Shanghai: Vigorously cultivate and develop future industries such as fourth-generation semiconductors.

The fourth session of the 16th Shanghai Municipal People’s Congress opened on the morning of February 3 at the Expo Center. Shanghai Mayor Gong Zheng delivered the Government Work Report. The report stated that this year, efforts will be made to advance the construction of Lingang Science and Technology Innovation City, accelerate the development of a number of high-level science and technology innovation communities, continuously enhance the capabilities of specialized industrial parks such as Oriental Chip Port and the Large Aircraft Park, and vigorously foster and develop emerging industries including brain-computer interfaces and fourth-generation semiconductors.

The report points out that we will vigorously foster and develop emerging industries such as brain-computer interfaces. Regarding the construction of a modern industrial system, Gong Zheng stated that we will continue to consolidate and strengthen the foundation of the real economy by steadily carrying out digital and intelligent technology upgrades and production-line modernization in sectors like petrochemicals and steel. We will also accelerate the implementation of a number of major industrial projects in fields such as integrated circuits, biopharmaceuticals, and artificial intelligence. Furthermore, we will actively support the development of industries including intelligent connected new-energy vehicles, the marine economy, the low-altitude economy, aerospace, and satellite internet, cultivate specialized digital industry clusters, and vigorously promote the expansion and quality improvement of the service sector, as well as its clustered development. Specifically in the field of artificial intelligence, the report mentions that this year we will deeply implement the “AI Plus” initiative, strengthen the deployment and construction of computing power infrastructure, industry-specific corpora, and domain-specific models, promote the widespread adoption of next-generation smart terminals and intelligent agents, speed up the intelligent transformation of key industries, add more than 50 advanced smart factories, and actively nurture new models and business forms that are natively intelligent. In addition, we will advance the construction of Lingang Science and Technology City, accelerate the development of a number of high-level science and technology communities, continuously enhance the capabilities of specialized industrial parks such as Dongfang Xinggang and the Large Aircraft Park, and vigorously foster and develop emerging industries like brain-computer interfaces and fourth-generation semiconductors.

Large-scale foreign-invested projects are being implemented in the telecommunications, healthcare, and cultural & tourism sectors. This year, we will put into practice the new version of the Catalogue of Industries Encouraging Foreign Investment, enhance the service capabilities for major foreign-invested projects, and guide and support foreign-invested enterprises to allocate more resources to advanced manufacturing, modern services, high technology, energy conservation, and environmental protection. We will also promote the implementation of a batch of foreign-invested projects in fields such as finance, telecommunications, healthcare, and cultural tourism, further elevate the capabilities of regional headquarters and R&D centers of multinational corporations, and better safeguard the legitimate rights and interests of foreign-invested enterprises.

The report also noted that this year, we will advance a strategy driven by major cultural industry projects, strengthen mechanisms for nurturing cultural enterprises, refine support policies for the development of cultural and creative parks and the integration of culture and technology, and continuously enhance the competitiveness of cultural industries such as film and television production, performing arts, creative design, and ultra-high-definition content. We will also foster and expand new cultural formats such as micro-short dramas and the metaverse.

This year, Shanghai’s GDP growth target is around 5%. Gong Zheng said that, taking into account various factors, the main projected targets for the city’s economic and social development this year are as follows: a GDP growth of approximately 5%; an increase of about 2% in local general public budget revenue; R&D expenditure across the entire society accounting for roughly 4.6% of the city’s GDP; an urban surveyed unemployment rate below 5%; per capita disposable income growth keeping broadly in sync with economic growth; and a rise in consumer prices of around 2%.

The “Draft Outline of the 15th Five-Year Plan for Shanghai’s National Economic and Social Development” sets forth ambitious goals for 2035. Building on the achievements of the 15th Five-Year Plan, Shanghai will strive for another five years of sustained effort, fully upgrading its “Five Centers” functions, reaching internationally leading levels in key development indicators, significantly enhancing its urban sophistication and core competitiveness, and doubling per capita regional GDP compared to 2020. By then, Shanghai will have essentially become a world-class, modern, socialist international metropolis with global influence.