Professor Li Zexiang of Hong Kong University of Science and Technology: I was wrong!Engineering consciousness is actually more important than the best university above

Source | Chaos Academy (ID: Hundun-ACademy)

What type of majors to apply for the college entrance examination have a lot to do with the choice facing college graduation after 4 years. Everyone believes that the best major can catch up with industry dividends when graduating.

At present, my country is undergoing a transition from "demographic dividend" to "engineer dividends", and is in a new round of development to the development of high -end manufacturing and technology industries.

At the same time, it coincides with the era of digitalization, traditional projects are evolved in intelligence. Middle and high -end talents with higher education and innovative ability will become a key part of this round of transformation and upgrade.

There are reasons to believe that excellent engineers are promising in future innovation and entrepreneurship.

After successfully incubating a series of star technology startups such as DJI innovation and "Water Tesla" Yidong Technology, Li Zexiang, a professor of Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, once shared the core thinking of entrepreneurial success on the chaotic podium on the chaotic podium. Model -Engineering consciousness.

Li Zexiang said: "In the past, I recruited students, all found the best school, the best grades, and finally discovered the mistake. The engineering consciousness is more important than grades."

*The following is based on Li Zexiang's "Incubation Password of Science and Technology Entrepreneurship" on the chaotic curriculum on September 2, 2017.

Teacher Teacher ｜ Li Zexiang Professor of Electronics and Computer Engineering, Hong Kong University of Science and Technology

Entrepreneurship is often divided into two steps: finding problems and solving problems.

It is only half that the problem is completed. Choosing a good model to solve the problem may allow entrepreneurs to take a lot of detours.

At present, there are mainly the following modes to solve the problem:

First, the "cottage" model. The benchmarking enterprises or companies that encounter the same problems are adjusted with reference to their way.

Second, make decisions based on long -term cultivation of engineering consciousness.

Third, through mathematics, physics and other scientific methods, simplify complex issues, and solve the problem by finding the core key points of the problem.

In these three models, the first model is difficult to have breakthrough innovation. The third model is the best but it is difficult for ordinary people to do. The second model -engineering consciousness is very important and worthy of cultivation. The core ability of organic combination with business practice.

I can't give the engineering consciousness a clear definition, but through this course, I can tell you how engineering consciousness is cultivated, and the important role of engineering consciousness in improving entrepreneurial success rate.

1

Engineering consciousness is much more important than test results

I was admitted to Zhongnan Mining Institute in the first year after restoring the college entrance examination and went to study in the United States after admission.

To sum up my learning process, the college entrance examination is a turning point; I received American education in Pittsburgh and found that the importance of engineering thinking for college students; the University of California Berkley let me learn the foundation of critical thinking and mathematics.

These educational experiences have laid the theoretical foundation of engineering consciousness.

Design thinking

This originated from the experience of studying in Pitonburg, as the first batch of public undergraduates in Pittsburgh in 1979. Prior to this, I always thought that maintaining good results was the most important, and good grades were mainly theoretical courses.

However, a course teacher asked us to stay at a crossroads for 3 hours and come back to write a report. So I was sitting stupidly at the crossroads, thinking whether it should be a number of people or a vehicle. Such a course has become my weakness.

Today we know that this kind of learning is design thinking -thinking and thinking through observation and thinking to find problems.

Ability to do

When I was studying at the University of California, from 1983 to 1989, I realized that a key ability of engineering awareness was to do it.

This is a roommate with a very poor academic performance. He can take 7 points for the choice questions and graduate from undergraduate for 8 years, but he has a strong hands -on ability. When we did an experiment, the oscilloscope was not working, and he just kicked him.

Later I knew this was called engineering consciousness. Because you have to know where to kick and kick multiple to kick your device.

After graduating from college, this roommate founded a company that made color lanterns and created a new industry. His company last $ 1 billion was sold to Philips. After that, he founded two or three companies. The product.

Critical thinking

Critical thinking was learned when I studied for a master's degree at the University of California, Berkeley.

