During the 2024 Zhongguancun Forum Annual Meeting, the Zhongguancun Exhibition Center's permanent exhibition has been revamped and is set to open to the public soon. The exhibition, themed around "Four Dimensions," features over 430 technologies and products from more than 320 research institutions and companies in Beijing, highlighting advancements in cutting-edge fields such as artificial intelligence, quantum information, commercial aerospace, life sciences, and synthetic biology. This comprehensive display showcases the progress and achievements of Beijing's international science and technology innovation hub. Some significant achievements unveiled or showcased at the 2024 Zhongguancun Forum Annual Meeting are being prominently featured here.
The Zhongguancun Exhibition Center's permanent exhibition, photographed by Tian Ruiying, covers an area of 10,000 square meters. It includes sections such as the entrance hall, "Forge Ahead in the Past Decade," focusing on cutting-edge global technology, the economic forefront, national major needs, people's health, and the coordinated development of the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region. The exhibition features 21 areas including basic research, large scientific instruments, artificial intelligence, integrated circuits, quantum information, commercial aerospace, brain science, synthetic biology manufacturing, showcasing Beijing's efforts to build an international science and technology innovation center, driving industrial innovation through technological advancements, fostering new productive forces, promoting high-quality development, and achieving significant results in the coordinated development of the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region.
Aiming at the forefront of global technology, original innovation continues to break through. On February 26, 2014, General Secretary Xi Jinping emphasized during his inspection in Beijing the importance of upholding and strengthening the core functions of the capital as the national political center, cultural center, international communication center, and science and technology innovation center.
Under the theme "Forge Ahead in the Past Decade," the Beijing International Science and Technology Innovation Center actively serves national strategies, shaping core advantages in scientific and technological innovation. Achieving six "innovation leaps" and ranking among the top globally, Beijing has transformed from a national science and technology innovation center to a key global hub for innovation.
Compared to 2014, by 2023, Beijing's key indicators in science and technology innovation have achieved six "innovation leaps." The number of invention patents per ten thousand people has increased by over four times, from 48.2 to 262.9; annual technology contract transactions have more than doubled, from 313.6 billion yuan to 853.69 billion yuan; the number of national high-tech enterprises has increased by over one time, from 10,400 to 28,300; the daily number of newly established technology-based enterprises has increased by over one time, from 146 to 337; the total revenue of enterprises in the Zhongguancun demonstration zone has increased by over one time, from 3.6 trillion yuan to 8.6 trillion yuan; and the value added of high-tech industries has increased by over one time, from 473.85 billion yuan to 1.1859 trillion yuan.
In 2023, Beijing has also achieved five "global leading" positions in science and technology innovation. Beijing has consecutively topped the global list of "Nature Index - Research Cities" for many years; the number of highly cited scientists in Beijing ranks first among global innovation cities; Beijing has ranked third globally for two consecutive years in the "International Science and Technology Innovation Center Index"; Beijing has consistently been at the forefront of the "Global Top 100 Science and Technology Innovation Clusters" list; and Beijing's overall research and development expenditure intensity has reached 6.83%, placing it at the forefront of internationally renowned innovation cities.
Behind these achievements lies Beijing's strong support for basic research. Focusing on the cutting-edge of global technology, Beijing has highlighted its leading actions in basic research.
According to officials from the Beijing Municipal Science and Technology Commission and the Zhongguancun Management Committee, Beijing's investment in basic research has reached 47.1 billion yuan, accounting for 16.6% of R&D expenditure, reaching the level of developed countries in innovation. Beijing's funding for basic research accounts for 23% of the national total.
To fully unleash the innovative vitality of researchers, Beijing has continuously explored reforms in the basic research system, achieving four pioneering initiatives nationwide: being the first to pilot companies investing in basic research to enjoy a 100% deduction of R&D expenses; being the first to implement a "lump sum + negative list" funding model for all types of projects under the Natural Science Foundation; being the first to establish a joint fund model with diverse investments; and being the first to set up undergraduate research initiation plans and international scholar collaboration projects in provincial natural science foundations nationwide.
Benefiting from Beijing's leading actions in basic research, internationally leading research results continue to emerge. The team led by Academician Fang Zhong from the Institute of Physics of the Chinese Academy of Sciences has computationally predicted several important topological states and their material systems, including quantum anomalous Hall insulators, Dirac semimetals, Weyl semimetals, and triple-degenerate fermions, leading international advancements and positioning China at the forefront in this field.
