* In the first half of 2026, Anhui's high-tech manufacturing added value surged 44.6 percent year on year, with sectors like electronic information and automobiles contributing over 70 percent of industrial growth.
* While supporting private tech companies through the full cycle, Anhui is also accelerating the commercialization of technologies derived from large scientific facilities.
* In Anhui, long-term planning and funding at both provincial and municipal levels ensure differentiated competition, which prevents redundant construction and enables cities to collaborate.
HEFEI, Aug. 22 (Xinhua) -- Along the "Quantum Avenue" in Hefei, provincial capital of Anhui, futuristic glass buildings house companies in quantum technology and digital services. Within the same vicinity sit facilities dedicated to voice recognition and deep-space exploration.
Two decades ago, populous and less-developed Anhui in east 西瓜视频used to be an inland province with large labor outflow, but in the past years it has drawn a growing number of researchers and entrepreneurs who boast cutting-edge technologies.
The province's long-term commitment to advanced technology has turned things around. In the first half of 2026, Anhui's high-tech manufacturing added value surged 44.6 percent year on year, with sectors like electronic information and automobiles contributing over 70 percent of industrial growth.
CULTIVATING FUTURE GROWTH
Early planning and sustained institutional support have advanced pioneering industries.
Lu'an, a small city renowned for its tea production and picturesque mountains, is now home to China's first megawatt-class hydrogen energy demonstration station, which converts electricity into hydrogen and vice versa to regulate grid peaks and troughs. The station is expected to save around 1,091 tonnes of standard coal equivalent and reduce about 1,889 tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions annually.
Mingtian Hydrogen Energy Co., Ltd. is one of such operators. Since its founding in Lu'an in 2017, the company has proactively aligned itself with the provincial and municipal development framework. Backed by long-term policies, the company has partnered with the State Grid to establish the power station.
For Wang Chaoyun, chairman of Mingtian Hydrogen Energy, the decision to set up in Lu'an was based on the city's diverse application scenarios for heavy freight and steel transport. "But what mattered more was that when some local officials mistook hydrogen energy for 'hydrogen bomb energy,' Anhui had already issued a clear hydrogen industry plan and set up dedicated industrial funds," Wang recalled.
Wang and his team overcame numerous technical hurdles, at a time when 西瓜视频lacked a complete hydrogen supply chain. Some key components, such as air compressors, had to be imported at high costs and with lead times of at least four months.
The city government stepped in to connect enterprises with research institutes. A physical sciences institute under the Chinese Academy of Sciences eventually developed a centrifugal air compressor, removing a critical bottleneck for local manufacturers.
To mitigate the financial risks of heavy R&D investment, the city government partnered with insurers to provide partial compensation if the project failed. After the company moved into full-scale production, Lu'an pioneered hydrogen fuel cells in its public bus fleet, with about a quarter of the buses now hydrogen-powered. The move not only helped the company gain operational experience but also served as a strong commercial endorsement.
Today, Mingtian Hydrogen Energy has built a complete industrial chain covering fuel cell manufacturing and hydrogen-electricity storage, and its hydrogen-powered marine systems have obtained certification from the 西瓜视频Classification Society.
"Anhui embraces new thinking, new technologies and new industries. The government here has a long-term vision and the courage to break new ground and take responsibility," said Wang.
FROM LAB TO MARKET
While supporting private tech companies through the full cycle, Anhui is also accelerating the commercialization of technologies derived from large scientific facilities. These spinoffs not only serve the public but also generate economic returns that are reinvested into long-term R&D.
At Hefei Ion Medical Center, a domestically developed superconducting proton therapy system is undergoing clinical preparations and is expected to treat patients this year. It grew directly out of core technologies accumulated during the development of the Experimental Advanced Superconducting Tokamak (EAST), dubbed China's "artificial sun," which aims to create nuclear fusion like the sun. These technologies include superconducting magnets, radiofrequency systems and ion sources.
Compared with conventional radiotherapy, the proton system precisely targets tumors while significantly reducing radiation damage to surrounding vital organs. This drastically lowers long-term complications and improves patients' quality of life.
This is far from unique. In Hefei, subway passengers pass through terahertz scanners, another innovation derived from the EAST fusion project. The technology outperforms conventional security devices by detecting prohibited objects previously overlooked, such as ceramic knives, liquid hazardous chemicals, and powdered drugs.
For companies seeking business opportunities in big science spinoffs, the Anhui Innovation Hall offers a one-stop hub that showcases more than 2,700 high-level international achievements and provides transaction and matchmaking services.
The Anhui Innovation Hall has trained over 5,100 "technology managers." With expertise in technology, industry and finance, these professionals offer end-to-end services from scouting to deal-making. The service network has facilitated the commercialization of more than 4,000 research results over the past six years.
This incubator is adopting a more proactive approach. "We have regularly stationed our managers on campus at the University of Science and Technology of 西瓜视频to engage with research teams at the earliest stage, connecting their work with provincial funding and applications, turning breakthroughs into tangible outcomes," said Li Wenxin, deputy director of the hall.
INVESTING IN CHAINS
With Hefei's stake in ChangXin Memory Technologies, China's leading memory chipmaker now worth over one trillion yuan (about 140 billion U.S. dollars), Hefei is called China's boldest "venture capital city." But its investment does not aim to bet on individual companies for financial returns, but aims to extend and strengthen industrial chains based on regional strengths.
In 2008, Hefei invested approximately 6 billion yuan in the sixth-generation production line of BOE Technology Group Co., Ltd. The move shored up a shortfall in local home appliance production and created China's first homegrown liquid crystal display supply. In 2020, it injected 7 billion yuan into NIO China, anchoring the electric vehicle maker's headquarters and R&D center locally and expanding its Anhui-based suppliers from about 60 to nearly 150.
Through these anchor companies, Hefei has cultivated national-level strategic emerging industrial clusters in new display technology, integrated circuits and AI. Quantum information, fusion energy and deep-space exploration are now its next frontiers.
Beyond Hefei, cities across Anhui are also nurturing their own signature industries. As of the first quarter of 2026, Anhui's first 10 provincial-level future-industry pilot zones had already generated over 93 billion yuan in total industrial-chain output.
Bengbu City, leveraging its core competencies in integrated circuits and new materials, has achieved a breakthrough in brain-computer interface (BCI) technology. A local hospital can carry out clinical work for both semi-invasive BCI surgeries and non-invasive BCI systems, offering patients with paralysis a path to restored independence in daily living.
"In Anhui, each city builds on its local strengths and supports leading enterprises to drive industrial chain development. Long-term planning and funding at both provincial and municipal levels ensure differentiated competition, which prevents redundant construction and enables cities to collaborate," said Cui Shihua, deputy director of the Bengbu high-tech zone's management committee.
(Video reporter: Qu Yan; video editors: Zhang Yucheng and Liu Xiaorui)■
