In order to thoroughly implement the "Plan for Comprehensively Deepening of Reform and Opening-Up in Qianhai Modern Service Industry Cooperation Zone", to fulfill the requirements of the "Shenzhen Special Economic Zone Artificial Intelligence Industry Promotion Regulations" and the "Action Plan for Accelerating the High-Quality Development and High-Level Application of Artificial Intelligence in Shenzhen (2023-2024)", to build an internationally competitive open innovation ecosystem, accelerate the gathering of domestic and foreign innovation resources, promote the integrated development of artificial intelligence technology with modern service industries and advanced manufacturing, and promote the high-quality development and high-level application of artificial intelligence in Qianhai, thereby establishing a global pioneer region for artificial intelligence, the following measures are formulated.
1. Promote the Aggregation of the Artificial Intelligence Industry
(1) Establish the Qianhai Artificial Intelligence Aggregation Area. Encourage leading and high-growth artificial intelligence companies, as well as headquarters of leading AI business operations of companies in advanced manufacturing, finance, logistics, and information services, to settle in the Qianhai Artificial Intelligence Aggregation Area. For artificial intelligence enterprises that start actual operations in the Qianhai Artificial Intelligence Aggregation Area (including the Qianhai Cooperation Zone’s Qianwan, Guiwan, Mawaan, Baozhong, and Dachanwan districts) after January 1, 2023, with a registered capital of over 20 million RMB, a subsidy of 60 RMB per square meter per month will be provided according to the area of self-used office space leased in the previous year, continuously for 36 months, with a maximum annual subsidy of 3 million RMB for each enterprise.
(2) Support artificial intelligence enterprises to enjoy income tax benefits. For artificial intelligence enterprises that meet the relevant conditions of the Qianhai corporate income tax preferential policies, a reduced corporate income tax rate of 15% will be applied in accordance with national regulations. For qualified artificial intelligence enterprises that hire foreign high-end talents and urgently needed talents, subsidies will be provided for personal income tax paid in Qianhai that exceeds 15% of their taxable income, as stipulated by national regulations.
(3) Encourage artificial intelligence enterprises to grow. For artificial intelligence enterprises with last year’s recorded operating revenue (output scale) exceeding 50 million RMB, a reward of 1‰ of the recorded increase in operating revenue (output scale) will be given, with a maximum not exceeding 5 million RMB.
(4) Support investment and financing in the artificial intelligence industry. Establish an artificial intelligence industry investment fund to guide social capital into entrepreneurial enterprises and quality projects in the artificial intelligence field through equity investment in subsidiary funds or direct investment, and to act as cornerstone investors for enterprise listings. Strengthen guidance for artificial intelligence enterprises preparing for public listings, and encourage qualified enterprises to list and raise funds in domestic and foreign capital markets. Support various financial institutions in the Qianhai Cooperation Zone to innovate business practices and increase financing services, including loans, for quality artificial intelligence enterprises.
2. Strengthen Supply of Key Elements for Artificial Intelligence
(5) Improve computing power supply capabilities. Encourage the development of technical innovations surrounding “one cloud multiple chips, enhancing computing strengths through networks, and integrating computing with networks,” promoting the integrated development of cloud, data, intelligence, edge, and end technologies to realize intelligent scheduling and efficient supply of computing resources. Advance the construction and application of the Qianhai International Data Dedicated Channel and the National (Shenzhen·Qianhai) New Internet Exchange Center to create a secure and convenient open internet environment. Support enterprises in the Qianhai Cooperation Zone in building intelligent computing power centers and intelligent computing power scheduling platforms. With the approval of the Qianhai Management Bureau, projects with total investments exceeding 10 million RMB may receive funding of 5% of the actual investment in the previous year, with a maximum of 20 million RMB per platform.
