Shenzhen News Net, 27 August: on 26 August, the 2026 Next-Generation Artificial Intelligence (Shenzhen) Entrepreneurship and Innovation Competition final was held in Shenzhen. After a full day of roadshows and judging, Weifan Intelligence beat 20 finalist teams to take the first prize. Wange Zhiyuan, Emi Process and Yigan Technology took second prize; Xinchen Qiyuan, Zhiyong Kaitu and Chenhunxian Technology, among six teams, took third; Hefei Xingzhi Intelligent Technology and ten others took the “Innovation Star” title.
The competition was hosted by the Shenzhen Cyberspace Administration and the Bao’an District People’s Government with NetEase Media, supported by the Shenzhen Industry and Information Bureau (AI Office) and Shenzhen Publishing Group. Since launch it drew nearly 300 projects, 20 reaching the final.
Weifan Intelligence co-founder and CEO Yin Jilei (right) received the first prize; second- and third-prize winners posed for group photos.
Versus last year, the event innovated in format and tracks and widened scope, drawing more mature enterprises and tech-innovation projects. Tracks covered AI large models and agents, AI infrastructure, AI hardware and embodied intelligence, and AI plus culture, from startups to big-tech internal projects, broadening the view with diverse AI scenarios.
Organisers said final projects showed clear features of China’s AI startup scene: first, embodied intelligence is now the most concentrated direction; second, AI for Science is rising, with teams applying AI to materials, drugs and industrial simulation; third, academicians and professors “personally entering the field”, nine teams led by such figures, six with Tsinghua backgrounds; fourth, 85 per cent are at seed to Pre-A stage; fifth, geographically Beijing and Shenzhen are the two innovation clusters, with two Hong Kong teams joining via a “Hong Kong R&D plus Shenzhen landing” model, a vivid example of Shenzhen-Hong Kong synergy.
The 20 teams pitched in turn. The jury of eight came from iFlytek Ventures, Alpha Startups, Chuangshi Partners, Songhe Capital, Xishan Angels, Kunzhong Capital, Shenzhen InnoAngel and Shenzhen Capital Group, questioning technology path, data source, business model and profit composition. Several founders said the exchange benefited them greatly.
NetEase Media’s Party secretary and vice-president Tian Hua said the contest aims not just to crown a champion but to surface real innovative potential and deeply connect entrepreneurs with capital and industry, helping strong AI forces reach bigger markets.
Today Shenzhen has over 2,600 AI scale enterprises, over 64,000 PFLOPS of built and building compute, issues RMB 500 million in compute vouchers, RMB 50 million in corpus vouchers and RMB 100 million in model vouchers yearly, and runs a RMB 5 billion AI-terminal fund and a RMB 10 billion embodied-AI fund, investing early and in hard tech, while opening nearly 300 “city plus AI” scenarios, building a full-cycle support system from “one desk to one floor”.
Bao’an District, the main bearer of the Qianhai expansion, holds 70 per cent of Qianhai’s area and its dual-tax benefits. Its GDP has passed RMB 543 billion, with over 7,400 high-tech enterprises, over 300 AI scale enterprises, over 500 million square metres of industrial space, over RMB 150 billion in fund matrix and a “1+3+1” policy system, opening scenarios territory-wide for fast landing.
NetEase Media CEO Li Li said Shenzhen is a “natural test bed” for AI hard-tech, with the world’s most complete electronics chain, active early-stage capital and open, tolerant industry policy.
The competition, held since 2023, has drawn nearly 1,000 projects over three years; over 60 per cent of prior winners completed new rounds, some taking four rounds within 14 months. Organisers call it “mining original tech, backing early teams” to bridge technology, capital and industry. A government-enterprise lunch was held the same day for teams, investors and local industry departments to connect.
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.