There are many discussion classes at the University of California, Berkeley, not asking students to accept the idea of ​​instillation of Daniel, but that everyone debates with each other. Listening to a lecture here, it is very amazing to not be bombarded for an hour.

Critical thinking is also a spirit of Silicon Valley culture. It has a great impact on me. I learned how to not fry others' cold rice and find problems from other people's papers.

Math tool

The mathematics basis was learned when I graduated from the University of California, Berkeley.

At that time, the subject of my Ph.D. was a dexterous machine operation. Although the experimental equipment allowed me to do a little bit of experiments, this simple experiment could not satisfy the study. So I learned a lot of mathematics tools. In this process, I found that the requirements of the University of California Berkeley surprised the requirements of mathematics.

When I was in Pisburg, the mathematical scores never had a lower 100 points. However, in the University of California, Berkeley, I really don't understand anything, so I started to learn mathematical analysis, differential flow, and differential geometry, a series of mathematical courses. Just like physical theory, even if you do not have a hand -made experimental device, you can use your brain to do experiments. Today, every student in my laboratory has to go through such "torture". Mathematical tools must be mastered and applied to scientific research, which will form their left and right hands: one hand is called, and one hand is called mathematics.

Entire project

Finally, the postdoctoral experience of the Massachusetts University of Science and Technology (MIT) allowed me to gain the essence of the MIT industry influence, which is to see the whole process of the project.

Mark Rabot, the creator of the famous military machine "Big Dog", was a professor of MIT, but later he resigned from the faculty to found the Boston power, but the company did not sell a equipment for more than 20 years.

I asked Mark if he regretted it. He said that for an engineer, only after experiencing the entire process of engineering, from proposing concepts, making engineering prototypes, finding application scenarios, and eventually becoming a product, can you really understand this technology.

This is actually the core of the MIT industry influence. For more than 40 years, MIT has a total of 800,000 graduates. The more than 25,000 companies they have created each year is worth $ two trillion, which is equivalent to Russia's GDP. The entire process of original, applied, and entrepreneurial projects created the industrial impact of this world -class university.

If you want to summarize the whole process of the project, you will dare to adventure and challenge yourself, and dare to subvert yourself when your career is the most smooth.

Design thinking, hands -on ability, mathematical tools, and entire process of engineering constitute my understanding of engineering consciousness.

The cultivation of engineering awareness is more important than test results, because it not only refers to the ability of thinking, but a comprehensive ability including self -learning ability, research ability, hands -on ability and creative ability. It needs to be continuously practiced in life and learning Use it to get its essence.

2

Engineering consciousness is the competitiveness of the front line of entrepreneurship

When you have scientific research results, how to turn scientific research results into a greater value? This is the problem you have to think about.

I summarized that the successful industrialization of science and technology must meet three conditions: correlation, suitable policies, and near the front line of the industry.

The first condition is correlation. This study is related to the actual application when you make a question.

The second condition is to have a suitable policy. The school must have a policy that supports teachers/students to industrialize scientific research results, so that you can follow when you are in technology industrialization.

Take the University of Science and Technology of China as an example. The vice president in charge of R & D, based on the University of California, Berkeley and Stanford University, formulated a policy for industrial transfer of the University of Science and Technology of Hong Kong. Start -up companies such as Gu Gao benefit from such policies.

The specific one is the following two points: First, allow teachers to consult and do professional activities one day a week. Second, if you use the school's IP to start a business, and participate in the incubator of the school, you have to submit Give 3%of the shares of the school with 200,000 caps, so that entrepreneurship and schools take their own needs.

The third condition is close to the front line of the industry.

We all know that Hong Kong does not have the manufacturing industry chain, but Shenzhen near Hong Kong is the front line of manufacturing. Therefore, at the end of the last century, when Shenzhen's industrial transformation and upgrading, they adopted the model of "borrowing chicken eggs" to provide land and funds from Shenzhen, and teachers and students in colleges and universities to do projects or entrepreneurship.

