Young innovators are playing a vital role in accelerating Shanghai's transformation into a global hub for innovation and entrepreneurship.
The 6th Shanghai Y50 Forum for Innovation and Entrepreneurship was held at Shanghai Tower on May 10, under the theme "Thriving in Shanghai, Scoring New Height — Youth and Cities Grow Together".
The forum unveiled the Top 10 Young Tech Entrepreneurship Trailblazers of the year in Shanghai, selected for their impact in innovation, business, market performance and talent development.
It also announced the Top 10 Innovative Entrepreneurship Cases, spanning industries such as large AI models, biomedicine, cultural creativity and social services — highlighting the city's diverse innovation ecosystem.
To further nurture young talent, the Top 10 Innovation and Entrepreneurship Workshops were officially launched for the third consecutive year. Running from May to November, the workshops are open to young innovators worldwide and explore topics such as new quality productive forces, startups founded by overseas returnees, biotechnology, and AIGC content creation. The programs offer expert mentorship, closed-door discussions, keynote speeches, targeted training, project roadshows, funding support and resource matching — helping young entrepreneurs take root and thrive in Shanghai.
As a new highlight of this year's forum, a startup carnival created a dynamic platform to match capital with creativity. More than 100 investment institutions and 100 startup projects participated, with focused roadshows and matchmaking sessions centered on sectors like artificial intelligence, life sciences and advanced technologies — accelerating the journey from idea to implementation.
Shanghai's investment in science and technology continues to grow. In 2024, the city's R&D spending rose to around 4.4 percent of its GDP, up from 3.41 percent a decade ago, with about 11 percent going to basic research. By the end of 2024, the city was home to 25,000 high-tech enterprises, with 440 high-tech firms per 10,000 business entities — ranking first nationwide.
Since its launch in 2020, the Shanghai Y50 Forum for Innovation and Entrepreneurship has evolved from a platform for youth networking into a full-fledged public service product covering all elements of the innovation and entrepreneurship journey.
Of the participants in the first five editions, 37 companies have been recognized as specialized, refined, distinctive and innovative enterprises, while eight have gone public on the Science and Technology Innovation Board. Many have grown from promising startups into industry leaders — testament to the mutually reinforcing growth of youth and city.
