Shenzhen mayor outlines city's sci-tech progress during 14th Five-Year Plan period

A Shenzhen press conference on Thursday outlined the city's progress in building a world-class scientific and technological innovation hub during the 14th Five-Year Plan period (2021–25), highlighting rapid growth in research investment, industrial upgrading, and emerging technologies.

Mayor Qin Weizhong said that the city has focused on building an innovation-driven development model and strengthening its talent and research ecosystem. As a result, Shenzhen's total R&D spending rose from 151.08 billion yuan ($21.5 billion) in 2020 to 245.31 billion yuan in 2024, with an average annual increase of 12.9 percent, ranking second nationwide in total volume.

R&D intensity reached 6.67 percent, the highest among Chinese cities, with enterprises accounting for over 93 percent of total R&D investment. Shenzhen, home to technology giant Huawei, has long maintained a leading national position in the country in terms of total volume, Qin said.

The city has ranked first among Chinese cities in the number of PCT international patent applications for 22 consecutive years. The full-time equivalent of research and experimental development personnel reached 474,000 person-years, also the highest nationwide.

Qin said breakthroughs in core technologies are accelerating across multiple fields, including high-end chips, semiconductor equipment, precision instruments, industrial software, and advanced materials. At the same time, domestic operating systems and AI hardware-software ecosystems are developing rapidly, supporting the growth of new quality productive forces.

Manufacturing remains the foundation of Shenzhen's economy, Qin said, as the city works to build a more internationally competitive modern industrial system. Over the first four years of the 14th Five-Year Plan, the added value of Shenzhen's strategic emerging industries grew by over 10 percent annually on average, making up 42.3 percent of its GDP.

Eleven large industrial projects, each exceeding 10 billion yuan, have been completed and put into operation. Advanced manufacturing and high-tech manufacturing contributed 68.2 percent and 58.2 percent, respectively, to the added value of above-scale industries.

Shenzhen now accounts for more than 10 percent of China's total output in 39 categories of industrial products, including integrated circuits, industrial robots, and smartphones. Consumer drones, panoramic cameras, sports earphones, 3D printers, and electric-assist bicycles are now selling well worldwide, Qin said.

Shenzhen's GDP grew from 2.78 trillion yuan in 2020 to 3.68 trillion yuan in 2024, posting an average annual growth rate of 5.5 percent and leading China's first-tier cities in growth pace.