful commercialization of cutting-edge laboratory technologies. In the incubator administrator category, participants focused on effectively matching start-ups with essential resources such as talent, technology, and capital. The investment manager category featured in-depth analysis of topics such as investment in early-stage projects, small businesses, and the hard technology sector, highlighting contestants’ keen risk awareness and value discovery skills. Meanwhile, the professional manager category served as a comprehensive simulation of enterprise operations, challenging participants to demonstrate innovative management and risk control expertise in complex market environments.

The competition features an original scoring system that combines professional evaluations from expert judges with an “ecosystem partner voting” link. Heads from Talent Innovation and Entrepreneurship Service Port operators, founders of incubated projects, and other front-line ecosystem partners hold voting rights. They assess both the alignment of the contestants and their projects with Chongqing’s industrial development and the feasibility of implementation. Behind every score lies dual recognition from both the market and industry experts. This serves as a preliminary evaluation of the project’s potential for successful implementation in Chongqing.

Following intense competition, He Bo from Chongqing Yuhai Precision Manufacturing Co., Ltd. finally won the gold medal in the professional manager category. He shared that, as an ally, he must be deeply involved and persistent. “Some projects may require 10 or even 20 years to progress from incubation to maturity, expansion, and benefit realization, so it is necessary to be patient.”

At the closing ceremony, the organizers announced “12 incentive and support measures for talent innovation and entrepreneurship allies”. Previously, Chongqing released an integrated plan for building a team of the “Gold Medal Ally” in talent innovation and entrepreneurship, specifying to support approximately 100 excellent allies over the next three years.

Simultaneously, Chongqing incorporated “Gold Medal Allies” who have demonstrated outstanding achievements in supporting talent innovation and entrepreneurship into the high-level talent service system, granting them the same benefits as scientists and engineers. Winners of the gold and silver medals in this competition will be admitted to the new Chongqing high-level talent service system and receive special recognition.

Chongqing is actively cultivating a “Gold Medal Ally” talent pool to support the joint establishment of the Chongqing Institute of Technology Transfer by universities and local authorities. It takes the lead in offering postgraduate programs in technology transfer in the central and western regions. In addition to hosting the “Gold Medal Ally” Executive Competition, Chongqing also organizes the “Future Ally” Executive Competition for college students studying in Chongqing. The collaboration between the Institute of Technology Transfer and the dual ally competitions signifies Chongqing’s systematic approach to building a dedicated ally team, covering the “last mile” in the transformation of technological achievements.

To date, over 510 allies are actively engaged on the front lines of Chongqing’s market, delivering over 6,300 instances of service. With professionalism and dedication, they are empowering entrepreneurs to accelerate their development, jointly shaping a promising future for innovation and entrepreneurshi