Established in Taipei in March 2023, SmarTest R&D Center traces its roots back to 2013 when Professor Cheng-Ying Chou of the Department of Biomechatronics Engineering at National Taiwan University initiated the “Drug Saliva Rapid Screening Project” at the CIBI Lab. The project which closely collaborates with judicial agencies, medical institutions, private addiction treatment facilities, and drug policy research units conducts in-depth research on drug addicts and saliva drug testing. Pioneering technologies such as AI algorithms, biometrics, advanced optical instrumentation design, image interpretation, psychological analysis, and big data analytics were employed to develop precise and efficient drug saliva rapid screening instruments. Since 2013, this project has received funding support from the National Science and Technology Council of the Executive Yuan and was included in the national project of the Academia Sinica from 2017 to 2020.

In 2020, the project was selected as one of the top ten achievements in the “Taiwan Advanced Instrumentation Project (TAIP)” published by the Academia Sinica. Its research technology and product applications garnered significant market attention, and the Academia Sinica supported its commercial development. In November of the same year, NTU CIBI Lab participated in the “Taiwan Advanced Instrumentation Project” results presentation held at Taipei 101, where the research project won the Best Popularity Award.

Starting in 2021, the project team initiated industry-academia collaborations with enterprises to further advance laboratory achievements into the market. Through joint efforts, the SmarTest R&D Center was officially established in Taipei in 2023, aiming to move towards formal production and benefit society in the future.