According to the Communication and Information Center in the Vice Presidency of Science, Technology and Knowledge-Based Economy, the Vice President of Science, Technology and Knowledge-Based Economy, referring to the conclusion of a trilateral cooperation agreement to create an equipped and advanced artificial intelligence infrastructure on Kish Island, stated: "In the context of the Iran Petrochem conference, an agreement was concluded in cooperation with the Vice Presidency of Science, the Kish Free Zone Organization, and the Persian Gulf Holding, which, by establishing a technology park and an equipped artificial intelligence center on Kish Island, will bring about a major transformation in the development of artificial intelligence technology development infrastructure in the south of the country."

He pointed out the significant growth of research and development in the oil, gas and petrochemical industries with the creation of this infrastructure and stated: Improving productivity and management of required resources and feedstock, developing technologies using the country's knowledge capacity, can be among the achievements of this center for the oil, gas and petrochemical industry. The creation and development of this infrastructure can lead to resource management and optimization of petrochemical feedstock consumption, with the development of technology and the growth of innovations.

 

Partnership between petrochemical holdings and knowledge-based companies in Iran Petrochem

The head of the National Elites Foundation considered the cooperation and partnership of the Persian Gulf Petrochemical Holding, the Kish Free Zone Organization, oil, gas, and petrochemical industry activists in the south of the country, and knowledge-based companies to create this infrastructure valuable and said: "I hope that with the effort and determination that is being made, we can witness the opening of this center at Petrochem next year. This agreement and the launch of these centers can pave the way for a remarkable transformation at the cutting edge of technology, and we will witness the petrochemicals, oil, and gas industry companies of the Persian Gulf countries welcoming this center, and this will accelerate the movement of our oil, gas, and petrochemical industries towards moving at the cutting edge of world knowledge and technology."

 

The government's determination to allocate technology infrastructure

The Vice President of Science pointed to the government's role in allocating the necessary infrastructure to move at the frontiers of knowledge and technology and the technological competitiveness of large industries, adding: "The growth of innovation depends on two factors: the enterprise and the market, both of which are present at this conference today. The government, as an insurer and supporter, is also a key component. The government is determined to provide the necessary infrastructure and facilities for innovative economic growth by moving large companies at the frontiers of knowledge and competing in global markets."

Afshin, while appreciating the stakeholders who are the link between knowledge-based companies, domestic manufacturers, and the petrochemical industry, stated: "This exhibition can establish a link so that knowledge-based companies can have better access to the needs and capacities of the country's large petrochemical industry."

The head of the National Elites Foundation spoke about the necessity of sustainable economic growth and global experience in this field and continued: When in the 19th century, the change in the economic paradigm paved the way for sustainable growth, three principals were established as the axis and paradigm, the first of which was the accumulation of innovation and the dissemination of knowledge; this means that the prerequisite for sustainable growth is technical progress and we must be able to update equipment and increase productivity. Innovative and technological progress is the driving engine and the heart of economic growth.

 

The importance of knowledge dissemination in economic growth

Afshin considered the second axis for economic growth to be "dissemination of knowledge" and said: "If science is not disseminated, innovation will not be achieved because the process of producing knowledge is constantly repeated. The issue of disseminating knowledge requires an institution to support and protect this issue, and therefore, we need to build an institution in the field of producing and disseminating knowledge that supports intellectual property, ideas, and innovations, and encourages innovators so that we can witness sustainable economic growth."

 

The importance of creative destruction in economic growth

Referring to the necessity and importance of creative destruction as the most important component required for economic growth, he stated: The third requirement for economic growth is creative destruction or creative disruption, so that a basis must be provided for new innovation to replace previous innovation. Achieving this has its own difficulties, and in previous years it was said that traditional and older industries are an obstacle to the entry of innovation by knowledge-based companies into the heart of the industry, but today, older knowledge-based companies that have received incentives, support, and facilities, if there is no opportunity to destroy innovation, become an obstacle to the entry of a new knowledge-based company into the economy. The solution to this issue is to create competition, and by creating an atmosphere of competition between companies, the path to the replacement of new technology and innovation should be paved.

The Vice President of Science considered competition to have several layers and said: "It may be a competition to make a product that is not produced domestically. This competition is a competition with a foreign company. At this stage, the domestic company uses all its creativity, innovation, and technology to take back the market from foreign hands, but as soon as the laws and procedures give the domestic market to the domestic company, technology and innovation also decline because the company has a monopoly on the market and does not see the need for more creativity and technology. At this point, we must bring the product to the threshold of export so that innovation growth can occur to compete in global markets.

Innovation to capture the domestic market is known as defensive innovation, and innovation growth for exports is known as expansionary innovation. Innovation that enables the company to be present in a foreign market and compete with foreign products.

 

Industry and Technological Competition

He stated that for innovation to grow, we must know the position of our industry and always know where we are in this innovation process. He continued: Sometimes competition is fierce but innovation is at a low level. For example, competition in the methanol industry is not dependent on innovation, and no matter how many competitors there are, competition is solely based on price and not innovation.

The head of the National Elites Foundation stated that companies must move on the edge of knowledge and technology in order for innovation to grow in them, and continued: "The world competes on the edge of technology, and if technological and innovative competition takes place, economic growth occurs. For economic growth, we need to move on the edge of knowledge and technology."

 

 

Developing secondary technologies for wealth creation

Referring to creating the necessary grounds and platforms for the growth of secondary technologies from a comprehensive technology in order to create wealth and economic growth, the Vice President of Science stated: "When a comprehensive technology is formed, that technology itself does not create wealth, but rather secondary technologies create wealth. For example, electricity technology, which paved the way for the industrial revolution, did not create wealth alone, but rather created the ground for the formation of production lines and the creation of technological products."

Afshin continued: "Today, artificial intelligence is a pervasive technology whose effects are ignited in the creation of secondary technologies, the creation of new innovations, and the growth of creativity. Innovative tools that grow from technology lead to the development of other technologies and create wealth. If the tools and second stages of this technology are used in the petrochemical industry, they can create wealth”.

He stated that secondary AI technologies and tools used in the oil, gas, and petrochemical industries will create wealth, adding: "This will lead to increased productivity, and when processes are carried out at much lower cost and time with better output, we will witness wealth creation, industrial growth, and economic development with the help of AI technology."

The Vice President of Science emphasized that if proper competitive policies are not adopted and implemented, these same technologies, including artificial intelligence, will be an obstacle to growth. He said: "All scientific, technological, and industrial revolutions, if they do not benefit from the support of proper policymaking and planning, including competitive policies, can turn into their own opposite and have the opposite result."

The head of the National Elites Foundation concluded by saying: I will end my discussion with a quote from Louis Pasteur, who said: First ask yourself what I have done to improve myself, then ask yourself what I have done for my country? Continue and repeat this question until you reach the answer that perhaps I have made a small contribution to the progress and elevation of humanity. But more importantly than how effective our efforts have been, we must ultimately reach the answer that I have done what I could.

The second Iran Petrochem International Conference and Exhibition, with the presence of more than 4,000 participating representatives in this industry, 140 booths including petrochemical companies, financial and investment institutions, regulatory departments, knowledge-based companies, technology, and other activists in the petrochemical industry ecosystem, has started on January 12 of this year, hosted by Persian Gulf Holding, and will host interested parties until January 14, from 17 to 22 at the permanent location of the International Exhibitions on Kish Island.