On the industrial powerhouse along the southern bank of the Huangpu River, a "tropical rainforest" of digital economy is taking shape. Walking through Fengxian, one can tangibly feel the unique rhythm of this "digital city." Here, algorithms and robotic arms dance together on production lines, while data and material flows from across the Yangtze River Delta converge in workshops. Smart equipment stamped "Made in Fengxian" journey from this hub into the region's industrial arteries, reaching smart manufacturing facilities nationwide and globally — all realized from blueprint to reality in just a few short years.
During the "14th Five-Year Plan" period, Fengxian's software and information services revenue surged from 920 million yuan to 5.62 billion yuan, a staggering 510% increase. Behind these numbers lies a profound transformation driven by Fengxian's integrated "attract-serve-nurture" mechanism for digital industries. From January to May 2026, the district's 51 above-scale enterprises in information transmission, software, and IT services generated 22.4 billion yuan in revenue, with 48 software and IT service firms alone contributing 20.5 billion yuan. From a single enterprise to an entire ecosystem, from one production line to a complete industry chain, and from individual policies to a holistic service framework, Fengxian is crafting its own "Fengxian Model" of digital economy development at unprecedented speed. Fengxian New City (Intersection of Oriental Beauty Valley Avenue and Wangyuan South Road). Photo: Fengxian District Media Convergence Center.
From "Strategic Positioning" to "Forest Formation"
The rise of any city's industry begins with enterprises "voting with their feet." When initially considering Fengxian, Chen Weirong, founder and CEO of Shanghai Fangyi Wanqiang Microelectronics Co., Ltd., had already inspected Shanghai's integrated circuit hubs like Zhangjiang, Lingang, Songjiang, and Jiading — but it was Fengxian that ultimately won him over. "What we saw was not just industrial parks already built or under construction, but a city in the process of growing," Chen explained.
It is within this "growing city" that Fangyi Wanqiang expanded from a core team of fewer than ten to a mid-sized team of dozens, successfully transitioning multiple chip products from design blueprints to mass production. "For a chip design company in its startup phase, this evolving industrial space means we can not only find a foothold but also have opportunities to shape the future industrial ecosystem," he added. Fangyi Wanqiang Laboratory. Photo: Courtesy of the company.
Joining Fangyi Wanqiang in choosing Fengxian is Weihong Co., Ltd., an industrial motion control systems enterprise attracted by Fengxian's significant advantages in office costs and R&D space, as well as its "deep alignment with Fengxian's strategic positioning." Zhao Dongjing, general manager of Shanghai Weihong Electronic Technology Co., Ltd., noted that Fengxian is actively advancing its "smart new equipment" industrial plan, layered with multiple policy advantages from the Lingang New Area, Zhangjiang High-Tech Park Fengxian Park, and the "Five New Cities" initiative — all of which convinced the company to establish roots here. Weihong Co., Ltd. Exhibition Hall. Photo: Courtesy of the company.
Increasingly, enterprises are voting with their actions for Fengxian's digital industry. During the "14th Five-Year Plan" period, Fengxian's smart new equipment sector boasted 202 above-scale enterprises, building an industrial system covering four major categories: new-generation information technology, digital creativity, high-end equipment manufacturing, and core digital economy sectors. Behind these numbers lie innovation leaders in various niche tracks. As Chen Weirong pointed out, when a company's chip development requires real-world application scenarios for joint testing, "surrounding enterprises can become suppliers, partners, or first users."
Data tells the story convincingly: from 920 million yuan at the start of the "14th Five-Year Plan" to 5.62 billion yuan by its end, Fengxian's software and information services achieved remarkable leapfrog growth. Shen Jun, Party Secretary and Director of the Shanghai Fengxian District Data Bureau, told reporters that this journey brought a crucial realization: "Digital industry development cannot rely simply on 'attracting enterprises.' More importantly, we must connect the three stages of attraction, service, and cultivation to form a full-lifecycle service system."
