THE stage is set for the 26th China Hi-Tech Fair (CHTF), the country’s premier showcase of cutting-edge technology. Scheduled to commence at the Shenzhen World Exhibition and Convention Center in Bao’an District today, the tech extravaganza will run through Saturday. Hailed as China’s No. 1 tech fair, it is poised to gather over 5,000 renowned enterprises and international organizations from more than 100 countries and regions, concentrating the world’s cutting-edge technologies under one roof. The fair is anticipated to attract approximately 180 Fortune Global 500 firms, prominent State-owned enterprises, over 1,000 publicly listed companies, more than 2,000 high-growth gazelle and unicorn companies, as well as 500,000 professional attendees, according to the fair’s organizing committee. A grand tech showcase This year, the CHTF is focused on fields that are about to undergo significant changes, such as equipment or technology of significant strategic importance to national security, economic development, and technological innovation, electronic information, artificial intelligence (AI), green energy, and life sciences. Through professional exhibition area planning, new products and technologies from these fields are being showcased to comprehensively reflect the major achievements of China’s new quality productive forces in various subsectors. The 26th CHTF also has exhibition areas for 17 major industries and 22 professional exhibitions, marking the highest level of specialization in the history of the fair. The exhibition areas encompass international science and technology, provincial and municipal science and technology, equipment of significant strategic importance, technology giants and industrial chains, specialized and sophisticated companies and high-quality productive forces, AI and robotics, electronic information and big data, clean energy, high-end equipment manufacturing, biotechnology and high-end medical equipment, innovation and financial services, energy conservation, environmental protection and low carbon, international environmental water affairs, civil engineering and intelligent construction, semiconductor-based displays and integrated circuits, smart agriculture and digital countryside, new energy industry, the low-altitude economy and aerospace, intelligent transportation and logistics technology innovation, future technology and smart cities, new materials, and industry-education integration. The number of exhibitors has also achieved an unprecedented milestone by reaching a new historical peak. Participants from various provinces, municipalities, and regions, including Shanghai, Tianjin, Guangdong, Jiangxi, Hubei, and Heilongjiang, have joined the event. More than 100 esteemed universities and institutions such as Tsinghua University and Peking University will also be present. Meanwhile, this year’s CHTF has forged a comprehensive global network for technological collaboration, drawing in a multitude of State-owned enterprises and leading high-tech firms. Notable participants include the China National Petroleum Corp., China State Shipbuilding Corp., China Railway Signal & Communication, China Hualu Group, China Mobile, Commercial Aircraft Corp. of China, China General Nuclear Power Group, and ZTE. In addition, the fair has welcomed delegations from more than 30 countries and international organizations, such as Australia, Canada, Denmark, France, South Korea, the U.S., and the European Union, each showcasing their latest technological advancements. A global assembly for procurement As of Nov. 8, more than 30,000 domestic and international buyers have registered to visit the 26th CHTF, among which buyers from over 120 countries and regions will come to the fair to find suppliers, according to the fair’s organizing committee. It’s noteworthy that the total amount of the procurement list has exceeded 100 billion yuan (US$13.83 billion). The fair’s organizing committee also disclosed that more than 400,000 professional buyers worldwide have completed online pre-registration, and the number of professional procurement groups has reached over 1,200. Among them, professional procurement teams from Russia, Brazil, Greece, Singapore, five Central Asian countries, Iran, and other countries were organized by government officials. For example, the Russian delegation is led by the Government of the Nizhny Novgorod Region, with participation from CIPR and other Russian companies. The Brazilian delegation is led by the State of Mato Grosso, the Singapore delegation is led by the head of Singapore’s Cyber Security Agency and the Ministry of Digital Development and Information, and the Iranian delegation is led by government agencies such as the Iran Civil Aviation Organization and the Iran Space Research Center. Additionally, more than 32,800 institutions and organizations, including government and business associations, research institutes and universities, multinational corporations, and key enterprises from over 120 countries, including the U.S., Germany, the U.K., France, Canada, Japan, South Korea, Australia, Belgium, Pakistan, and the Czech Republic, have expressed their procurement needs, with an intended procurement amount exceeding 100 billion yuan. Many pre-registered procurement groups have clear procurement needs, with a wide and in-depth procurement scope covering key areas such as semiconductors and electronic information, new energy, high-end medical equipment, biotechnology, energy equipment, industrial equipment, automotive engineering, aerospace, and AI enabled robots, the fair’s organizing committee said. In particular, a Russian company expects to purchase equipment and technology in multiple fields such as energy, minerals, and civil engineering at the CHTF, with an intended procurement amount of up to 7.3 billion yuan. The fair has also attracted the attention of well-known investment and financial institutions at home and abroad, such as Morgan Stanley, Blackstone, Bain & Co., Goldman Sachs, Carlyle, Sequoia, IDG, and Shenzhen Capital Group. More than 3,000 internationally renowned investment institutions, including public and private equity funds, from around the world will gather at the fair to look for startups to provide with early-stage funding.(Zhang Yu) | 