China’s private enterprises are boosting R&D investment, advancing technological innovation and embracing emerging industries to fuel high-quality growth.
The 2026 Private Economy Innovation and Development Conference was held in Wenzhou, Zhejiang Province, from September 8 to 10, 2026. At the conference, the All-China Federation of Industry and Commerce (ACFIC) released the 2026 Report on the Innovation Status of the Top 1,000 Private Enterprises by R&D Expenditure.
Rising R&D Investment Fuels a Shift Toward Innovation
According to the report, the minimum R&D investment required for companies on the top-1,000 list was 216 million yuan, 9 million yuan higher than a year earlier. Total R&D spending by the companies reached 1.59 trillion yuan, an increase of 10.72% year on year. The average R&D intensity stood at 3.73%, 0.93 percentage points higher than the national average.
The data show a shift in business strategies. In the past, many companies relied on low costs and rapid expansion to gain market share. Today, more companies are increasing R&D spending and focusing on core technologies.
Innovation has become a key business strategy. Many private companies are now taking a leading role in innovation.
Jack Technology Co., Ltd., based in Taizhou, Zhejiang, is one example. The company started as a traditional sewing equipment maker. A decade ago, it expanded into complete equipment systems and began developing smart manufacturing solutions. In recent years, it has actively invested in artificial intelligence and robotics. The company has become a global leader in intelligent equipment for the garment industry through continuous innovation.
“Our industrial sewing machine sales have ranked No. 1 globally for several consecutive years,” said Ruan Jixiang, chairman of Jack Technology. He said private enterprises need to take a long-term view and remain persistent when it comes to innovation. “By embracing technological change and accelerating transformation and upgrading, traditional industries can also unlock new momentum for growth.”
Building Stronger Industrial Supply Chains
Private companies are also making breakthroughs in key areas of industrial supply chains.
Founded in 1989, Hailiang Group Co., Ltd. is a global leader in copper processing. In recent years, its subsidiary Zhejiang Hailiang Co., Ltd. has focused on R&D in high-end copper-based materials, achieving breakthroughs in several technologies and moving from being a technology “follower” to a “leader.” The company has also helped break through overseas technological monopolies.
“Innovation is the foundation of a company’s development,” said Wang Lihong, chairman of Hailiang Group. The company will continue to work with universities and research institutions and increase its investment in innovation, he said.
At the same time, many private enterprises are moving into emerging sectors and seizing new growth opportunities. The report shows that 742 companies on the top-1,000 list have invested in strategic emerging industries, spanning areas including new materials, next-generation information technology, new energy, biomedicine and robotics.
More Focus on Basic Research
Private companies are also expanding into basic and frontier research.
On September 9, 17 private companies, including CATL, Geely Holding Group, Chint Group, Xiaomi Group and Tencent Holdings, jointly launched an initiative in Wenzhou.
The initiative encourages private enterprises to focus on original innovation and generate more original and disruptive breakthroughs.
“Private enterprises have an advantage because they innovate close to the market,” said Li Zhiqi, a researcher at the China Association for the Study of Private Economy. “They are on the front lines of industry, understand real market needs better than most, and can identify precisely where basic research can connect with industrial applications.”
Li noted that private enterprises are highly flexible and have a strong sense of market trends, giving them unique advantages in both making original breakthroughs—from “0 to 1”—and commercialising innovations—from “1 to N.”
Encouraging private enterprises to invest more deeply in basic research can help overcome technological bottlenecks in key industries, he said. Private companies could then move from technology “followers” to “rule setters”, giving them a stronger voice in shaping industrial technologies and standards.
Written by Sha Liu, charts created by Di Wang, additional reporting by CNS.
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