Yi said in China it is used for building security and also to identify miners before they go underground. He's confident that Chinese airports will adopt iris recognition in the future, as concerns about public security increase.

"Our iris equipment is smaller in size, with lower energy consumption and more advanced technology. We're telling government bodies across the country we can build an iris recognition system for them," he said.

Their equipment is able to log into the iris database of police authorities, as it's on the list of their qualified iris recognition equipment suppliers.

The company is also developing a small device that can be connected to a smartphone for police and the military that can scan a person's iris and compare it with information in the database.

"China's iris recognition industry will occupy an important place in the world - its large population means a large iris database," Yi said.

Robot capsule

Optics Valley is also the birthplace of NaviCam, the world's first magnetically controlled robot capsule endoscope, which has the ability to precisely capture images of a patient's upper gastrointestinal system with a tiny camera.

The patient only needs to swallow the robot capsule and the entire checking process takes about 15 minutes.

The capsule is produced by Ankon Technologies, a high-tech medical device company in Optics Valley. Approved by the China Food and Drug Administration in 2013, the robot capsule is widely used in more than 100 hospitals and medical centers across China.

"It's a breakthrough for China's endoscope technology; as a comfortable and accurate method of gastric screening, it's able to diagnose cancer in the early stages," said Xiao Guohua, who cofounded the company in 2009.

Xiao said they have published a number of medical papers about NaviCam in international journals, and it has won praise from overseas experts for both research methods and clinical application. The capsule has been exported to countries including the United Kingdom and France and is being evaluated for approval by the Food and Drug Administration in the US.

Xiao attributed the company's success largely to the support of Optics Valley. In 2008, he came back to China to pursue the project because of the high labor cost in the US.

A year later, he was enlisted in the 3551 Optics Valley Talent Scheme and was allocated startup funding of 5 million yuan ($726,900).

"Industries like photoelectron, life sciences and healthcare are developing fast in Optics Valley. Its preferential policies and friendly environment are attracting various startups and talent from home and abroad," he said.

"Optics Valley is open-minded about innovation. As long as you have good ideas and products, you will realize your dream here."