I. Background of the Drafting of the Action Plan
Future industries are forward-looking emerging sectors driven by major scientific and technological innovations, representing the future direction of science, technology, and industrial development, and playing a supportive and leading role in the economy and society. Currently in their nascent stages or early phases of industrialization, these industries serve as an effective pathway to securing a leading position in the new round of technological revolution and industrial transformation. They are a key lever for implementing the innovation-driven development strategy and fostering new growth drivers, as well as a primary means of building new competitive advantages in the global arena.The Outline of the National 14th Five-Year Plan proposes fostering pioneering and pillar industries with a view to seizing the initiative in future industrial development. Proactively planning for future industrial development is a key measure for Shanghai to implement General Secretary Xi Jinping’s call to strengthen the “Four Major Functions”—particularly the functions of serving as a source of scientific and technological innovation and a leader in high-end industries. It is also a vital pathway to building a world-class industrial innovation hub and a center for scientific and technological innovation with global influence.
Based on technological maturity and industrial market prospects, and adhering to the principles of concentrating resources, rolling cultivation, and dynamic adjustment, we will drive technological breakthroughs toward industrialization and promote industrial development toward clustering to build future industry clusters. We propose to develop future industries across “five major directions and 16 fields,” including future health, future intelligence, future energy, future space, and future materials, to build future industry clusters.
II. Overall Considerations of the Action Plan
The Action Plan emphasizes three key considerations.
First, strengthen international openness and cooperation to serve national development strategies. Participate in the international strategic layout of future industries; in accordance with the national strategic requirements for the forward-looking deployment of future industries, build future industry clusters centered on key areas such as future health, future intelligence, future energy, future space, and future materials.
Second, actively addressing risks and challenges to enhance industrial resilience. As global issues such as biosecurity, industrial and supply chain security, food security, energy and resource security, cybersecurity, and urban operational security become increasingly prominent, we will leverage the predictive and early-warning capabilities of cutting-edge technologies, strengthen strategic planning in key sectors, and enhance development resilience, thereby offering proactive exploration and Shanghai’s insights for the global development of future industries.
Third, leverage Shanghai’s comprehensive strengths to strengthen its role as a source and leader of future industries. Relying on Shanghai’s advantages in science and technology innovation resources, industrial foundations, and application scenarios, we will focus on technological breakthroughs, industrial spatial layout, cultivation of enterprise leaders, open-source application of scenarios, leadership in future talent development, and optimization of the industrial innovation ecosystem to build a hub for future industry innovation.
III. Main Content of the Action Plan
(I) Positioning and Objectives for the Development of Future Industries
1. Development Positioning. Guided by the implementation of major national strategic tasks, we will coordinate the integration of science and technology with industry, balance immediate and long-term goals, and combine an active government role with an efficient market. Building on our industrial foundation and ecological advantages, we will strive to build a world-class innovation hub for future industries.
2. Development Goals. By 2030, a number of world-class breakthrough achievements, innovative enterprises, and leading talents will emerge in fields such as future health, future intelligence, future energy, future space, and future materials, with the output value of future industries reaching approximately 500 billion yuan. By 2035, several future industry clusters leading the global market will be established.
(II) Development Priorities
Combining cutting-edge industrial trends with the city’s industrial foundation, we will focus on developing fields such as brain-computer interfaces, biosafety, synthetic biology, and gene and cell therapy to build a future health industry cluster; focus on developing fields such as intelligent computing, general-purpose AI, XR technology, quantum technology, and 6G technology to build a future intelligence industry cluster; and focus on developing fields such as advanced nuclear energy and new energy storage to build a future energy industry cluster;Focus on deep-sea exploration and extraction, aerospace utilization, and other fields to build a future space industry cluster; focus on high-end membrane materials, high-performance composite materials, non-silicon-based core materials, and other fields to build a future materials industry cluster.
