Preface:

By the Spring Festival of 2025, Shenzhen, renowned as an entrepreneurial haven, confronted new challenges – the unveiling of the large-scale model DeepSeek-R1 garnered significant global attention, while Unitree Robotics' impressive humanoid robot performance during the Spring Festival Gala signaled a reevaluation of Chinese tech stocks by Wall Street.

For Shenzhen, a city synonymous with innovation, the pressure to excel is palpable.

Author | Fang Wensan

Image Source | Network

Shenzhen Unveils Four [AI+] Action Plans on the Same Day

On March 3, Shenzhen successively promulgated four action plans: the "Shenzhen Embodied Intelligent Robot Technology Innovation and Industrial Development Action Plan (2025-2027)", the "Shenzhen Action Plan for Accelerating the Development of AI Terminal Industry (2025-2026)", the "Shenzhen Action Plan for Effectively Supporting the Development of Gazelle Enterprises and Unicorn Enterprises (2025-2027)", and the "Shenzhen Action Plan for Accelerating the Construction of an AI Pioneer City (2025-2026)".

The AI plan sets an ambitious target for the AI terminal industry to reach a scale exceeding RMB 800 billion by 2026, with aspirations to hit RMB 1 trillion.

On March 2, Shenzhen had already rolled out three work plans aimed at enhancing the market-oriented, law-based, and internationalized business environment.

The robot plan outlines development goals for 2027, envisioning significant advancements in key core robot components, AI chips, AI and robot fusion technology, multimodal perception technology, high-precision motion control technology, dexterous manipulation technology, and other domains.

Specifically, it anticipates fostering over 10 enterprises with a valuation exceeding RMB 10 billion and more than 20 enterprises with revenue exceeding RMB 1 billion by that time.

It aims to realize the implementation of over 50 billion-level application scenarios, with the related industry scale surpassing RMB 100 billion and the number of enterprises associated with the embodied intelligent robot industrial cluster exceeding 1,200.

In terms of industrial space support, Shenzhen plans to establish AI low-cost industrial incubators.

In key districts such as Futian, Luohu, Nanshan, Bao'an, Longgang, Longhua, Pingshan, and Guangming, more than one low-cost innovation incubator with an area of over 20,000 square meters will be established to provide rent-free space, computing power discounts, and supporting resource services for startups.

Districts are encouraged to develop district-level AI specialty industrial parks and AI industrial buildings to attract upstream and downstream enterprises in the AI industry chain to cluster and grow.

Shenzhen aims to expedite the development of internationally and domestically leading AI terminal industry clusters.

The goal is for Shenzhen's AI terminal industry to surpass RMB 800 billion by 2026, with aspirations to reach RMB 1 trillion.

It aims to attract at least 10 influential AI terminal enterprises and increase AI terminal product output to over 150 million units.

Furthermore, Shenzhen has detailed nine key AI terminal product categories for development.

The objective is to launch over 50 popular AI terminal products in areas such as mobile phones, computers, large model all-in-ones, and wearable devices by 2026.

It also aims to create over 60 typical AI terminal application scenarios in domains like smart manufacturing, smart finance, smart cities, smart elderly care, and smart government.

Key development areas encompass core components of embodied intelligent robots, AI chips, bio-inspired dexterous hands, large models for base and vertical fields, and body control.

Covering All Aspects of the AI Industry Chain and Leveraging Its Advantages

Recently, the release of "The Legends of Robot Squad" garnered widespread attention. Among the seven enterprises representing the future of China's robot industry, Shenzhen enterprises account for nearly half.

In fact, by examining Shenzhen's [20+8] industrial clusters, it becomes evident that almost every industrial chain is witnessing a surge of new financing cases, and Shenzhen has nurtured a group of powerful unicorn enterprises.

As of the end of 2024, the number of national high-tech enterprises in Shenzhen had exceeded 25,000, and the cumulative number of national manufacturing champions reached 95.

There are 12 national high-tech enterprises per square kilometer on average, ranking first among cities nationwide.

Recently, Shenzhen's official AI industry details were released – the city has gathered over 2,600 AI enterprises, including 6 unicorn enterprises, 34 listed robot enterprises, and 9 unicorn enterprises in the robot sector.

Among them, seven robot enterprises have been selected for Morgan Stanley's list of the top 100 global humanoid robot listed companies.

