WaikatoLink taps into global network

Hamilton business incubator WaikatoLink is among the first to tap into a global incubator network under a deal signed in Singapore last night.

WaikatoLink, the commercial arm of the University of Waikato, has become one of the founding members of Icube - the International Incubation Initiative.

Icube has the backing of the commercial arm of the Singapore Government's Agency for Science, Technology and Research.

The deal gives participating incubators access to business partners, customers and investors across Southeast Asia.

WaikatoLink chief executive Mark Stuart said the Icube link-up ensured it could tap into the right local networks to find business partners, customers and on-the-ground support services.

He said the key to turning science and technology ideas into successful commercial opportunities was to ensure the global demand existed to justify the effort and investment put in.

"Often we find that technologies are applied differently in different markets, or work processes are different or there are different priorities around needs to be solved," he said. "This makes finding local market expertise critically important to us."

Foreign Minister Murray McCully was in Singapore to witness the signing, which gives start-ups access to a virtual international office, use of office space, mentoring and angel investor networks.

Currently nine companies are under incubation at WaikatoLink.

Originally confined to University of Waikato science and technology ventures, it last year opened its doors to outside entrepreneurs.