China’s Silicon Valley sparking 49 tech startups a day

China’s answer to Silicon Valley is experiencing a surge in new technology companies as the world’s most populous nation reduces its reliance on manufacturing.

随着其对制造业依赖程度的降低，大批新技术公司落户中国硅谷——中关村。

Beijing’s Zhongguancun district birthed 49 startups daily last year as innovation takes root in the country, Wan Gang, the nation’s minister of science and technology, said Wednesday at a briefing for the National People’s Congress in Beijing. China now has more than 1,600 technology incubators, Wan said.

中国科技部部长万钢11日在全国人民代表大会记者会上介绍说，中国目前对创新的重视程度日益增加，去年每天都有49家创业公司落户中关村。万钢说，中国目前有超过1600多个科技企业孵化器。

Zhongguancun is home to a raft of established Chinese technology companies, from PC maker Lenovo Group Ltd. to search engine operator Baidu Inc. Xiaomi Corp., the nation’s biggest smartphone vendor, was established in the district five years ago and has reached a valuation of $45-billion to become the world’s most valuable startup.

中关村是中国老牌明星科技企业的大本营，这些企业包括个人电脑厂商联想集团，以及中文搜索引擎百度公司。中国现今最大的智能手机经销商小米公司五年前在中关村成立，目前其资产估值高达450亿美元（约合人民币2818.40亿元），是世界上价值最高的未上市科技公司。

“As innovation and entrepreneurship gain popularity, many high tech, small-and-medium-sized enterprises and micro enterprises are writing the wonderful story of Chinese innovation,” Wan said. “Entrepreneurship has gradually become the spark that started a prairie fire.”

万钢说道，“千千万万的科技型中小企业、中小微企业正在书写着中国创新的精彩故事，大众创业、万众创新的星火逐渐成为燎原之势。”

The country now has more than 1,000 organizations investing in startups with capital exceeding 350 billion yuan ($56-billion), Wan said. Along with the new companies, China is also experiencing a surge in technological innovation. The country had more than 660,000 effective invention patents last year, up 12 per cent from a year earlier, Wan said.

万钢还说，目前中国活跃的创业投资机构有1000多家，资本总量超过3500亿元。除此之外，中国去年有效的发明专利超过66万件，比前一年增加了12%。

Xiaomi has already backed 27 startups and plans to fund as many as 100 new companies, Chief Executive Officer Lei Jun said March 6.

小米公司总裁雷军6日表示，该公司已经完成了对27家创业公司的投资，并计划投资共100家智能硬件公司。

New Disruption The investments are designed to help Xiaomi expand from smartphones and tablet computers into smart home products from cameras to security systems and air purifiers, Lei said.

这些投资计划能够帮助小米公司将其业务从智能手机和平板电脑拓展到包括安全系统摄像机和空气净化器等在内的智能家电领域。

Traditional businesses in China are ripe for disruption by innovative startups, Baidu’s Chief Executive Officer Robin Li said in a briefing earlier Wednesday. Internet finance is a “very hot” area for development, as services including banking, insurance and consumer credit can all be improved online, Li said.

11日早些时候，百度公司总裁李彦宏在记者会上表示，中国传统商业的发展已经很成熟了，完全可以将其推倒并用创新型的方式再做一遍。李彦宏表示，互联网金融最近比较“火”，金融不涉及物流和配送，非常适合网上来做，因此无论包括银行、保险、消费信贷在内的金融废物都可以通过互联网方式得到改善和提高。

“The market economy in China is only a few decades old so it is not very mature and not particularly efficient,” Li said. “Using the Internet to do it all over again, we can see that there are many chances.”

李彦宏还说，“我们国家的市场经济只有几十年的时间，中国传统产业的效率也不是很高，那么用互联网的方法再做一遍，我们就可以看到许多机会。”