From 16 to 18 October, the Futian district of Shenzhen staged its first “Future Zhen Happens” science-and-technology lifestyle festival inside the Junshang shopping mall in Huaqiangbei. AI desktop plant pets, outdoor powered exoskeletons and interactive robot dogs filled the halls, as a cluster of tech firms turned a retail centre into a walkable street of future living.
Products that walk off the stage and into daily life
Unlike a conventional trade fair, the event was built around “a day in future life”, embedding smart products into everyday scenes so visitors could see applied artificial intelligence while they shopped. On the floor, an AI plant pet showed how smart hardware meets companionship, a powered outdoor exoskeleton demonstrated assisted movement, and robot-dog duels added a playful edge. From daily company to outdoor sport to leisure, the products were no longer exhibits behind ropes but new consumption content people could touch and try.
The organisers assembled Elephant Robot, Uxon Intelligent and Anjie Robot, among others, to show humanoid and service robotics through stage performances, street parades and human-machine interaction. For families, a youth AI challenge called “Future Zhen Happens, Smart Creation Cup” folded technology education into the mall’s public space. The event also launched a robot IP, “Xiaohang”, and used themed installations, merchandise and stamp-collection trails to link the experience zones.
Huaqiangbei’s consumer turn
The festival lands on a district already changing shape. As “China’s first electronics street”, Huaqiangbei carries a mature information-technology base and a deep pool of hardware supply. As AI, smart hardware and robotics accelerated, its retail content has stretched from trading electronics toward experience, trend consumption and leisure.
The shift is showing up in the numbers. According to the Huaqiangbei subdistrict office, during this year’s Dragon Boat holiday, sales of AI glasses, AI robots and AI drones rose across the markets and malls. Over the just-passed National Day break, Huaqiangbei’s daily footfall exceeded one million, up roughly 40 per cent on ordinary days, with dining and retail busy across complexes such as Junshang.
Junshang itself has been refreshing its space through themed exhibitions, pop-ups and trend experiences, and is building a walkway linking the centre to Shenzhen’s central park to blend commerce with public space. For Huaqiangbei, the pull of tech consumption is spreading from the electronics markets into malls, dining and leisure, knitting the traditional business district together with the technology industry.
As Shenzhen’s tech industry grows and new consumption scenes keep appearing, innovation walking into the mall and up to the consumer is becoming a small mirror of the district’s transformation.
Editor’s note: This is an adapted translation of the original Shenzhen News report. It has been trimmed and restructured for readability for an international business audience. The full original (in Chinese) is at https://www.sznews.com/news/content/2026-10/17/content_32194134.htm.