Innovation flows in the air of Xiong'an, deputies say

Xiong'an New Area in Hebei province is developing into a hotbed of innovation and a fertile ground for entrepreneurship in the new era, the province's top authorities said on Thursday.

Ni Yuefeng, a deputy to the National People's Congress and secretary of the Hebei Provincial Committee of the Communist Party of China, expanded on the comments during the Hebei delegation's open media day at the ongoing two sessions.

"We pursue innovation with innovative thinking, strengthen the institutional supply in new fields and emerging sectors and strive to make the very air of Xiong'an filled with the flavor of innovation," he said.

Xiong'an lies roughly 100 kilometers southwest from downtown Beijing. According to Ni, it is cultivating innovation chains led by relocated central State-owned enterprises.

Xiong'an's most important development task since its establishment about eight years ago has been taking on functions transferred from Beijing that are not essential to its role as a capital, including housing enterprise headquarters.

According to Ni, China Satellite Network Group officially became the first central SOE headquarters to operate in Xiong'an in October.

"Seizing this opportunity, we established the China Aerospace Information and Satellite Network Innovation Alliance, forming the first main innovation chain in the area," Ni said, adding that it has attracted over 60 related enterprises.

In total, Xiong'an has attracted over 300 branches of central SOE and more than 1,200 supporting units relocated from Beijing, according to Zhang Guohua, also an NPC deputy from Hebei and secretary of the CPC Working Committee for Xiong'an New Area.

He added that other innovation chains, including new materials and artificial intelligence, are also gathering in the area and developing at an accelerated pace.

Such industries are dubbed future industries in Hebei, a province historically pillared by traditional industries. Steel, equipment manufacturing and petrochemicals have accounted for a relatively large proportion of its economy.

"We will promote the accelerated layout of future industries in the province and give full play to the leading role of Xiong'an New Area in innovation," said Wang Zhengpu, governor of Hebei and another NPC deputy.

According to Wang, Hebei has adhered to using artificial intelligence to empower industrial development. The province has developed multiple application scenarios of large vertical AI models in 24 fields, including pharmaceuticals and chemicals.

Hebei's plans include strengthening its cutting-edge technology development and formulating implementation outlines for technological innovation in future industries.

"Relying on the advantages of Xiong'an as an innovation highland, we will further foster and expand industries such as aerospace information, satellite network and green hydrogen energy," Wang said.

He added that promoting the transformation and upgrading of industries and realizing the conversion of old and new drivers of growth are the keys to the province's high-quality development.

"We take key enterprises as the starting points for transformation and upgrading and earnestly promote intelligent transformation and digital transformation," he said.

According to Wang, by the end of last year, high-end steel accounted for 22 percent of the total steel output in the province. The added value of high-end equipment increased by 9.8 percent, and the added value of the green chemical industry grew by 12 percent.