Gradual promotion and strengthening resilience: Experts from the Shanghai Academy of Social Sciences advise on coordinated industrial development during the "14th Five-Year Plan"

Question AI · How does “patience” capital support the implementation of future industry technologies?

During the 14th Five-Year Plan, what key strategies are still needed to build a modern industrial system in China?

“Currently, China’s economy is at a critical stage of transitioning from old to new driving forces. How to leverage both domestic and international environments to develop a robust modern industrial system is the top priority,” said Gan Chunhui, Executive Deputy Director and Researcher at the Shanghai Academy of Social Sciences, during an academic salon on “Chinese-style Modernization” with domestic and foreign media on the afternoon of the 19th. He noted that, at this stage, the boundaries between primary, secondary, and tertiary industries are becoming increasingly blurred. The integration between manufacturing and services is deepening, and a higher-level industrial division and cooperation system is forming.

Gan Chunhui believes that to build a modern industrial system during the 14th Five-Year Plan, a roadmap must consider multiple factors. On one hand, emphasis should be placed on technological innovation, increasing support for basic research, and transforming scientific achievements into industry. An integrated education model for science and technology talent is crucial here. On the other hand, relying on the advantages of a super-large market, drawing lessons from North America and the European Union, and meeting internal demand-driven economic growth are also essential. This includes developing new consumption scenarios such as cultural tourism mentioned in the 14th Five-Year Plan outline, and optimizing new infrastructure.

Regarding how future industries like quantum technology and brain-computer interfaces should be planned and developed, Gan Chunhui told First Financial that the so-called “future industries” often lack clear technological routes, stable business models, and market demand. Therefore, the industry must first address many fundamental research challenges of advanced technologies through industry-university-research collaboration. Additionally, “patience” capital is important—investing early and small, and being willing to bear the risk of no immediate returns over a long period. If strategic emerging industries are called “tomorrow industries,” then “future industries” are “the day after tomorrow industries,” where technologies move from R&D to scale, requiring a relatively long process for implementation.

Gan Chunhui also mentioned that the 14th Five-Year Plan proposes to “establish a number of national future industry research institutes and concept verification centers, and build pioneering zones for future industries based on regions with strong scientific, educational, and industrial foundations.” He added that bringing together upstream and downstream companies in the industry through research networks and pilot production bases can further reduce R&D costs and improve communication efficiency between industry, academia, and research.

Wang Jiaxi, Assistant Researcher at the Institute of Applied Economics, Shanghai Academy of Social Sciences, said that promoting and boosting future industries requires increased incentives, including active participation of government-guided funds. For leading and strategic emerging industries, more consideration should be given to external risks that may arise from external changes to enhance the resilience and security of the modern industrial system.

Wang Jiaxi believes that the “14th Five-Year Plan” emphasizes “coordinated development and security” as principles for socio-economic development. This means the industrial system should be developed in a phased manner, including continuously upgrading traditional industries and supporting emerging and future industries. Since traditional manufacturing still accounts for about 80% of China’s overall manufacturing sector, traditional, emerging, and future industries need to work together, support each other, and jointly ensure industrial development and resilience.

He also pointed out that building a modern industrial system is not a closed-door process; openness at a high level is also necessary. In 2025, Shanghai’s foreign trade import and export volume is expected to reach a record high. The industry needs a one-stop, comprehensive service system for “bringing in” and “going out.”

Xue Anwei, Researcher at the World Economy Institute of the Shanghai Academy of Social Sciences, told reporters that industries need to “go global,” but not blindly. His team’s research found that some companies, without thorough assessment, rushed into overseas markets recently, leading to unnecessary investments and losses.

Xue Anwei suggested that first, companies should conduct risk identification and assessment before “going abroad,” bringing risk awareness forward. After understanding local policies and support measures and estimating relatively certain profit expectations, the process will be more secure. Second, the 14th Five-Year Plan mentions the need to “improve overseas comprehensive service systems,” which requires quickly establishing legal, accounting, financial, and other support frameworks to help companies avoid risks and increase the success rate of “going abroad” and benefiting from the global industrial landscape.

(This article is from First Financial)