Ancient Capital Embraces a New Wave of Innovation

By Zhang Tie and Jia Fengfeng, Correspondents of People’s Daily People’s Daily (December 18, 2025, Page 01)

A Beam of Light Unleashes Myriad Possibilities in Xi’an, Shaanxi

Transformed into a “scalpel”, femtosecond lasers can perform “carvings” on the cornea; converted into electricity, they enable non-contact thermal imaging temperature measurement within 3 meters; and used as a medium, they allow manipulation of micron-sized particles via high-precision microscopes.

Uniting light into a powerful torch, 320 photonics enterprises in Xi’an have built an industrial highland with a total output value of 35 billion yuan. Behind this beam of light lie Xi’an’s robust scientific and technological capabilities and a thriving innovation ecosystem.

In May 2023, General Secretary Xi Jinping, while listening to work reports from the CPC Shaanxi Provincial Committee and the Shaanxi Provincial People’s Government, emphasized, “We should develop Xi’an into a comprehensive national science center and a science and technology innovation center, striving to build it into a major national center for scientific research, culture and education, as well as a base for high and new technology industries and manufacturing.

” This millennium-old capital is now surging with a wave of scientific and technological innovation. By thoroughly implementing the spirit of General Secretary Xi Jinping’s important instructions, Xi’an has coordinated regional scientific and technological innovation forces, promoted breakthroughs in key core technologies, transformation of scientific and technological innovation achievements, and development of key industrial chains and clusters, thereby converting scientific and technological innovation from a “key variable” into the “largest increment” for high-quality development.

Strengthening High-Quality Scientific and Technological Supply to Build an “Innovation Source”

At the foot of the Qinling Mountains, in the Xi’an Science Park of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, lies the Operation Control Center, the “brain” of the high-precision ground-based timing system. A 1,839-kilometer optical fiber linking Xi’an to Taiyuan, Shanxi serves as a “highway of time”, enabling the time service accuracy of “Beijing Time” to reach one trillionth of a second.

Such large-scale scientific facilities are not only powerful tools for scientific research but also flagship projects driving innovation.

During the 14th Five-Year Plan period, Xi’an has accelerated the construction of major scientific and technological infrastructure, including the National Center for Translational Medicine, the Advanced Attosecond Laser Facility, the Electromagnetically Driven Fusion Large-Scale Scientific Facility, and the National Supercomputing Center in Xi’an, continuously enhancing its capacity as an innovation source.

At Xidian University, large models have unlocked new scenarios for artificial intelligence in cryptography; at Northwestern Polytechnical University, tungsten alloy heating has set a new world record; and at Xi’an Research Institute of China Coal Technology and Engineering Group, the record for the deepest drilling in fractured and soft coal seams has been broken—breakthroughs in key core technologies have been made one after another.

In the 2024 Evaluation of Innovation Capabilities of National Innovative Cities released by the Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China, Xi’an ranked 7th nationwide. In the “Nature Index 2025: Science Cities”, Xi’an climbed 4 places from 2024 to rank 16th globally.

Promoting In-depth Integration of Science, Technology and Industry to Optimize the “Ecosphere”

With a large load capacity, short takeoff and landing distance, and long endurance, the “Jiu Tian” large unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), a “giant”, successfully completed its maiden flight on December 11, marking a new breakthrough in China’s large UAV technology.

Xi’an is the birthplace of “Jiu Tian”. From design and R&D, parts production, and complete machine manufacturing to strength verification and test flight appraisal, Xi’an has formed a complete aviation industry chain, with the overall scale of its aviation cluster exceeding 150 billion yuan.

Industrial clusters have pooled the combined forces of innovation.

Xi’an High-Tech Industrial Development Zone (Xi’an Hi-Tech Zone) is a key area for hosting Xi’an’s regional science and technology innovation center. “Eight new industrial tracks, including photonics and intelligent connected vehicles, have been included in the New Track Cultivation Initiative for National High-Tech Zones launched by the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology,” said Ren Junfeng, Deputy Director of the Administrative Committee of Xi’an Hi-Tech Zone.

Policy support has stimulated innovation vitality.

A series of supporting policies have been introduced, covering scientific research platforms serving industrial development, the quality and efficiency improvement of technology-based enterprises, and the optimization of the innovation ecosystem, with innovation resources accessible through a unified digital map. The “Three Reforms” have facilitated the transformation of scientific research achievements from “library shelves” to “market shelves”. A “combination of financial support, talent introduction, intellectual property protection, and science and technology innovation branding” has been adopted to support the development of science and technology startups.

Xi’an has made every effort to optimize the entire innovation ecosystem chain, which consists of mutually supporting links including basic research, technological breakthroughs, industrialization of achievements, science and technology finance, and talent gathering, continuously improving the overall efficiency of scientific and technological innovation.

Adhering to Coordinated Regional Innovation and Development to Form a “Radiation Hub”

In 2022, relying on her scientific research achievements in the fields of 3D bioprinting and bionic tissue engineering, Wang Jing from the School of Mechanical Engineering of Xi’an Jiaotong University founded Shaanxi Maxwell Medical Technology Co., Ltd., which settled in the Yulin Qinchuangyuan (Xi’an) Main Center.

Leveraging Xi’an’s scientific and technological advantages for R&D and Yulin’s industrial resources for transformation, this “dual-city coordination” innovation framework has enabled the company to achieve rapid growth.

With Xi’an focusing on R&D and manufacturing and surrounding areas providing supporting transformation services, a collaborative industrial chain development model has taken shape. Centered on Xi’an, cities such as Xianyang, Weinan, and Tongchuan have jointly built industrial chains in key sectors, encouraging enterprises like Longi Green Energy, BYD, and Samsung to extend their industrial chains within the metropolitan area. This has promoted the upgrading of industries towards “characteristic division of labor plus regional integration”, continuously enhancing the influence and leading role of Xi’an’s regional science and technology innovation center.

The Proposal of the Fourth Plenary Session of the 20th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China called for “laying out and building regional science and technology innovation centers and industrial science and technology innovation highlands”, and the Central Economic Work Conference emphasized “adhering to innovation-driven development and accelerating the cultivation and expansion of new growth drivers”. Based on its own advantages and seizing development opportunities, Xi’an’s scientific and technological innovation is gathering momentum and contributing stronger impetus to Chinese-style modernization.