A view of Hong Kong-ZhuhaiMacao Bridge Photo: VCG

Editor's Note: 
This year marks the fifth anniversary of the unveiling of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area Development Plan. The Chinese government unveiled its blueprint to turn the Greater Bay Area (GBA) into a role model of high-quality development, an international first-class bay area and a world-class city cluster. 
The GBA is well on its way to shaping the future of high-quality development and driving sustainable economic growth. As one of the most economically open and vibrant areas in China, the region is at the forefront of China's reform and opening-up and technological innovation. It has developed from the world's factory into a world-class financial and innovation hub. The Global Times looks at the region's progress in meeting targets set for it, how different cities are vying to attract foreign enterprises, investing in research and development, achieving sustainable development and more.


Located along China's southern coast, the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area (GBA) is emerging as a leading global technological hub. The GBA has forged its own path of innovation, with a clear focus on cutting-edge technologies and key development areas such as the low-altitude economy, artificial intelligence (AI), humanoid robots, autonomous driving and quantum computing, to name a few.

In recent interviews with the Global Times, scientists, experts and industry players in the region hailed the GBA as "a hotbed of innovation" that will compete with major global tech hubs like New York and Silicon Valley in the US, as well as Tokyo-Yokohama in Japan.

The GBA, with a population of over 80 million, possesses all the elements required to become an international innovation and technology hub. It is known for its youthful population, high level of education, abundant talent pool, and significant capital input. With top-notch infrastructure , it boasts unparalleled global connectivity and access to professional services, they said.

By combining the strengths of each city to facilitate trade and growth, the GBA has the potential to be a powerhouse of innovation and entrepreneurship that will be comparable to or even surpass leading bay areas across the globe, they noted.

New quality productive forces

When the Global Times reporters stand in front of an electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft closely, the first impression is that it is a modern helicopter. Except for a large screen showing information about the aircraft and a map, there seems to be no additional instruments, a simple sign that shows its simplicity and maneuverability.

An electric vertical takeoff and landing aircraft is displayed at the EHang Holding in Guangzhou, South China's Guangdong Province on July 18, 2024. Photo: Tu Lei/GT

Guangzhou-based EHang Holdings, a Chinese urban air mobility technology platform company, obtained a production certificate for its EH216-S eVTOL aircraft from the Civil Aviation Administration of China, a world first, in April. 

Although the eVTOL has not yet entered the commercial operation stage, it has already received many overseas orders from Saudi Arabia, Indonesia and Malaysia, He Tianxing, vice president of EHang Holdings, told the Global Times.   

The key direction of the industrialization of the low-attitude economy is manned travel and logistics transportation and the cities of the GBA have their potential, He said.  

The low-altitude economy, which is key in nurturing new quality productive forces and a new growth engine, was written into the Government Work Report for the first time during this year's "two sessions."

He said that developing a low-altitude economy is the consensus of many Hong Kong politicians, with some of them saying that the city should make good use of the industrial advantages of the GBA, learn from the experience of relevant cities and accelerate the development of the low-altitude economy.

The GBA is well on its way to shaping the future of technology and driving sustainable economic growth, with Shenzhen's Hetao serving as a prime example of the GBA's continuous innovation efforts. 

Shenzhen-based startup Corerain Technologies Co, founded in 2016, is at the forefront of AI chip technology. The company claimed that it launched the world's first commercial AI chip based on streaming architecture, called Custom Artificial Intelligence Streaming Architecture, in 2020, and the chip has been used in the markets of smart cities and intelligent manufacturing.

The US' further tightened export restrictions on AI-related products to China has pushed domestic companies to seek alternative technological pathways, presenting both challenges and opportunities that have driven innovation in the tech sector, Wang Shaojun, COO of Corerain Technologies, told the Global Times.

Over the past five years, a batch of world-class major scientific and technological infrastructure and high-end scientific research resource clusters have been rapidly taking shape in the GBA.

At present, the GBA in China leads the world in patent capabilities among the four major bay areas, establishing itself as a global technology leader in electronics, information technology, software, and pharmaceuticals, and serving as a key hub for global technological innovation, the Xinhua News Agency reported.

The Global Innovation Index 2023 published by the World Intellectual Property Organization has ranked the Shenzhen-Hong Kong-Guangzhou science and technology cluster second globally, a ranking it has achieved for four consecutive years. 

Attracting talent

Interviewees from various industries and the experts also highlighted the importance of talent, noting that with supportive national and local policies, an improved research environment, and comprehensive services for talent, the GBA is becoming a preferred destination for professionals and researchers.

The GBA is uniquely positioned to thrive in the new era of technological revolution and industrial transformation due to its diverse scientific and technological innovation resources and tech talent pool from Chinese mainland cities, as well as Hong Kong, and Macao, Qin Ling, director of the Chinese University Hong Kong-Shenzhen Innovation and Technology Research Institute in Futian, Shenzhen, told the Global Times.

