Hong Taeyong, Mayor of Gimhae, Visits COVID-19 Vaccine Development Site

Inspection of the Boston Bio Innovation Cluster in the USA

Hong Tae-yong, Mayor of Gimhae, Gyeongnam (seventh from the left), is taking a commemorative photo during a visit to the Boston Bio Innovation Cluster in Massachusetts, USA.

[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Lee Seryeong] Hong Taeyong, mayor of Gimhae City, Gyeongnam, visited the Boston Bio Innovation Cluster in Massachusetts, USA, from the 8th to the 9th of last month.

Accompanying the mayor on the trip to the United States were Ryu Myeongyeol, chairman of the city council, and officials from the Gimhae Biomedical Industry Promotion Agency, among others.

The city announced on the 12th that the visit aimed to explore the development direction of the biomedical industry, a regionally specialized industry, and to establish growth momentum for bio companies within the Gimhae Biomedical Medical Device Small and Medium Research and Development Special Zone.

According to the city, the Boston Bio Innovation Cluster is where the Moderna and Janssen COVID-19 vaccines were developed.

The bio industry there provides about 100,000 jobs, has approximately 10,000 registered patents, and is considered the world's largest bio-industrial complex with an economic effect exceeding 2 trillion dollars.

On the 8th, Mayor Hong visited Harvard University's Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital and the Neuromodulation Research Center to discuss advanced technology exchange, discovery of joint collaborative projects, and networking establishment.

At Harvard University, he gave a lecture titled “The Future Vision of Gimhae, a Biomedical Specialized City,” introducing Gimhae.

The city delegation also attended the opening ceremony of the joint research institute between NewLive, a brain disease electronic medicine medical device and digital therapeutics company headquartered in the city, and Harvard's Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital.

On the 9th, at the Korea Health Industry Development Institute's U.S. branch, they exchanged opinions on support measures for Gimhae companies entering the U.S. market, and at the Boston bio innovation startup space CIC (Cambridge Innovation Center), they discussed promotion and activation of global networking for biomedical companies within the Gimhae Small and Medium Research and Development Special Zone.

They also visited the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and Harvard Medical School research institute CLS (Center for Life Science), sharing views on exchanges in the fields of non-face-to-face medical devices, electronic medicine, and digital therapeutic device industries, agreeing to cooperate for joint development.

Mayor Hong said, “Our city has continuously fostered the biomedical industry for the past 20 years,” adding, “I hope this visit serves as a stepping stone to promote various new medical industries through global technology exchange and collaboration, and to further grow.”