The world’s attention will turn to Shenzhen in November, when this year’s APEC Economic Leaders’ Meeting will be held in what is often termed China’s Silicon Valley.
The city’s rise to prominence has been decades in the making. Behind Shenzhen’s emergence as a global innovation powerhouse lies a vast ecosystem of tech companies, entrepreneurs and cross-border connections.
To give members of foreign chambers of commerce in Hong Kong a better understanding of this rapidly evolving landscape, the Hong Kong Trade Development Council (HKTDC)’s GoGBA team organised a mission that took participants into the heart of Shenzhen's innovation economy.
Drawing participants from 25 organisations, the delegation reflected the diversity of Hong Kong's international business community. Spanning the professional services, infrastructure, innovation and creative sectors, participants included executives from multinational corporations, specialist firms and start-ups as well as representatives from the European, New Zealand, Italian and Dutch chambers of commerce.
The programme began at the GoGBA Business Support Centre in Futian, where delegates received an overview of Shenzhen's business environment. Jointly established by the HKTDC, the Futian District Government and the Hong Kong Chamber of Commerce in Guangdong, the centre is located within Futian High-Speed Railway Station, just a 15-minute train journey from Hong Kong.
Highlighting the centre's role in fostering cross-border collaboration, HKTDC Regional Director, Southern China Peter Wong said: "The centre is a two-way gateway where overseas companies can connect with ambitious and innovative Mainland enterprises seeking international partnerships and global expansion opportunities."
Inside Shenzhen’s innovation ecosystem
The first company visit took delegates to Fadada, one of China's leading providers of electronic contract services. It offered a glimpse into how digital technologies are transforming legal and compliance processes and underscored the critical role trusted digital infrastructure plays in supporting global trade and cross-border collaboration.
The delegation then explored Shenzhen's robotics sector at Kenqing Technology, a national priority high-tech enterprise and exhibitor at HKTDC’s InnoEX in April. Founded in 2015, the company specialises in the research, development and manufacturing of exoskeleton robots.
Participants test-drive wearable robotic technology at Kenqing Technology.
Through product demonstrations and a hands-on trial, delegates saw how wearable robotics can enhance mobility, improve workplace efficiency and address challenges associated with ageing populations.
The final stop was AI² Robotics, one of Shenzhen's rising stars in embodied AI and fellow InnoEX exhibitor. Established in 2023, the company develops general-purpose robots powered by its proprietary AlphaBrain AI model capable of learning and adapting to complex real-world environments.
The visit offered participants an opportunity to explore the next frontier of robotics, highlighting how advances in AI are accelerating the shift from task-specific machines to more versatile and autonomous systems capable of operating across a broad range of scenarios.
An ice-cream dispensing robot at AI² Robotics demonstrated how robots are moving beyond research labs into practical, everyday applications.
Reflecting on the mission, Peter Wilhelm Schmidt, Director at PS Solutions Asia, said: "The visits to the three companies offered genuinely valuable insights into the Greater Bay Area's innovation ecosystem and helped strengthen connections between the international community, Hong Kong and Shenzhen."
Chairman of the European Chamber of Commerce Stefan Johannes Hack echoed this sentiment, saying: “The trip was great. We saw many different sectors – from legal services to exoskeleton technology – and had a very good networking lunch. I think it’s important that we go to Shenzhen to keep discovering what the Greater Bay Area has to offer.”
By providing access to innovative Mainland enterprises and fostering meaningful connections across borders, missions such as this help overseas businesses navigate the opportunities emerging from the GBA. At the same time, they reinforce Hong Kong’s unique role as a gateway for international companies seeking to engage with one of the world's most dynamic innovation ecosystems.