NFU's AI Drone Talent Cultivation Model Yields Significant Results

National Formosa University is implementing the "AI New Talent Program" under the Ministry of Economic Affairs' Industrial Development Administration, and is one of the first batch of four demonstration universities in the program. Using the drone industry as its focal field, the university launched the "Drone AI-Empowered Talent Cultivation Credit Program," enrolling 40 trainees. All trainees completed the 4-month professional training, and the 4-month corporate internship will also be completed by March 31, 2026, achieving a 100% completion rate. Several companies have already expressed interest in retaining trainees, with actual results exceeding the original cultivation targets.

The Industrial Development Administration's "AI New Talent Program" aims to achieve integration of training, use, and employment (training + internship + employment), cultivate AI application talent, and support industrial upgrading and transformation. In 2025, the program cultivated more than 400 AI new talents, with the participation of around a hundred companies. The Industrial Development Administration stated that the third wave of the "AI New Talent Program" in 2026 will focus on: encouraging collaboration with industry competitiveness guidance teams, integrating the capacity of training institutions and partner companies, providing resources for AI transformation talent cultivation, and focusing on industry needs, prioritizing support for traditional industries affected by disruption.

NFU is one of the first four universities selected for the "AI New Talent Program." Dr. Chang Yi-Pin, Assistant Professor and Project Lead for the university's "Program to Promote AI Application Talent Cultivation for Industry," who also serves as the instructor for the "Drone AI-Empowered Talent Cultivation Credit Program," was recently invited to share the university's experience and insights at the Ministry of Economic Affairs' 2026 Southern Region Briefing Session on the AI New Talent Program. Chang explained that the "Drone AI-Empowered Talent Cultivation Credit Program" launched under NFU's "AI New Talent Program" primarily targets undergraduate students, requires more than 360 hours of coursework, and admits 40 trainees, each of whom receives a scholarship of up to NT$200,000. The program's key focuses are as follows: First, cultivating cross-disciplinary practical talent in AI and drone technology, strengthening trainees' integrated application capabilities across artificial intelligence and drone technology, developing practice-oriented talent who can directly enter the workforce, and enhancing trainees' hands-on and field deployment capabilities to build job-ready AI talent. Second, strengthening field-based practice and practical technical application skills: through task-oriented teaching and hands-on field operations, trainees master the latest technologies such as AI algorithms, image recognition, and autonomous navigation, gaining the job-ready capability and problem-solving skills needed to deploy AI models and drone systems on-site. Third, aligning with industry needs and promoting job matching: courses are designed based on industry demand, and upon completion of training, trainees are matched with companies in drone and smart manufacturing-related industries to accelerate technology implementation.

Chang pointed out that all 40 trainees in the first cohort completed the 4-month professional training, followed by a 4-month corporate internship, with a total of 17 companies participating in the internship program. The industries involved span drones, composite materials, precision machinery, semiconductor equipment, and inspection/certification, among other fields. The internship will be completed by March 31, 2026, and several companies have already expressed interest in retaining trainees, with the program's results exceeding expectations.

Reprinted from Commercial Times: NFU's AI Drone Talent Cultivation Model Yields Significant Results