Shanghai makes future-tech bid with promise of data, talent and capital
The city is striving for an early-mover advantage in the technology of tomorrow, including AI and quantum computing
Shanghai aims to cement its status as a national and international driver of innovation by further strengthening its advanced industrial chain, municipal officials said as the city wrapped up its annual policy-setting meetings.
“We are ramping up the supply of key innovation inputs … while fostering a more open and dynamic ecosystem, so that Shanghai can resonate with global innovation and move in step with the world’s technological frontier,” Tang Wenkai, director of the Shanghai Municipal Commission of Economy and Informatisation, said on Saturday.
Shanghai, long seen as China’s economic bellwether, is pivoting towards technology-driven growth, seeking to revive momentum through “new productive forces”, including AI and advanced manufacturing.
China’s broader economy, however, continues to lose steam, held back by a prolonged property downturn and weak domestic demand. While headline GDP growth reached 5 per cent last year, expansion slowed to a three-year low of 4.5 per cent in the final quarter.