A cooperation agreement on entrepreneurship and innovation was inked between Hangzhou Binjiang High-tech Zone and Beihang University Hangzhou innovative research institute at a conference on May 6.

The new institute, a joint venture between Beihang University and the zone, was inaugurated in 2018 and dedicated to the six major research areas of artificial intelligence, cyberspace security, virtual reality, big data, and microelectronics and quantum measurement.

The agreement, which focuses on both academic studies and the transformation of scientific achievements, looks to catalyze university and enterprise cooperation and encourage more Beihang talents to start businesses there with a host of preferential policies and subsidies.

"The meeting is an important step to further cooperation between Beihang University and Hangzhou-based companies, and to build the Hangzhou innovative research institute into a world class institute serving the local economy," said Fang Jiancheng, vice-president of Beihang.

The institute also inked cooperation agreements with major hi-tech companies in the Hangzhou Binjiang High-tech Zone to jointly build nine laboratories in such digital economy areas as telecommunications, healthcare and transportation.