Shanghai's Pudong paves pathway for science and technology industry

Science and technology industries, namely integrated circuits (IC), biomedicine and intelligent manufacturing, are seeing an unprecedented boom in Pudong New Area of Shanghai thanks to a host of preferential policies recently issued by the special district.

Zhangjiang AIsland, a specialized artificial intelligence (AI) hub in Zhangjiang Science City of Pudong New Area, is now home to a collection of local startup firms, industry giants such as Microsoft, Alibaba, CloudWalk Technology, and a research facility affiliated with Tongji University.

The 66,000-square-meter zone, in addition to gathering together top global AI enterprises, also serves as a testing base for the application of new technology, according to Yuan Tao, chairman of Shanghai Zhangjiang Group and the operator of the zone, adding that the core products developed by AI companies will be applied in various areas including intelligent security, speech recognition and machine vision.

As a center of scientific and technological innovation in Shanghai, Zhangjiang Science City has also laid out plans for the IC and biomedical industries. It inaugurated Shanghai Integrated Circuit Design Industrial Park, located in Zhangjiang High Tech Park, on Nov 28, 2018.

To boost the burgeoning biomedical industry, Pudong has planned four industrial bases with a total area of nearly 10 square kilometers.

In addition to the favorable land policies, capital market also plays a pivotal role in helping science and technology companies grow faster. The Yangtze River Delta (YRD) Capital Market Service Base, a joint venture between Pudong New Area and the Shanghai Stock Exchange, officially opened in Zhangjiang Science City on April 10, aiming to provide comprehensive services to innovative science and technology enterprises in the YRD region.

"Over the course of development, Shanghai Pudong New Area and China (Shanghai) Pilot Free Trade Zone (FTZ) has always adhered to institutional and technological innovation to drive the industrialization of scientific and technological achievements," said Hang Yingwei, head of Pudong New Area and executive deputy-director of Shanghai FTZ.

In 2018, the total output value of the IC industry in Shanghai FTZ exceeded 100 billion yuan ($14.91 billion) for the first time, accounting for more than 70 percent of the city's total.