At that time, the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology was established in only five years. The government officials from Shenzhen were very active and knocked on the door at the laboratory of the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology. However, many teachers of the University of Science and Technology are foreigners, and their language is unreasonable. Some local teachers are not familiar with Shenzhen.

They finally found me and asked me to help as Hunan fellows.

Therefore, in 1999 we registered Guogao with the control card. However, the manufacturing industry in Shenzhen is more materials to process, and no one knows how to use the control card. Therefore, we have conducted a lot of exercise control training and taught these farmers' brothers who have just landed in the field to use sports control technology to develop its equipment.

We also call this training model "Guangdong Farmers Movement Control Squad". Everyone also knows that the peasant brothers have mastered a new way of thinking and new scientific and technological means. They can create a lot of great things, so they developed step by step.

Now Gu Gao has become China's largest sports control company. The products have been applied to more than 60 industries. They have also trained many school students and teachers to make them closer to the needs of the enterprise.

I have learned a lot from this. It is not just how a university teacher operates a company to manage a company. More importantly, I realize what skills of students need to be competitive on the front line of entrepreneurship.

In the past, I recruited students to find the best schools and the best grades. In the end, I found out wrong. We cannot intentionally pursue achievements and ignore the cultivation of engineering consciousness.

I was fortunate to offer a course called robotics competition at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology. This course is to mix and match mechanical electronics, computers, mathematics and other majors, and use 8 months to design, make, and debug several machines in 8 months.

In order to pursue good results, they must accelerate the iteration. At that time, they did not have Taobao, so they ran to Huaqiangbei and processed around the university town. The beginning of all changes. Wang Tao, the founder of DJI drones, came out of this.

Wang Tao liked aircraft aircraft since he was a child, but the aircraft aircraft at that time was difficult to operate. Therefore, when he did a graduation design, he chose to design a helicopter controller. Unfortunately, when he graduated, his aircraft failed to fly successfully, and his grades were not ideal.

But he did not give up, and continued to study in the summer vacation time, and finally flew it. Then he followed me to continue studying. During his studies, he registered a small company in Shenzhen, trying to sell the aircraft to some aero enthusiasts.

Wang Tao tried to cooperate with GoPro. But in the end, as an entrepreneur, Wang Tao wanted to do something different. He decided to build his own brand, put the camera directly on the quadruple, and redefined a new market.

In 2014, this product won the third place in Times Weekly's top ten consumer electronics products in the world, ranking before iPhone 6 and iPad. This is a breakthrough in Shenzhen in China in terms of brand and design.

There is also a background that cannot be ignored. At that time, the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology had a summer vacation course with the Chinese Academy of Fine Arts. When the topic was selected, they chose to design the DJI drone as a background, combining art, design, and engineering The success of thinking has been transformed into business thinking.

Technology products must not only give people aesthetics, but also solve practical problems. DJI has done a good job of consumer drones and has always been thinking about how to make some industries truly benefit. Because of this, DJI can open up the market for pesticides spraying pesticides.

3

The best path of science and technology entrepreneurship: fast trial and error and iteration

Entrepreneurship is a high -risk and high failure behavior, and hardware entrepreneurs are even more.

The entrepreneurial incubator, known as the "Huangpu Military Academy" of Silicon Valley, has successfully incubated Dropbox, Airbnb and other companies. Many entrepreneurs would rather reduce the valuation and also go to train, but its admission rate is very low, and 93%of the admitted companies will fail, which means that only one application company can succeed.

According to the data released by the Zhenge Fund and the Innovation Workshop, the more than 300 projects they invested in the hardware accounted for less than 10%. This scale ranging from 1 million to 9 million to 10 million to 90 million. But very little.

I think there are the following reasons for the failure of these startups:

The product positioning is wrong, the product does not meet market demand;

Cash flow breaks;

The team is not suitable, quarrel every day;

Competitors are stronger and faster;

The price and cost are wrong.