(6) Promote the circulation and application of data elements. Actively introduce data service companies and accelerate the development of services such as data collection, cleansing, labeling, evaluation, and asset assessment, encouraging the establishment of artificial intelligence training data resource libraries and standard test data sets as data sharing platforms. Pilot data resources being entered onto the balance sheet, promoting the development and utilization of data resources. Support Hong Kong enterprises and research institutions in establishing specialized institutions in the Qianhai Cooperation Zone to pilot cross-border database services. Support the establishment of a Data Broker Innovation Center and self-regulatory organizations for data brokers in the Qianhai Cooperation Zone to promote the development of data brokerage business. For data brokerage enterprises with last year’s data transaction service revenue exceeding 5 million RMB, a reward of 1% of their data transaction service revenue will be given to each enterprise, with a maximum of 200,000 RMB per enterprise, and no more than 10 enterprises rewarded per year.
(7) Strengthen the development of generic and common technologies. Support Qianhai enterprises in building common technology service platforms based on leading domestically developed and controllable foundational artificial intelligence software to provide algorithm, toolkit, model library, and adaptation certification technical support for SMEs. Encourage the development of common key technologies in artificial intelligence fields such as voice recognition, image recognition, biometric recognition, motion capture, and natural language understanding.
3. Build Demonstration Applications for Artificial Intelligence
(8) Support application innovations for "large models + industries". Encourage the research and deployment of large-scale artificial intelligence industry models that use large-scale data training and advanced algorithms with deep learning capabilities, focusing on industry application needs in key sectors such as manufacturing, finance, logistics, and commerce, forming new industry application models. For autonomous research and publicly released large models by Qianhai enterprises with more than ten market application cases, a one-time reward of 1 million RMB will be given.
(9) Support the creation of benchmark demonstration application scenarios. Support the establishment of artificial intelligence demonstration application scenarios at major platform facilities such as airports, ports, and convention centers, and in industries such as intelligent manufacturing, finance, logistics, transportation, commerce, culture and tourism, and healthcare. For projects recognized as artificial intelligence application demonstration projects by the Qianhai Management Bureau, a funding support of up to 200,000 RMB, equivalent to 10% of the actual investment amount, will be provided for the project construction subjects, with no more than ten projects supported each year.
(10) Support the commercialization pilot of smart connected vehicles. Promote the comprehensive pilot of smart connected vehicles in the Qianhai Cooperation Zone, with each qualified large-scale enterprise that obtains approval from relevant regulatory authorities for smart connected vehicle commercial operations to receive a one-time subsidy of 200,000 RMB per approved operational vehicle, with a cumulative subsidy of no more than 10 million RMB per enterprise.
(11) Support the advancement of low-altitude intelligent transportation pilots. Explore the pilot of low-altitude airspace management and promote the construction of low-altitude intelligent networks. Encourage enterprises to expand application scenarios for electric vertical takeoff and landing aircraft (eVTOL), and support enterprises in the Qianhai Cooperation Zone in applying for eVTOL commercial routes (with at least one takeoff and landing point in the Qianhai Cooperation Zone) approved by competent authorities. A one-time subsidy of 1 million RMB will be provided for domestic route operating enterprises, and a one-time subsidy of 2 million RMB for cross-border route operating enterprises.
4. Improve the Artificial Intelligence Industry Ecosystem
(12) Support the construction of technology empowerment platforms. Support Fortune Global 500 enterprises and their first-level subsidiaries, or national-level innovative carriers such as new-generation artificial intelligence open innovation platforms to take the lead in establishing artificial intelligence innovation centers in the Qianhai Cooperation Zone, utilizing their industrial ecosystem resources to provide artificial intelligence technology development, application promotion, cutting-edge technology demonstrations, and ecosystem incubation services for SMEs. For hardware and software investments exceeding 10 million RMB, a one-time funding equivalent to 10% of the investment will be provided to the innovation center, with a maximum of 500,000 RMB.
(13) Support the tackling of key technology research problems. The Qianhai Management Bureau will organize research breakthroughs in the field of artificial intelligence using a "challenge and ranking" method, soliciting artificial intelligence scientific issues and technical challenges requiring resolution from society each year. The list will contain no more than five topics per year, with specific conditions regulated by the announcement. The Qianhai Management Bureau may provide funding support of up to 20% of the actual R&D investment for individual projects, with a maximum of 500,000 RMB per project.
