Now we turn to Shanghai. The city has witnessed a series of major scientific and technological breakthroughs in recent years as it promises to become a top global innovation center. Its achievements are tied to a series of reforms in science and technology. Reporter Wu Bin heads to the leading center of innovation in the city to find out more.

This is something called a light stage, a scanning system widely used to make digital figures. With over 30,000 LEDs, it can simulate various lighting situations and make the digital figures more real. It's one of the most advanced light stages in the world, and was built by a company incubated by ShanghaiTech University.

38-year-old Shi Zhiru was a professor at the university. Six years ago, with the support of the university, he started his own artificial intelligence company. The location he chose is Zhangjiang, the center of innovation in Shanghai.

SHI ZHIRU, Vice President, Dgene Inc. "For me, Zhangjiang is for China what Silicon Valley is for the United States. This place has gathered a large number of young people who come here in order to pursue their dreams, technical ambitions, or entrepreneurial aspirations."

The development of Zhangjiang started in the 1990s. It was given many green lights by the city government to attract the country's brightest young minds. Now, among the over 500-thousand employees working here, over 80-percent are young talents. And over 60-thousand of those talents are foreigners and people like Shi, who have studied abroad and returned to China.

When visiting Zhangjiang in 2023, Chinese President Xi Jinping emphasized the need to nurture talents. He urged Shanghai to focus on training a large number of gifted youth who have a strong sense of duty, and create favorable conditions to unleash their abilities and knowhow.

One way of attracting fresh young talents has been to lower the barriers that would allow them to settle in the city, as it normally takes between five to seven years for outsiders to gain permanent residence under the country's "Hukou" system.

SHI ZHIRU, Vice President, Dgene Inc. "For example, as a key enterprise in Zhangjiang Science City, some of our R&D personnel and young people can get permanent residence in just one or two years after graduation."

This is just one example of the efforts to develop the local science and technology sector. In 2012, China decided to adopt a new development strategy that prioritizes innovation, to increase the country's competitiveness.

The goal was that by 2020, China would develop an institutional environment as well as policy and legal systems for innovation-driven development.

WU BIN, Shanghai "In 2015, China listed 143 reform tasks aiming to develop an innovation-driven scientific system. The tasks were completed at the end of 2020, but China's efforts at deepening scientific reforms are unstoppable."

At the annual National Science and Technology Award Conference held in Beijing this June, President Xi Jinping said there are still some weak spots in scientific and technological development.

He called for deepening the comprehensive reform of sci-tech systems and mechanisms, and further unleashing innovation. One aspect of the reforms is the impact on the evaluation system for some researchers. 

To understand this, we went to the Tsung-Dao Lee Institute of Shanghai Jiao Tong University. It was established in 2016 after Nobel laureate Tsung-Dao Lee proposed it to President Xi. The institute produced an innovative evaluation system, granting more autonomy to researchers. The evaluation of researchers in the institute does not depend on the number of papers published, but their academic influence.

LIU JIANGLAI, Deputy Director, Tsung-Dao Lee Institute, Shanghai Jiao Tong University "Researchers are supposed to produce a number of masterpieces in the international academic field over the span of six years, masterpieces that make their academic peers feel they are of high value. In that case, it is not about how many papers you publish, but rather that your work is internationally recognized."

By unleashing researchers from rigid requirements, it resulted in outstanding performances. The institute now publishes around 100 papers in world-leading journals, such as Nature, Science, and Physical Review Letters. This, according to director Liu, is the result of returning to the true nature of academic research.

WU BIN, Shanghai "Nowadays, when you walk through the streets of Zhangjiang there are so many high-tech firms and research institutes around, and the vibrancy of the place is clear. The area is home to half of the city's high-tech companies, and 80-percent of the companies listed on the Science and Technology Innovation Board."

With the integration of industry, universities and research, Zhangjiang has transformed innovation into real productivity. In 2023, Zhangjiang Science City's revenue for its major firms reached 9.6 trillion yuan, more than 1.3-trillion US dollars. It has formed three major sectors of growth – integrated circuits, bio-medicine, and what Mr. Shi is working on  artificial intelligence.

He's now leading his team to work on digital twin cities, involving 3D models that use real-time data and AI to manage the city in a faster and smarter way. And with a rapidly evolving innovation environment, Shi says China is the best place for researchers to achieve their dreams. Wu Bin, CGTN, Shanghai.