As silicon-based transistor technology approaches its physical limits, a method developed by the team led by Academician Peng Lianmao, Dean of the School of Electronics at Peking University, for controlling the performance of a single-layer semiconductor has overcome contact issues, surpassing the limits of silicon-based technology and becoming a target pursued by top research institutions.
The Great Scientific Instrument Exhibition
In the exploration of the unknown world, large scientific instruments play an extremely important role. Lu Fangjun, Deputy Director of the Bureau of Science and Technology Infrastructure of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, introduced that Beijing is the most concentrated area for large scientific instruments in the country. As one of the four comprehensive national science centers, the Huairou Comprehensive National Science Center in Beijing has now established multiple large scientific instruments, with four of them already in scientific operation.
The High-Energy Synchrotron Radiation Source is the flagship facility of the Huairou Comprehensive Science Center, expected to start emitting light by the end of this year and be completed next year. Once completed, it will be one of the world's brightest fourth-generation synchrotron radiation sources, capable of emitting light 10 trillion times brighter than the surface of the sun, and will be widely used in research fields such as life sciences and materials.
A dazzling Earth System Numerical Simulation Device catches the eye, being the first large scientific instrument established in Huairou. It mainly studies the interactions of different layers of the Earth, exploring the physical, chemical, and biological processes within them, enhancing China's voice in Earth system science, especially in the field of global climate change research.
Aiming at the forefront of world technology, the Beijing Institute of Quantum Information Science has completed the construction of a large-scale quantum cloud computing cluster, with comprehensive indicators entering the international first echelon; the Zhongguancun Broadband Mobile Communication Technology Innovation Application Research Institute has completed the prototype of a semi-static RIS wireless control system, which will effectively reduce the complexity of RIS deployment in existing networks and enhance network optimization efficiency; and the Galaxy Aerospace has developed China's first flexible solar wing panel, conducting the first in-orbit verification of multi-star stacking launch technology in China, providing technical support for the rapid deployment of China's giant low-orbit communication constellation... A series of original and leading scientific and technological breakthroughs in quantum information and future communication frontiers are adding momentum to the construction of a world technology powerhouse.
Leading the direction of technological development to support the construction of a technology powerhouse
By promoting industrial innovation through technological innovation, Beijing is accelerating the development of new quality productivity and shaping new dynamics for the capital's development. Focused on key economic battleground sectors, it showcases Beijing's innovative achievements in areas such as commercial aerospace, new energy intelligent vehicles, synthetic biology manufacturing, robotics, intelligent manufacturing, and new materials.
Commercial Space Expo Tian Ruiying Photo
In January 2024, Beijing issued the "Accelerating Action Plan for Innovative Development of Commercial Aerospace," laying out the "Southern Arrow Northern Star" development pattern and achieving several firsts: Blue Arrow Aerospace's Zhuque-2 is the world's first liquid oxygen methane rocket to successfully enter orbit continuously, Star River Power completed the first private enterprise sea-based rocket launch, and Interstellar Glory's Hyperbolic-2 achieved the first domestic rocket reusable flight...
Zhang Changwu, Chairman of Blue Arrow Aerospace Space Technology Co., Ltd., introduced that the Zhuque-3 currently under development is a reusable stainless steel rocket. The cost of stainless steel tanks is 1/6 of traditional aluminum alloy, the production cycle is 1/5, and the theoretical design reusable lifespan is more than 10 times that of aluminum alloy. The Zhuque-3 first stage is designed for at least 20 reuses, with the first flight planned for next year. Launch costs can be reduced from around 60,000 RMB per kilogram for Zhuque-2 to below 20,000 RMB, providing more assurance for China's space transportation.
Zhang Changwu stated that although it is a very challenging path for private enterprises to develop rockets, the company's 9 years of development have also witnessed the intrinsic driving force of Beijing's technological innovation. "Through the development of low-cost reusable rockets, we will contribute to the construction of Beijing's commercial aerospace innovation highland."
In this exhibition area, various intelligent robots that attract attention for interaction include quadruped robots for special applications, humanoid rescue robots for firefighting and other special scenarios, as well as new energy intelligent vehicles brought by companies such as Ideal, Beiqi, and Xiaomi.