(3) Future Industry Promotion Plan
1. Future Technology “Foundation-Building Plan.” Plan to establish a number of future technology colleges to strengthen disciplinary development in higher education institutions and the cultivation of talent in cutting-edge technologies. Leverage the role of the Chinese Academy of Engineering’s Center for the Demonstration and Transformation of Achievements by Academicians and Experts to aggregate various innovation resources and build future industry research institutes. Develop innovation consortia, establish a number of future industry innovation centers, and strengthen multi-path exploration of cutting-edge technologies, cross-disciplinary integration, and the supply of disruptive technologies.We will improve the global innovation network by establishing a series of overseas technology transfer and commercialization nodes, as well as international technology transfer and innovation cooperation centers.
2. Future Layout “Pioneer Plan.” Plan pilot zones for future industries, focusing on areas such as Lingang, Zhangjiang, and Zizhu to create hubs for future industry clusters. Establish future industry accelerator parks, select several specialized parks to host future industries, leverage the role of future industry science and technology parks, and create a series of accelerators to drive the efficient commercialization of innovation outcomes. Create future industry testbeds, deploying benchmark demonstration scenarios such as future communities, future factories, future hospitals, future commerce, and future agriculture.
3. Future Partners “Hand-in-Hand Initiative.” Cultivate a group of industry-ecosystem-leading enterprises and encourage state-owned enterprises to strengthen their布局 in future industries. Foster a cohort of innovative benchmark enterprises, release a “Top 100 Hardcore Technology” ranking, and cultivate a group of “Future Stars” poised to lead in their respective niche sectors. Leveraging the “Pujiang Star” program, establish an integrated project identification and screening mechanism involving “scientists + entrepreneurs + investors.”
4. Future Scenarios “Open Source Initiative.” Release early-stage validation scenarios to study the feasibility of future technologies and accelerate “0-to-1” innovation breakthroughs. Release integrated testing scenarios to support enterprises and research institutes in jointly building pilot production bases and validation platforms, driving “1-to-100” industrial acceleration and incubation. Release comprehensive promotion scenarios to drive “100-to-1 million” explosive growth through large-scale demonstrations, accelerating application iteration and industrialization.
5. Future Talent “Goose Formation Plan.” Launch a series of global “open challenge” projects, fully empowering scientists with autonomy and decision-making authority to foster an environment conducive to free exploration. Attract top global talent, research teams, and innovative enterprises, and establish a market-oriented mechanism for sharing benefits and risks. Leverage platforms such as academician (expert) workstations and postdoctoral research stations to track future technological innovations and cultivate talent for future industries.
6. Future Ecology “Rainforest Plan.” Explore market-driven future industry guidance funds and encourage financial institutions to innovate in products and services. Promote the establishment of international industry organizations and support enterprises in participating in the formulation of future industry standards and specifications. Establish an intellectual property protection system for future industries, with a focus on data security, industrial security, and the development of ethical frameworks. Build cooperation and exchange platforms for future industries and host future industry competitions.
(IV) Strengthening Five Support Measures
First, strengthen organizational implementation by establishing and improving a municipal-level working mechanism for promoting future industries. Enhance municipal-level coordination, cooperation between ministries and the city, and collaboration between the city and districts, while reinforcing regional planning and the provision of essential resources. Second, strengthen strategic research by establishing an expert advisory group on future industry strategy under the Municipal Industrial Technology Innovation Strategic Advisory Committee, compiling a white paper on future industry development, and establishing a future industry promotion platform.Third, enhance policy support by researching and formulating supportive policies for future industry development, increasing the intensity of various specialized support measures, and intensifying efforts to promote innovative products and cultivate market demand.Fourth, strengthen reform and innovation by improving institutional frameworks to adapt to the technological evolution and industrial transformation of future industries. Appropriately relax market access for products and services in emerging fields; deepen policy innovations to reduce the burden on scientific research talent; accelerate the market-based allocation of resources; reinforce the role of enterprises as the primary drivers of innovation; explore land use models for future industries; and promote data openness and trading. Fifth, foster an enabling environment by vigorously cultivating an innovation culture that encourages innovation, tolerates failure, and respects talent and creativity.
