As one of the four themed events of the 2026 World Laureates Forum, the World Top-Performing Incubator Conference's Deep Tech Transfer & Startups Demo Day was held in Shanghai's Lin-gang Special Area on Oct 31. 

H. Michael Shepard, winner of the 2019 Lasker-DeBakey Clinical Medical Research Award; Li Chengyu, a researcher at Lin-gang Laboratory; Huang Weiping, founder of Ligent Technologies; and Xu Jianying, a senior executive at Bank of Shanghai, delivered keynote speeches on AI-driven drug discovery, invasive brain-computer interfaces, the commercialization of university research, and financial support for early-stage projects, respectively.

Shepard also joined Zhu Pengcheng, founder and CEO of ATLATL Center for Innovation & Research, for a dialogue on bridging the "valley of death" between fundamental research and clinical applications, focusing on how incubation platforms can facilitate the transition.

H. Michael Shepard in dialogue with Zhu Pengcheng. [Photo/World Laureates Forum]

Companies from sectors including integrated circuits, biomedicine, and smart hardware presented their projects during the subsequent roadshow, showcasing real-world examples of how hard-tech innovations move from the laboratory to the marketplace.