In a recent article published in Wenhui Daily, Professor Chen Qiang of Tongji SEM’s Department of Management Science and Engineering expressed his opinion that Shanghai should take advantage of the significant opportunities presented by the current round of scientific and technological revolution and industrial transformation. He suggested that Shanghai accelerate its forward-looking layout, consider both the depth of source building and the intensity of planning implementation, foster an open innovation ecosystem, and enhance its capacity to foster innovation as a hub for sci-tech innovation. The published original text is as follows.

In the ten years that it has taken to establish Shanghai as an international hub for sci-tech innovation, the city has further cemented its conditions and foundations for sci-tech innovation, consistently produced significant original achievements, accelerated the implementation of the country’s major sci-tech tasks, begun to demonstrate results in creating an industry model for innovation, and made a series of breakthroughs in system and mechanism reforms; on the other hand, sci-tech innovations worldwide have been emerging at an accelerated iterative pace, and the global landscape has experienced profound changes. Shanghai should, in this regard, take advantage of the significant opportunities presented by the current round of scientific and technological revolution and industrial transformation, fortify trend analysis, comprehend patterns, seize demands, and strive to enhance its capacity to foster innovation as a hub for sci-tech innovation.

01 Accelerate forward-looking layout

We are on the brink of significant and profound advances in the realms of information, energy, materials, and bioscience thanks to scientific discoveries and technological inventions. To boost their future sci-tech and industrial competitiveness, major countries are stepping up basic frontier exploration and technology R&D in key fields, steadily raising investment, and aggressively working to change the governance of sci-tech innovation. Shanghai can take advantage of the preemptive opportunities in future sci-tech and industrial competition if it has an appropriate layout and takes strong advancement measures, given the historical convergence between the current round of scientific and technological revolution and industrial transformation and the establishment of an international hub for sci-tech innovation in Shanghai.

First and foremost, Shanghai should design and create new connectivity.

Secondly, Shanghai should seize the opportunity of the iteration and upgrade of scientific research paradigms.

Thirdly, Shanghai should prepare both mentally and practically for responding to uncertainties and risks.

02 Encourage source-based planning and enhance sources through planning

“Source (of innovation)” and “planning” are the two sides of the capacity to foster innovation; they create an intertwined double helix structure and are mutually dependent. The former places more emphasis on conditions and capability building and aims to amass innovation potential, while the latter indicates planning, organization, and action and seeks to transform the potential into innovation momentum.

First and foremost, Shanghai should encourage source-based planning.

Secondly, Shanghai should enhance sources through planning.

03 Create a competitive ecosystem for open innovation

Sci-tech and industrial competitions have evolved into contests between systems and between ecosystems. In its building of an international hub for sci-tech innovation, Shanghai should manage the integrated development of education, science and technology, and talent in order to create a competitive ecosystem for open innovation. Shanghai’s city spirit of “be tolerant to diversity, be extraordinary, enlightened wisdom, and humble atmosphere” is not only an integral part of the open innovation ecosystem but should also serve as the driving force behind creating a favorable ecosystem.

First and foremost, Shanghai should be tolerant towards diversified talents.

Secondly, Shanghai should accomplish remarkable feats in deeply expanding comprehensive innovation reform experiments.

Thirdly, Shanghai should proceed with higher-level institutional opening-up by applying wise counsel.

Fourthly, Shanghai should foster a modest environment of sci-tech innovation synergy in the Yangtze River Delta.

It is necessary to enhance Shanghai’s capacity to foster innovation as a hub for sci-tech innovation. This will require methodical thinking that gives full consideration to the readiness of layout, the depth of source building and the intensity of planning implementation, the long-term nature of ecosystem building, and the pursuit of technological logic, market logic, and governance logic, in order to foster the emergence of more new scientific discoveries, new technological inventions, new industrial directions, and new development philosophies in Shanghai.