(Yicai) Aug. 5 -- Shanghai has become the first Chinese city to roll out policies to help companies strengthen investment in basic research to enhance their dominant role in technological innovation, including up to CNY10 million (USD1.4 million) of annual subsidies.

Companies that invest over CNY100 million (USD13.9 million) per year in basic research can receive a CNY10 million subsidy, according to nine measures covering participation in decision-making, investment incentives, and ecosystem development aspects released by Shanghai yesterday.

In addition, firms that invest between CNY50 million and CNY100 million will get CNY5 million (USD696,500), while those that spend between CNY10 million and CNY50 million will receive CNY2 million. Shanghai also released new basic research management measures under its Explorers Programme to deepen the enterprise-led industry, university, and research collaboration model.

The new measures are based on practical issues companies face in tech innovation and aim to solve the structural problems of basic research investment in Shanghai, said Qu Wei, deputy director of the Shanghai Science and Technology Commission. At the institutional level, it offers encouraging and guiding measures to explore solutions to the city's problems, Qu pointed out.

Shanghai's basic research investment accounted for 11 percent of its total R&D spending last year, exceeding the national average of 6.9 percent. However, its proportion is still short of the global average.

Compared with other tech-innovative cities worldwide, the basic research level of Shanghai still needs to be improved, with firms' capabilities to support such research and lead the formation of innovative alliances still being weak, Qu said.

Launched in 2021, the Explorers Programme has drawn 22 leading tech companies to participate. Firms propose science-related questions, issue guidelines, and co-invest with the Shanghai Science and Technology Commission to support scientific R&D. Participants such as Shanghai Nuclear Engineering Research & Design Institute have achieved a chain connection between basic research and industrial applications.

Another new measure was establishing the Shanghai Qiyuan State-Owned Assets Innovation and Source-Generating Public Welfare Foundation, the first basic research public welfare fund in the national state-owned assets supervision and administration system.

The foundation was initiated by 16 state-owned companies in Shanghai, said Chen Dong, deputy director of Shanghai State-Owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission. It will focus on cutting-edge basic subjects and interdisciplinary fields, including quantum technologies, controllable nuclear fusion, and neuroscience, Chen noted, adding that it aims to link innovative scenarios, incubators, industrial funds, and other resources and support the most innovative young talents.

Shanghai will also increase the share of enterprise experts in the municipal technology programmes, support the joint construction of research platforms between universities and firms, and promote the setup of diversified investment systems, Zhao Zhen, deputy director of the city's education commission, said to Yicai.

Editor: Martin Kadiev