On one hand, Fengxian emphasizes an industry-chain mindset in "attraction," focusing on AI, software information services, data services, and specialized tracks like intelligent connected vehicles, industrial internet, and embodied intelligence, strengthening chain-based, referral-based, and scenario-based investment. On the other hand, in "cultivation," the district prioritizes tiered enterprise growth, having identified 184 companies with data business attributes and selected 53 key enterprises for its tiered cultivation program. "We want to attract not just a single company, but an industrial ecosystem that brings upstream and downstream resources, technological innovation, and application scenarios," Shen said.
From "Searching for Policies" to "Customized Services"
If attracting enterprises is the "first half," retaining them and fostering their growth is the more critical "second half." Fengxian's second half begins with "precision services."
"Let's calculate together whether your chip R&D investment qualifies for policy support." Chen Weirong still vividly recalls this gesture. When the company first settled in Fengxian, officials from the District Science and Technology Commission, Economic Commission, Talent Bureau, Human Resources Bureau, and Big Data Bureau, along with local service staff, "did not simply hand over policy documents and leave. Instead, they worked with us line by line to review, calculate, and connect — turning policies into development resources the company could actually utilize." For tech startups, whether policy dividends can promptly convert into R&D cash flow often depends on whether someone clearly explains the application process and navigates inter-departmental coordination.
This level of service is backed by sustained institutional support. Fengxian continues to promote "automatic entitlement" and "direct fast-track" mechanisms, ensuring eligible companies complete fewer forms and make fewer trips. Chen Weirong remarked that Fengxian doesn't just "hand out policies" but accompanies companies during critical growth junctures. "What Fengxian shows us isn't just what we can get from the government, but who we can grow together with."
In the semiconductor sector, Jianzhao Semiconductor's choice similarly underscores Fengxian's appeal. Liu Chenglin, general manager of Shanghai Jianzhao Nano Semiconductor Equipment Co., Ltd., explained their decision to settle in the Digital Jianghai Park: "As a newly established park, it provides comprehensive support in company registration, tax planning, and financing assistance." From the first registration procedure to talent housing security, this full-chain service has given the company peace of mind. Interior of Shanghai Jianzhao Nano Semiconductor Equipment Co., Ltd. Photo: Courtesy of the company.
Addressing the rapidly growing computing demands of AI enterprises, the Fengxian District Data Bureau is developing a "1+X" district-level shared computing platform, extending computing resources from government operations to enterprises and providing stable, affordable computing support for SMEs. Meanwhile, at the Shanghai Digital Public Service Center (Fengxian New City), a "digital services buffet" is underway: the "Digital Hot Pot Set Menu" allows enterprises to flexibly match digital products, data services, network services, and financial services to their needs. The center has already aggregated over 130 digital products, deployed more than 30 digital service officers, and during the first half of 2026, hosted 9 industry chain summits and supply-demand matchmaking events, surveyed and served 88 enterprise visits, and resolved 28 enterprise requests. Interior of the Shanghai Digital Public Service Center (Fengxian New City) service hall. Photo: Courtesy of the Shanghai Digital Public Service Center (Fengxian New City).
At Digital Jianghai, this service granularity is even finer. The park has planned Shanghai's largest intelligent computing center and a digital twin city system, conceived from a deep understanding of core enterprise needs in the AI era — "computing power and data have become basic production factors." Wei Yinchui, deputy general manager of Shanghai Jianghai Digital Industry Development Co., Ltd., told reporters that through locally deployed, secure, and cost-effective computing centers, along with digital twin systems integrating scenario opening, computing scheduling, and data services, "enterprises can access digital production factors at favorable prices, conveniently, and securely, effectively lowering initial costs and technical barriers for digital transformation." Digital Jianghai Park Building. Photo: Courtesy of the park.
