Singapore: Five start-ups, including three from the bioscience sector, have signed licensing agreements with Exploit Technologies, the commercial arm of the Agency for Science, Research and Technology (A*STAR). The agreements will allow these companies to use some latest technologies emerging from the premier research institution of Singapore.

The signing ceremony was part of the inaugural Action Community for Entrepreneurship (ACE) - ETPL Investor Forum 2012 graced by Mr Teo Ser Luck, minister of state for Trade and Industry, Singapore. With the transfer of A*STAR's technologies, these companies will be better positioned to compete in the market, increase revenue and expand their offerings.

These five start-ups add to the increasing trend of start-ups licensing A*STAR technologies taking the total number of such agreements to 30 in the last three years.

The three biotech companies are iRad Solutions, which delivers image atlases for medical education; Baldr Biosystems for disease diagnosis; and I3 Precision for imaging solutions in drug tracking.

"The five companies that have signed licensing agreements have great market potential. They are examples of how good A*STAR technology can be successfully translated into the marketplace, providing novel solutions and applications that are relevant to different industry sectors and beneficial to society at large", said Mr Philip Lim, Chief Executive Officer of ETPL.