China's tech hub unveils measures to boost innovation

The eastern Chinese tech city of Hangzhou, home to e-commerce giant Alibaba and rising AI star DeepSeek, has announced a series of measures to further elevate its status as a high-level innovation hub.

The measures are aimed at enhancing high-level innovation platforms, promoting the technology transfer and application, and strengthening the role of enterprises as the main drivers of technological innovation, Lou Xiuhua, head of the municipal bureau of science and technology, said at a press conference.

Among the measures is a partnership plan, which encourages collaboration between tech innovation platforms, universities, enterprises and industrial chains.

The city will accelerate its construction of facilities and foundational projects, such as large-scale models and computing power infrastructure. More computing power vouchers will also be allocated, Lou said.

Computing power vouchers are a government subsidy tool designed to help small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) access more computing resources at lower costs, aiming to promote innovative applications of AI technologies and digital transformation.

Additionally, Hangzhou will launch an "AI+" initiative to promote the integration and application of AI across industries. It will also introduce a reform related to the application of technological achievements, encouraging universities and research institutions to license their technological fruits to SMEs under a "use first, pay later" model.

Hangzhou, the capital of the economic powerhouse province of Zhejiang, has developed itself as an important hub in the internet and tech industries, driving advancements in e-commerce, AI and digital transformation.