From "Going It Alone" to "Building Strength Together"
The ultimate competitiveness of an industrial ecosystem lies not in the size of individual enterprises, but in the "chemical reactions" between them. "For a chip design company, the path from a design solution to a customer application production line isn't separated by just a door — it spans an entire industry chain."
Fangyi Wanqiang once faced a nearly impossible task: for a chip project connecting AI computing cores, the most optimistic mass production timeline from suppliers was 12 to 18 months. Upon returning to Fengxian, the company approached the "chain leader" of the district's smart new equipment track, who facilitated connections with leading domestic suppliers and coordinated experts for collaborative design. After over two months of multiple joint debugging rounds, the product's production cycle was compressed to six months. Colleagues later summarized the experience in one sentence: "The distance from lab to production isn't 18 months — it's 6 months."
This "intra-industry social network" is a competitiveness that single preferential policies cannot replace: when the industry chain is closer, products reach the market with fewer delays and greater certainty. According to Shen Jun, one of Fengxian's biggest advantages in attracting digital industries and leading companies is its "solid real economy foundation and rich application scenarios." In investment attraction, Fengxian increasingly emphasizes the synergy of "industry chain + innovation chain + service chain," paying close attention to whether incoming enterprises have "scenarios, upstream and downstream partners, computing and data support, and the potential for sustained growth in Fengxian." Aerial view of Digital Jianghai Park. Photo: Courtesy of the park.
Digital Jianghai Park acts as the "catalyst" for this ecosystem. With smart terminals, precision medicine, and quantum computing as its pillar industries, the park adopts three major strategies: attracting large and strong enterprises, coordinating upstream and downstream supply chains, and fostering industrial cultivation and ecosystem incubation. It also brings together high-end platforms such as the National Engineering Laboratory for Information Content Analysis Technology and the China Academy of Information and Communications Technology. "This closed-loop mechanism of 'platform empowerment—industry chain linkage—service-driven retention' constitutes the unique ecological advantage of Digital Jianghai compared to other parks."
Computing power, policies, talent, and industry chain — these four elements converge to form the foundation for enterprise flourishing in Fengxian. "What we aim to create is an industrial ecosystem where enterprises receive services upon arrival, access resources during development, find application scenarios for their products and technologies, and can eventually drive upstream and downstream growth," Shen Jun said. "Only then can the pull effect of leading companies truly transform into industrial cluster effects."
Building a "South Shanghai Digital City Benchmark"
Looking toward the "15th Five-Year Plan," Fengxian's goals are even clearer — by 2030, core digital economy industry revenue should reach 26.5 billion yuan, with five billion-scale leading digital economy enterprises cultivated. Shen Jun stated that Fengxian will focus on five key areas — "industry, infrastructure, data, scenarios, and ecosystem" — to continuously strengthen digital industry scale, solidify digital infrastructure, unlock the value of data factors, promote digital trade and cross-border data flows, and improve the digital industry policy system.
At Digital Jianghai, a grand blueprint is unfolding — by the end of 2026, the park plans to attract over 300 returnee talents and continuously introduce high-tech enterprises. The park will support "chain leader" enterprises in participating in industry planning and platform construction, leveraging their open supply chains, technical standards, and application scenarios to drive collaborative development of upstream and downstream SMEs, fostering a "leading dragon—platform support—SME follow-up" virtuous industrial ecosystem. Shanghai's Fish Lake. Photo: Fengxian District Media Convergence Center.
In the south of Shanghai, a digital city is rising. From "attracting one company" to "attracting an entire industry chain and ecosystem," from "enterprises searching for policies" to "government proactively matching resources," Fengxian embodies the "Fengxian Solution" for the digital economy through its integrated "attract-serve-nurture" practice. As Shen Jun put it: "Fengxian can become not only a 'landing point' for digital enterprises, but also a 'growth point' for enterprise innovation and development." On this fertile land, a digital industry transformation — from saplings to a thriving forest — is accelerating before our eyes.