Shanghai has been focusing on the development of the integrated circuit (IC) industry in recent years, with IC enterprises in the city enjoying over 10 percent growth in sales revenue for six consecutive years, compared with a global 12.1-percent fall in semiconductor revenue during this same period.

Jiading district, a key supporting area for the Shanghai Technology Innovation Center and a pilot area for emerging industries, has recorded a 26.7 percent average annual growth rate in the IC and intelligent internet of things (IoT) industries, the district's two emerging industries, since 2015.

This achievement was mainly attributed to the district’s efforts to promote the IC and IoT industries, with a focus on smart sensors. Smart sensors, an important component of IoT, have been widely applied in high-tech fields such as smart driving, smart homes, industrial internet, and medical diagnosis.

"We have planned an area of three square kilometers to build a smart sensor industrial park," said Cai Ning, director of the Jiading District Economic Commission, at a press conference on Sept 8. "The National Intelligent Sensor Innovation Center, which opened in Jiading in 2018, can generate an output value of over 43 billion yuan ($6.3 billion) annually. It has set a 'small goal' of earning100 billion yuan in 2035," he added.

"What we are doing is turning scientists' ideas into reality," said an employee of the national intelligent sensor innovation center. The center plays a critical role in the smart sensor industrial chain and specializes in sensor design, advanced manufacturing, packaging, and testing, new materials, new technology, and new devices. It has attracted over 600 enterprises involved in the smart sensor industrial chain.

To help turn ideas into reality, Jiading is offering its full support to small and medium-sized technology enterprises, as well as to entrepreneurs with only an idea. The government provides talent and companies with one-stop services, helping them grow from a team to a startup, then a high-tech company.

In addition, Jiading is offering financial support to technology start-ups to help facilitate their development. Gao Xiang, head of the district, said that the district has offered over 1 billion yuan in loans to innovative enterprises in the past three years.

According to Gao, Jiading has more than 180 high-level talents, 20,000 sci-tech researchers, and 380,000 other talents, and the district is working to optimize its talent policies to attract even more talents.

Lu Fangzhou, Party secretary of the district, noted that Jiading has striven to become a science and technology city and transform itself into a hotbed for innovative technologies, a collection and distribution center for innovation resources, and an area for sharing innovations among cities in the Yangtze River Delta.