Guangdong Launches Major Push to Become Global AI and Robotics Hub
- tech360.tv
- Apr 3
- 2 min read
Guangdong is ramping up efforts to become a global centre for artificial intelligence and robotics, unveiling a series of subsidies and initiatives aimed at attracting top talent and fostering innovation.
At a press conference on Tuesday, officials from China’s largest provincial economy announced plans to build a “global innovation highland” for AI and robotics. The strategy includes generous financial incentives for start-ups and research hubs.
The provincial government will offer grants of up to CNY 50 million (USD 6.9 million) for each manufacturing innovation hub in AI and robotics, and up to CNY 3 million for individual companies.
Additionally, Guangdong will fund up to five open-source communities and 10 large language model use cases in manufacturing annually, with each receiving up to CNY 8 million.
The initiative follows the success of DeepSeek and Unitree Robotics in Zhejiang province. DeepSeek’s founder, Liang Wenfeng, originally from Guangdong, launched his AI start-up in Hangzhou after studying at Zhejiang University.
The rise of DeepSeek has turned Hangzhou into a major tech hub, prompting Guangdong officials to reflect on how to better support local innovation.
Deputy Governor Wang Sheng said the province aims to attract “more innovative resources,” citing Guangdong’s strong supply chain, ecosystem and application scenarios.
Yang Jun, deputy head of the provincial department of science and technology, said Guangdong has invested over CNY 1.4 billion in AI and robotics projects since 2018.
He highlighted achievements by local tech giants, including Huawei’s Ascend 910B chip and Atlas 900 computing cluster, as well as Tencent’s Hunyuan AI models and the PengCheng Mind model from Shenzhen’s Peng Cheng Laboratory.
Li Shulin, deputy head of the provincial finance department, said Guangdong will continue to allocate CNY 10 billion annually to support “independent and controllable core technologies” that reduce reliance on foreign supplies.
To promote robotics, Sun Bin, deputy head of the provincial commerce department, announced that the upcoming Canton Fair in mid-April will feature a new exhibition of service robots.
The exhibition will include 46 companies, 16 of which are based in Guangdong. The Canton Fair, also known as the China Import and Export Fair, is the country’s largest trade event and draws tens of thousands of international visitors.
Guangdong to offer up to CNY 50 million in grants for AI and robotics hubs
Province aims to fund open-source communities and AI use cases annually
Over CNY 1.4 billion invested in AI and robotics since 2018
Source: SCMP