According to Morgan Stanley's list of the top 100 core listed companies in the global humanoid robot industry chain, 35 Chinese enterprises were included, with Shenzhen accounting for one-fifth of them.

Among the top ten domestic robot companies, four are from Shenzhen, ranking first in the country in terms of the number of included enterprises.

Specifically, Shenzhen's AI industry chain comprehensively covers all aspects of chips, models, hardware, and applications.

A [geese formation] tier structure has been formed, led by industry leaders such as Huawei and Tencent, supported by high-growth enterprises like Metavision Technology and Tuzhan Intelligence, and actively developed by startups.

Behind this robust industrial strength lies a well-established industrial chain system that offers tremendous advantages.

Taking robot component procurement as an example, enterprises can place orders in the morning and receive goods in the afternoon. The [same-day delivery] supply chain system has become a hallmark of Shenzhen's industry.

In the upstream of the industrial chain, Shenzhen has gathered enterprises such as Inovance, Leadshine Technology, Orbbec, Han's Laser, Tongchuan Technology, and Googol Tech, covering core components like reducers, motors, controllers, and sensors.

In the midstream of the industrial chain, numerous local leading enterprises have emerged, including UBTech, Zuji Power, and Elabot.

Relying on its globally most comprehensive electronic information industry chain, Shenzhen has formed a closed-loop ecosystem of [hardware + algorithms + scenarios].

From chip design (e.g., HiSilicon and Cloudwalk) to intelligent terminals (e.g., DJI and UBTech), and then to cloud computing (e.g., Huawei Cloud and Tencent Cloud), Shenzhen's AI enterprises can swiftly realize the industrialization of their technological achievements.

Shenzhen's Hardcore AI Startups Announce Financing in Succession

On March 6, Zuji Power successfully completed its A+ round of financing, raising a total of RMB 500 million in the A series within half a year.

Zhipingfang also swiftly completed a new round of Pre-A+ financing exceeding RMB 100 million.

Investors from various backgrounds have gathered here, including Alibaba Group, China Merchants Venture Capital, Shangqi Capital, NIO Capital, Lenovo Capital, Bishan Era, and Nice Group, which invested in Zuji Power, alongside well-known financial investors such as Oasis Capital, Mingshi Venture Capital, Frees Fund, Gaojie Capital, and Nanshan Strategic Emerging Industries Investment Fund.

Zhipingfang's investors include financial and industrial funds like Dunhong Assets, Qiming Venture Partners, and SDIC Venture Capital.

Hanyang Technology recently announced the completion of a RMB 200 million financing round led by Yuan Tai Capital, with follow-on investments from multiple renowned industrial investors and financial institutions.

Industry rumors suggest that Zhongqing Technology has also completed a new round of financing worth hundreds of millions of yuan, primarily from the Middle East.

Business registration information reveals that new shareholders include Sailing Ltd, Stone Robotics L.L.C-FZ, and Guoxiang Capital.

Not long ago, Yunjin, a unicorn enterprise in the sweeping robot field, also completed a new round of financing worth hundreds of millions of yuan, with investments from two state-owned assets in Shenzhen and Wuxi.

In November last year, Yuanrong Qixing announced the completion of a USD 100 million C1 round of strategic financing, exclusively invested by a leading domestic OEM.

Huawei's subsidiary, Yingwang, announced consecutive investments from AVIA Technology and Thalys Auto, totaling RMB 23 billion, valuing it at RMB 115 billion, making it Shenzhen's largest newly-minted unicorn enterprise in recent years.

Conclusion:

Shenzhen's AI pioneer plan not only emphasizes the growth of enterprise numbers and industry scale but also underscores technological innovation, the implementation of application scenarios, and the enhancement of AI literacy among the public.

Coupled with its solid industrial foundation and policy support, Shenzhen is poised to become a benchmark city for global AI technology application and innovation by 2026.

Partial information sources: Investment Circle: "Shenzhen's Little Dragons Are Exploding", Jinjiao Finance and Economics: "In the Era of National Science and Technology, [Shenzhen Speed] is Soaring Again", Financial Gossip Girl Channel: "From [World Factory] to [Global Smart Manufacturing], Shenzhen is Still Leading", Chinaventure: "Shenzhen is Not Falling Behind", Yu Qian Industrial Economics Observation: "Shenzhen's Biggest Hidden Worry is Not Missing DeepSeek