Ready to Launch? ITEC 2025 Talent Track is Now Open For Registration

For decades, ITEC has been Chaoyang District’s flagship platform for global innovation, offering tailored support, market access, and a global community to supercharge the growth of startups. 

This year, ITEC is all about empowering young talents. We set up three tracks, at core of it is the talent Talent track, here’s a break down of it. 

1. Talent Rewards & Continued Support

The top 30 projects will receive a ¥200,000 Prize and benefit from an extensive support package, including:

– Free company registration address with access to shared meeting rooms and 5 hotdesks for up to 2 years (or office space up to 100 m² at ITEC Innovation Park).- Priority access to Chaoyang District’s innovation and investment ecosystem

– Direct connections to pilot opportunities and the Chaoyang Innovation Fund

– Winner of the Talent Track prize can also win eligibility for the ITEC 2025 Global Finals (prize pool up to ¥50 million). If the Talent Track winner also wins at the Global Finals, only the higher award is paid; if they don’t, they will still be rewarded with the Talent Track prize

Registration is open from now until August 15

2. Who Should Apply

This competition invites outstanding students from top domestic and international universities. We seek：

– Talents with clear technological vision and commercial potential. Whether you’re building AI-powered services or data-driven applications, your project should demonstrate a clear technical vision and real-world relevance.

– Focused on sourcing high-quality early-stage projects. Primarily seeking projects at or before Series A

– Particular focus on next-generation founding teams with strong innovative capabilities, and cross-disciplinary collaboration.

3. Judging Criteria

We’ve tailored our judging criteria to focus on what really matters — your technological vision, business potential, and ability to collaborate across disciplines.

Technological Foresight

– The originality and defensibility of the core technology

– The team’s R&D capabilities and track record of continuous iteration

Commercial Potential

– Strength and viability of the business model

– The founder’s strategic vision and the team’s operational resilience under uncertainty

Cross-Sector Integration

– Ability to translate frontier technologies into industrial value

– Potential to activate investment, policy, and supply-chain resources

– Capacity for building ecosystems and forming synergistic partnerships

4. Not sure if you’re ready? Don’t worry, we have workshops and bootcamps to help you prepare

For foreign startups, we will have a half day workshop. Delivered by bilingual mentors, this program focus on various topics, including Beijing’s startup ecosystem, market entry requirements, investor expectations, localization tactics (hiring, partnerships, IP), and regulatory essentials.

Your journey doesn’t end here. We also provide

– Continuous support through connections to investment channels, industry partners, and application scenarios.

– Targeted guidance to help teams achieve efficient implementation and build toward long-term, sustainable growth.

5. Timeline

Now – August 15            Talent Track application deadline

August 31, 2025           Industry Track application deadline

Early September 2025                Talent Track Roadshow

Late September 2025           Industry Track / Special Track

Late October 2025                                       Global Finals

Early November 2025                                       Inspection

December 2025    Innovation Summit & Awards Ceremony

For more information: contact@exploreitec.com