The authorities of the Novosibirsk region in Siberia announced their intention to create a world-class innovation center in Akademgorodok, a major academic and scientific hub. The regional government will invest 10 billion rubles, or approximately $330 million, in the project by 2017, and expects the total investment from various sources to reach as much as $1 billion, Baikal 24 reported in late December.
Their plan is to create sixteen R&D centers in Akademgorodok, in addition to the four centers already present.
The authorities’ objective is to bring in up to 500 million rubles annually, or approximately $16 million, in funds raised by local startups and business incubators. If the plan succeeds, more than 100 innovative companies could spring from the innovation center by 2017.
Located twenty miles from Novosibirsk, Akademgorodok, which literally means ‘academic town,’ was established in 1957. It quickly became a major Soviet scientific hub, with talented researchers settling there from all the country. After the fall of communism, however, salaries and funding collapsed. But Akademgorodok managed to attract a number of foreign companies including IBM, Intel and Schlumberger, and to generate significant venture activity based on Soviet era assets. Today, the hub counts as many as 35 research institutes as well as a number of universities.
