State-owned enterprises' scientific and technological innovation achievements are remarkable! The State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission (SASAC) issues a global cooperation initiative focusing on the biotech industry | Focus on the Zhongguancun Forum

This report (chinatimes.net.cn) reporter Liu Yuru and Xu Yunqian, photography report from Beijing

On March 27, during the 2026 Zhongguancun Forum, at the “Enterprise Discovery and Invention Forum” themed “Strengthening Original Innovation, Opening a New Chapter in Biology,” Li Zhen, Deputy Director of the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission, disclosed a substantial “report card” on the technological innovation of central enterprises: In 2025, the R&D investment intensity of central enterprises reached 2.86%, surpassing one trillion yuan for four consecutive years; basic research investment exceeded 100 billion yuan for the first time, accounting for 9.4%; with 1.44 million R&D personnel, over 470 national-level R&D platforms have been established. In fields such as 6G, quantum communication, and controllable nuclear fusion, central enterprises have achieved a number of original and leading results.

While showcasing these achievements, Li Zhen issued three cooperation proposals to the global innovation community, focusing on the key areas of biotechnology and bio-manufacturing, to jointly promote new productive forces and high-quality development.

Hardcore “Report Card”: From Investment Breakthrough to Emergence of Results

In the past five years, central enterprises have continuously increased their investment in technological innovation, showing a distinct characteristic of “simultaneous increase in quantity and quality.”

In terms of investment, by 2025, the R&D investment intensity of central enterprises reached 2.86%, maintaining a scale above one trillion yuan for four consecutive years, meaning that central enterprises have allocated more than one-third of the total national R&D expenditure annually for R&D. Even more noteworthy is that the basic research investment of central enterprises has for the first time surpassed 100 billion yuan, with the proportion rising to 9.4%. This proportion is 2.4 percentage points higher than the national average of 7%, marking that central enterprises are accelerating their leap from “application development-type” innovation to “source originality-type” innovation.

In terms of talent, central enterprises have gathered 1.44 million R&D personnel, establishing over 470 national-level R&D platforms. Under the promotion of the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission, several central enterprises have established a “R&D reserve fund system” to ensure the stability and sustainability of innovation investment; at the same time, through mechanisms such as “revealing the list and appointing leaders” and “horse racing system,” they have greatly stimulated the innovative vitality of researchers.

In terms of results, the breakthroughs of central enterprises in frontier fields are remarkable. Li Zhen introduced at the forum that central enterprises have achieved a number of original and leading results in fields such as 6G, quantum communication, and controllable nuclear fusion. These results not only represent the highest level of Chinese technology but also have formed competitiveness on a global scale.

Taking 6G as an example, central enterprises such as China Mobile, China Telecom, and China Unicom have collaborated with universities and research institutes, achieving significant breakthroughs in key technologies such as terahertz communication, intelligent ultra-surfaces, and the integration of space and ground, driving China’s 6G patent application volume to maintain a global lead. In the field of quantum communication, the “Quantum Secret Communication” users constructed by China Telecom in collaboration with Keda Guandun have surpassed one million, and quantum communication metropolitan networks have been established in Hefei, Shanghai, Beijing, and other places, pushing quantum technology from laboratories to commercial use. In the field of controllable nuclear fusion, China National Nuclear Corporation’s “China Fusion Engineering Test Reactor” has repeatedly refreshed plasma operation parameters.

In addition, innovation collaboration continues to deepen, with central enterprises forming 24 innovation alliances, attracting over 100 innovative entities to tackle more than 1,000 projects together; leading the establishment of five international scientific organizations, and deeply participating in international large-scale scientific programs and projects. Emerging industries are accelerating, with central enterprises implementing industry renewal actions and future industry launch actions, resulting in five trillion-level scale industries including a new generation of information technology, with nearly 300 billion yuan invested in future industries over the past three years, rapidly forming overall development momentum.

Issuing a “Cooperation Invitation” to the World

While showcasing achievements, Li Zhen turned his gaze to the future. He clearly stated that biotechnology and bio-manufacturing are key areas of the new round of technological revolution and industrial transformation, as well as an important direction for central enterprises to cultivate new productive forces.

Around this field, Li Zhen proposed three initiatives: First, jointly strengthen original innovation, laying a solid technological foundation for the deep integration of technological innovation and industrial innovation. State-owned central enterprises are willing to work with global innovative forces to bravely explore uncharted territories of technological innovation, distilling fundamental scientific problems in the development and engineering practice of the bio-manufacturing industry from “0-1,” and to strengthen basic research and forward R&D from “0-1,” jointly carrying out fundamental and cutting-edge common technology research in the field of biotechnology, to solve health issues, resource bottlenecks, and environmental crises facing humanity with high-quality technological supply.

Second, jointly play a leading role, grasping the core keys to the deep integration of technological innovation and industrial innovation. State-owned central enterprises are willing to work with global innovative forces to focus on the forefront of biotechnology and emerging industrial development, leveraging demand-driven roles, deepening collaboration with domestic and foreign universities, research institutions, state-owned enterprises, and private enterprises, establishing joint R&D centers, promoting deep empowerment of scientific research through artificial intelligence, forming an open cooperation pattern of shared demand, shared technology, shared results, and shared talent cultivation, driving high-level innovation through high-level cooperation, and jointly addressing global scientific and technological challenges.

Third, jointly promote the conversion of results, smoothing the implementation path for the deep integration of technological innovation and industrial innovation. State-owned central enterprises are willing to work with global innovative forces to proactively connect with conversion needs, jointly build conversion platforms, accelerate the improvement of conversion mechanisms, better leverage market size and application scenario advantages, speed up technology application and iteration upgrades, allowing more biotechnology results to transition from laboratories to production lines, converting into tangible productive forces for the bio-industry, creating incremental markets for the global economy, and providing development opportunities.

During the “14th Five-Year Plan” period, Beijing’s GDP has continuously crossed two major thresholds of 4 trillion and 5 trillion yuan, ranking first globally in research city rankings, and has developed into a major source of domestic independent innovation and original innovation.

Beijing Vice Mayor Sun Shuo stated that the city is fully committed to building an international science and technology innovation center in the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region, with biotechnology and bio-manufacturing as key future industries. Further deepening collaborative innovation and industrial synergy, with a focus on the following three aspects: First, enhancing the innovative capacity at the source. We will fully leverage Beijing’s advantages in basic research and original innovation, deeply implement basic research actions, and promote the layout of various scientific and technological platforms of national laboratories in the field of biological frontiers; Second, accelerating the application of results. We will encourage leading enterprises in biology, chemistry, and materials from both domestic and overseas to establish synthetic biology R&D centers in Beijing, deepen industry-academia-research cooperation and new business cultivation, and promote relevant regions and social capital to establish investment funds for synthetic biology manufacturing. We encourage central enterprises, private enterprises, universities, and institutions to jointly build innovation alliances, promoting major scientific and technological achievements to be first transformed and industrialized in Beijing; Third, optimizing the industrial development pattern. We will continue to leverage the synergistic advantages of industries such as new materials and new generation information technology, expanding application scenarios of bio-manufacturing in fields such as pharmaceuticals and health, green energy, advanced materials, and consumer goods. Support the construction of specialized parks and characteristic bases to attract global high-end resources, vigorously cultivate leading enterprises in the chain, specialized and innovative enterprises, and technology-leading enterprises, forming an industrial pattern of integrated innovation among large, medium, and small enterprises, and coordinated development along the industry chain.

Editor: Xu Yunqian Chief Editor: Gong Peijia

Massive information and precise interpretation, all available on the Sina Finance APP