(14) Promote the development of industry organizations. A one-time support of 500,000 RMB will be provided for national-level artificial intelligence industry organizations established in the Qianhai Cooperation Zone. Encourage artificial intelligence industry organizations to hold international academic forums, industry summits, exhibitions, contests, and more in the Qianhai Cooperation Zone. After prior approval by the Qianhai Management Bureau, these activities will be audited post-event, providing support of up to 100,000 RMB, equivalent to 20% of the actual expenses incurred.
(15) Establish inclusive and prudent regulatory mechanisms. Strengthen awareness of technology ethics norms among responsible entities, support the establishment of testing and certification platforms related to artificial intelligence safety, and provide evaluation and certification services in areas of artificial intelligence safety risks and ethical issues. Explore innovative inclusive and prudent regulatory models such as “regulatory sandboxes” and “non-prosecution for compliance”, fostering an institutional environment that encourages innovation and bold experimentation.
(16) Optimizing the Supporting Environment for Industrial Innovation.Improve mechanisms for talent introduction, training, selection, evaluation, and service guarantees to attract high-end talent from both domestic and international fields of artificial intelligence. Support well-known domestic and international universities in establishing artificial intelligence science and education platforms in Qianhai and create a collaborative talent training model that integrates industry, academia, and research. Encourage enterprises to lead or participate in the formulation of international and national standards for artificial intelligence, and strengthen the protection of intellectual property rights related to artificial intelligence. Encourage various social organizations to provide services such as entrepreneurship incubation, financing connection, and legal consulting to promote the transfer and transformation of artificial intelligence research and development achievements. Increase the exploration of institutional innovation, establish a sound and diversified funding input mechanism, and promote the deep integration of the artificial intelligence innovation chain, industrial chain, funding chain, and talent chain. For major platforms and key projects that play an important role in promoting the development of the artificial intelligence industry in the Qianhai Cooperation Zone, the Qianhai Administration may agree on support matters through signed cooperation agreements.
5. Supplementary Provisions
If the same entity meets the requirements of this measure as well as other similar support policies from Nanshan District, Bao'an District, and the Qianhai Cooperation Zone, it shall not enjoy the benefits multiple times. The total amount of support funds that a single entity can receive under this measure within one fiscal year shall not exceed 30 million yuan.
The term "artificial intelligence enterprise" as used in this measure must meet the following conditions:
Micro and small enterprises must have over 50% of their total business revenue from artificial intelligence activities in the previous fiscal year. Medium and large enterprises must have at least 30% of their total business revenue from artificial intelligence activities in the previous year, or have generated no less than 20 million yuan from artificial intelligence activities in the previous year. The classification of large, medium, small, and micro enterprises shall follow the standards set forth in the "Standards for Classification of Large, Medium, Small, and Micro Enterprises (2017)" for the "Software and Information Technology Services Industry" and "Industry."
The enterprises should primarily operate in the following or related areas:
Artificial Intelligence Software: This includes computer vision software, intelligent voice processing software, natural language understanding software, biometric recognition software, virtual reality/augmented reality software, etc.
Artificial Intelligence Services: This encompasses machine learning services, computer vision services, intelligent voice processing services, natural language understanding services, biometric recognition services, integrated artificial intelligence solutions, etc.
Artificial Intelligence Products: This includes artificial intelligence chips, artificial intelligence sensors, intelligent robots, smart transportation tools, virtual reality/augmented reality devices, smart wearable devices, etc.
The term "Fortune Global 500" as used in this measure shall refer to the latest list published by Fortunemagazine in the United States.
The terms "no less than," "no more than," and "above" include those numbers, while "less than" and "more than" do not include those numbers.
Institutions applying for grants must conduct actual business in Qianhai and must not be listed on the "Enterprise Operating Abnormality List," "Dishonest Execution List," or the "Severely Dishonest Entity List" maintained by the Shenzhen municipal authorities from the time of application until the end of the public notice period. The definition of actual business and specific conditions will be specified in the application guidelines.
This measure shall come into effect on January 15, 2024, and shall be valid for three years.