Facing the major national needs, Beijing takes the initiative to fight key core technology battles, support high-level technological self-reliance, and continue to invest in artificial intelligence, integrated circuits, Chang'an chain, biological breeding, hydrogen energy storage, green low-carbon, and other fields.
The series of large-scale cryogenic equipment developed by the Institute of Physical Chemistry of the Chinese Academy of Sciences for liquid hydrogen (minus 253°C), liquid helium (minus 269°C), and superfluid helium temperature zone (minus 271°C) has taken the lead in related international fields, forming the third pole of equipment R&D in the world, with overall technology reaching international advanced levels.
As the "chip" of agriculture, the development of the seed industry is also a key focus of Beijing's scientific and technological construction. Beijing focuses on building the "Agricultural Zhongguancun" and the "Seed Capital," cultivating a number of high-market-share major excellent varieties, comprehensively promoting the construction of the seed industry innovation highland and the innovative development of biological breeding. Multiple insect-resistant and herbicide-tolerant corn and soybean varieties developed by Beijing Dabeinong are actively contributing to the sustainable development of agricultural resources.
Serving the construction of Healthy China and promoting the coordinated development of Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei
Focusing on people's health and life, Beijing always insists on putting people at the center, implementing two rounds of accelerated collaborative innovation action plans for medicine and health, promoting rapid growth of the overall scale of the medical and health industry, and producing a number of important technological achievements.
Research in science and neuromorphic computing is currently an important frontier in international science. Facing the international trend of implantable brain-machine interfaces, with the support of Beijing, the Beijing Institute of Brain Science and Brain-like Research is leading the way, focusing on the semi-invasive collection of brain cortical electrical signals with "Beinao-1" and the invasive collection of single-neuron electrical signals with "Beinao-2."
Luominmin, the joint director of the Beijing Institute of Brain Science and Brain-like Research, stated, "Beinao-2" has successfully developed high-throughput flexible microelectrodes, a thousand-channel brainwave acquisition system, and real-time motion decoding algorithms, achieving, for the first time internationally, interception of movement targets by monkeys using intention.
In the explanatory video of "Beinao-2," when a monkey sees a cursor and wants to reach out to grab it, the system captures the signal and decodes it, thereby controlling the mechanical arm to track and grab the rotating target. Currently, the system has been stably implanted in the monkey's skull for nearly a year, solving the international frontier challenge of long-term stable recording of large-scale single-cell signals and real-time decoding.
In the exhibition area, the first surgical robot in the field of single-hole endoscopy developed by Beijing Shurui, which has been approved for market, can be used for urological laparoscopy and other surgical operations, providing patients with better minimally invasive surgery; Huake Precision's precise surgical robot for brain diseases can provide comprehensive solutions for preoperative image processing, path planning, etc., for major diseases such as brain tumors, refractory epilepsy, and cerebral hemorrhage... Innovative drugs and high-end medical devices, gene and cell therapy, brain science and neuromorphic research, and other industrial clusters are producing more and more technological innovations, forging a "healthy shield" for the people.
"Beijing, Tianjin, and Hebei are like petals on a flower, each different but all concentric." In addition to the four facing sectors, the exhibition also features a special Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei coordinated development section, showcasing Beijing's full play as an international center for scientific and technological innovation, solidly promoting the significant achievements made in the coordinated development of Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei over the past decade.
The hydrogen energy hybrid articulated light rail vehicle independently developed by Beijing Urban Rail Transit Technology Equipment Group and manufactured at the Hebei New Energy Intelligent Manufacturing Base is the "first domestic case" to achieve zero emissions, zero pollution, and medium-low capacity rail transit trains, widely applicable to suburban commuting, airports, tourist attractions, and other scenarios.
Over the years, Beijing, Tianjin, and Hebei have strengthened resource sharing and platform building, promoting the formation of a collaborative innovation model of "innovating and researching in Beijing, verifying and transforming in Tianjin and Hebei." The level of scientific and technological innovation and industrial integration development continues to rise. Compared to 2013, by 2023, the number of Zhongguancun companies setting up branches in Tianjin and Hebei has increased from 3,528 to 10,615; the number of technology contracts from Beijing to Tianjin and Hebei has increased from 3,176 to 6,758; and the transaction volume has increased from 7.12 billion RMB to 74.87 billion RMB... With joint innovation, new formats, new models, and new vitality in Beijing, Tianjin, and Hebei are bursting with new vigor.