This convergence of talent and expertise creates a fertile environment for cutting-edge technological innovation to flourish, Qin added. 

Qin's research institute, focused on research in a variety of fields, including robotics, AI and medical services, is located in the Hetao Shenzhen-Hong Kong Science and Technology Innovation Cooperation Zone (HTCZ). 

The HTCZ, situated on the border between Shenzhen and Hong Kong, is a pioneering zone facilitating technological collaboration between the two cities and acts as a hub for the transformation of technological achievements within the GBA. 

Liu Nianqiu, vice-president of the Hetao-based DeepRoute.ai, a company that focuses on smart driving, said that the GBA offers unique advantages for the development and application of AI in China. The area's complete industrial chain, diverse application scenarios, and strategic geographical location have made it a dream location for the company.

Having spent two years working in the Silicon Valley in the US after graduating from a university in Southwest China's Sichuan Province, Liu decided to pick the GBA as his next stop. 

"I think Shenzhen is a more vibrant and younger city with more opportunities, where I can display my talent. The Chinese autonomous driving market is huge," Liu said.  

In July 2021, DeepRoute.ai became the first company in China to operate robotaxi services in the central business districts of Shenzhen. That year, the company released a cost-effective, mass-production-ready solution, priced at $3,000, that meets automotive-grade standards, making it the first such solution in the industry. 

At present, DeepRoute.ai has accumulated over 15 million kilometers of road testing in China with zero accidents, according to the company. 

"We look forward to providing low-cost and high-performance intelligent driving solutions for the automotive industry and accelerating the mass production of high-level intelligent driving," Liu said.

Hong Kong's young talent and innovation ecosystem also play a crucial role in the story. 

The advancement of technological innovation provides these talent with limitless opportunities. They're unique in that they're part of China, while maintaining an international perspective. Their innovative spirit and global vision will breathe new life into the GBA's technological development, Guo Yike, provost of the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, told the Global Times.

Hong Kong's strengths in talent, international connections, and innovation ecosystem are key factors driving technological advancement and industrial development in the GBA and beyond, Guo said, adding that the city's competitive edge in AI is particularly evident in its ability to attract top talent and foster a globalized environment conducive to innovation.

The GBA presents unique and valuable development opportunities, Qin said. "By leveraging the strengths of top universities in Hong Kong in innovation and research exploration, and combining them with the Chinese mainland's expertise in transforming and commercializing research results, we can achieve significant advancements in fields such as biomedical engineering," he added.

The interviewees said that the GBA provides comprehensive and full-industrial chain services to talent, and it can be said that the GBA has competitiveness that is "comparable" to world-class bay areas.

Synergy impact builds world-class GBA

Over the past five years, major breakthroughs have been made in the GBA. Official data shows that the total economic output of the GBA exceeded 14 trillion yuan ($1.97 trillion) in 2023, up from 10.8 trillion yuan in 2018, achieving one ninth of China's total output with less than 0.6 percent of the national territorial area. 

Since Chinese authorities unveiled the outline development plan for the GBA, the annual R&D investment intensity into the region has exceeded the 2.8 percent threshold of innovative countries, and has increased year after year. 

As the GBA continues to break new ground in technology and innovation, its influence is expected to ripple across the globe, making it a key player in shaping the future of the tech industry. With its strategic vision, collaborative spirit, and relentless pursuit of excellence, the GBA is poised to become the world's next great innovation engine, industry players said.

Yu Dapeng, a Shenzhen-based quantum scientist, told the Global Times that Shenzhen, a city that has rapidly evolved from a fishing village into a demonstration area, is now a powerhouse in quantum computing and other advanced technology. The city's remarkable growth and innovation are a testament to its unwavering drive and potential.

Meanwhile, the integration of Hong Kong and Macao into the GBA has strengthened the region's position as a global financial and innovation hub, attracting international businesses and talent and offering a unique combination of expertise from Hong Kong's financial sector and the innovation capabilities of South China's Guangdong Province, Lin Hanming, a professor at the Chinese University of Hong Kong, told the Global Times.

The State Key Laboratory of Agrobiotechnology in the Chinese University of Hong Kong, on July 15, 2024 Photo: Zhang Weilan/GT

The recently released communique from the Third Plenary Session of the 20th Communist Party of China Central Committee laid out an unequivocal commitment to comprehensively deepening reform to advance Chinese modernization.

On the science and tech front, the communique includes a call to cultivate national "innovative capabilities" and encourage "first-rate foreign universities of science and engineering to develop partner schools and programs in China."

China will strive for revolutionary breakthroughs in deepening scientific and technological structural reform and achieve greater self-reliance and strength in science and technology, it said.