How do we improve the success rate of entrepreneurship? At this time, engineering consciousness is critical.

Engineering consciousness allows you to have a pre -judgment of the industry, knowing what is valuable and what is not feasible. The key to learning engineering is to be able to quickly try and error and iterate the product.

For example, Ho Tao Technology, a company that wants to be an electric skateboard. When they started to do, there were several companies doing electric skateboarding. Finally, after a lot of investigations, they decided to make a skateboard that can be carried, lightweight, and intelligent. They quickly built a thing, verified some basic possibilities, and iterated from generation to generation. The crowdfunding was just completed a while ago, and the effect was not bad.

We can see the whole process of this company's entrepreneurial entrepreneurship:

From finding problems to market research and concept verification, to prototypes and small mass production releases. There are many problems facing each stage. At this time, it is critical to grab the most critical issues and make breakthroughs.

I summarized the commonality of successful technology entrepreneurship:

The leader has comprehensive quality

In terms of intelligent hardware, leaders must have a mixed cross -background. He must not only understand machinery and electronics, but also software and design; he is not only product managers, but also market managers, personnel managers, and operating managers.

Although there are no three -headed and six arms, these are the leaders of startups in the hardware field. These are the essential quality.

Good creativity

How does good creativity come out? Design thinking, critical thinking, market research, brainstorming, and brainstorming are all essential processes.

Team building

As the product is continuously tried and error is iterated, the appropriate team is truly combat effective.

Make different products

Don't look at what others do, I'll go to the cottage. To do it, make a different product.

Core competitiveness

Don't always want to flicker resources. Only with core competitiveness, you are not easy to be replaced.

Japanese CNC machine tools are the most typical cases. Because of its core competitiveness, it is not easy to be replaced. However, many Chinese companies have lost their core competitiveness due to the pursuit of great pursuit, and eventually cannot see the future in market changes.

4

Do not study the encyclopedia, you can learn from the academic discipline

If engineering consciousness is one of the key factors for entrepreneurship, how to cultivate innovative talents with engineering consciousness?

Can we fundamentally reform our college education? Let students find problems through four years of study, use innovative thinking, use scientific and technological methods to solve problems, and achieve personal value to promote social progress.

I think this is not a night. After the mobile phone manufacturers such as Nokia and Ericsson were subverted by Apple, my graduate classmate and the chairman of Qualcomm Paul Jacob spent a lot of time to study Apple's model. Finally, he concluded:

The single subject learning model is no longer possible. In the future, engineers must learn to cooperate with the interdisciplinary team, learn to iterate rapidly from design to manufacturing, and learn to integrate art, engineering and design to face the global market.

Therefore, he donated a sum of money to his alma mater, the University of California, Berkeley to promote the reform of engineering education.

This is actually let us reflect on our educational concept.

I used to think of cross -disciplinary studies before studying at home. I might have to memorize the encyclopedia.

But now you just need to know what your goal is, how to do it, how to learn, and then iterates in the process of doing.

The entrepreneurs we are familiar with, Bill Gates, Steve Jobs, and Elon Musk are all this. It is not the best use of social resources for more than 20 years to start a book.

In summary, redefining engineering education should start from these four aspects:

Finding problems;

The integration of multi -disciplinary discipline;

Project -based learning;

International vision and taste.

All in all, the cultivation of innovative talents needs to fully integrate design, art, culture, and technology.

I often communicate with entrepreneurs like Wang Tao. What can they maintain a good mentality in the difficult process of dealing with the crisis every day?

Their answers are their love for this matter, not to say that this thing can immediately bring you money.

I hope that my sharing can bring some inspiration to my classmates, use cross -disciplinary learning and constantly cultivating the awareness of engineering, and finally achieve achievements in your favorite things.

Source of this article: public account @Chaos Academy. Chaos Academy uses innovation to help each person and every organization make extraordinary achievements. With the thinking of Zheke's thinking, it invites 300 global top teachers to create an innovative education system and help Chinese workplace elites to cultivate innovation capabilities.

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