“Innovation Flea Market in 3 Cities: Boosting Research and Innovation to Address Problems, Leading Bangkok Towards the Goal of an “Innovative and Livable City for All”
February 1, 2024: Miss Supamas Isarapakdee, Minister of the Ministry of Higher Education, Science, Research and Innovation (MHESI), and Mr. Chatchat Sitthipan, Governor of Bangkok, along with executives from the MHESI and Bangkok Metropolitan Administration, inaugurated the “Innovation Flea Market at Three Urban Corners.” This event is a collaborative effort among agencies under MHESI, including the Thailand Science Research and Innovation (TSRI), the Office of National Higher Education Science Research and Innovation Policy Council (NXPO), the Program Management Unit for Competitiveness (PMUC), as well as other fund management units, together with the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration. Its purpose is to utilize research and innovation outputs of the MHESI for the benefit and support of Bangkok’s initiatives. PMUC also contributed by presenting research and innovation works under the theme “Smart and Livable City” at the exhibition held at the Bangkok Art and Culture Center from February 1-3, 2024.
Miss Supamas stated that the current social transformations have led cities to face various problems such as environmental issues, natural disasters, and pollution affecting living conditions, poverty, educational disparities, security concerns, and an increasing elderly population, as well as disparities in healthcare services. Therefore, it is essential to have research and innovation to support these challenges. The MHESI has a substantial number of research and innovation achievements ready for implementation. For instance, the Traffic Foam Duty platform, a city problem management platform enabling citizens to report encountered issues for relevant agencies to address promptly, such as cleanliness, electricity, water supply, and sidewalks.
The event featured three zones reflecting significant challenges in the three urban corners, namely the Learning City, Smart and Livable City, and Innovative City for All. Additionally, there were continuous seminars over three days, totaling 15 sessions, with 57 speakers from 22 organizations. Special workshops organized by the Children and Youth Council aimed to gather ideas for urban development design. Moreover, research funding guidelines for urban and community development were announced.
The Minister of MHESI also highlighted numerous innovative works showcased at the event, totaling over 45 exhibits in three booths, including:
- Environmental and Disaster Zone: Air quality measurement devices for PM2.5 and PM10, vibration monitoring equipment for building structures, and hazard alert systems to enhance Bangkok residents’ safety.
- Health Zone: Innovative medical practices area promoting medical investment and collaboration among hospitals for efficient patient care and better access to medical services.
- Social Zone: Elderly taxi service application and Thai-Chinese cultural dissemination model from the perspectives of three age groups to ensure comprehensive care for vulnerable groups.
- Economic Zone: Intelligent accounting application system and household poverty indicator data platform to enhance efficiency in targeted problem management.
- Education and Learning Zone: Learning city development platform and child screening application for reading difficulties to improve educational outcomes for children and adolescents.
Assoc. Prof. Thongchai Suwansichon, the director of PMUC, stated that the past operations of the PMUC have aligned with the policies of the Ministry, aiming to expedite research and innovation efforts to contribute to multidimensional urban development. This is achieved by matching the needs with suitable research outcomes of the PMUC, facilitating broad utilization and fostering collaboration with direct beneficiaries of research. The PMUC’s research focuses on user needs or market demands, driving collaboration between the public and private sectors to ensure the practical application, quality, and international standards of research outcomes. This enhances the country’s sustainable competitiveness in various dimensions of urban development.
Regarding innovation development to address urban development challenges, the PMUC director mentioned that markets are rapidly evolving, especially with digital technologies intertwining with every aspect of life. The PMUC supports digital research and development projects, including infrastructure development, data compilation, and platform creation, to enable small to medium-sized enterprises, including startups, to innovate and compete swiftly in the market.
At the “Innovation Market: 3 Corners of the City” event, the PMUC presented samples of supported research and innovation, notably “Digital Tech for Liveable City,” which is intriguing and versatile. For example, the “Eat Well Live Well” platform, a comprehensive health care platform for Thais, addresses various societal challenges such as an aging society, coping with the COVID-19 pandemic, PM2.5 air pollution, and enhancing safety in various aspects.
This platform originated from the research development by Assoc. Prof. Wirun Sriborirak, from the Faculty of Engineering, Burapha University. The aim is to create technology by and for Thai people, reducing reliance on foreign technology through the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and the Internet of Things (IoT). Products and services of the “Eat Well Live Well” platform will be developed through analysis of factors affecting individuals’ health, including lifestyle, dietary habits, living conditions, and environmental factors. The platform aims to ensure safety in aspects of eating, health, living conditions, and property.
Moreover, digital technology development for business purposes is supported. For instance, the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA) showcased the “Ztrus Smart Accounting System” by AccoMet Co., Ltd. This Thai startup has developed an Optical Character Recognition (OCR) system to convert text from scanned images or documents into digital data. Integrating AI technology, it becomes a Document Intelligence Platform capable of smartly and flexibly reading both Thai and English, such as ID cards, invoices, and receipts, with up to 97% accuracy and in under 1 minute. This system addresses business needs, reducing the manual workload significantly, thus upgrading users’ roles and responsibilities while cutting costs.
Additionally, PMUC supports the development of “Open Thai GPT,” or “Thai Language AI for All Thais.” Developed by the Thai Association of Artificial Intelligence Entrepreneurs, together with iApps Technology Co., Ltd., and networks from both public and private sectors, Open Thai GPT is a large-scale Thai language model capable of processing Thai language comparable to ChatGPT but with a Thai dictionary database of over 25,000 words. It caters to complex word segmentation and Thai diacritic usage.
Open Thai GPT is developed as open-source software, promoting collaboration and knowledge exchange within the academic and AI developer community. It also provides opportunities for Thai tech startups to develop AI applications that better understand and meet the needs of Thai users, thus benefiting from AI technology and new innovations in the future.
