(Yicai) Nov. 5 -- Wuhan's East Lake High-Tech Development Zone, better known as the 'Optics Valley of China,' has set up a special fund to attract top-tier tech talent from around the world to launch projects locally, with a maximum incentive of CNY100 million (USD14 million) for a single project.

The fund will focus on supporting sixth-generation mobile communication and third-generation semiconductor projects, according to a policy document issued by the EDZ yesterday. It aims to attract top global talent with key core technologies and significant industry influence to the high-tech industry hub.

The initiative aims to create a chain effect by "bringing in top-tier talent, forming core teams, fostering the emergence of new local industries, and cultivating new quality productive forces," the EDZ noted.

According to the document, top-tier talents include recipients of major international scientific awards such as the Nobel Prize and the Turing Award, pioneers in basic research and cutting-edge tech exploration, and leaders in the industrialization of research achievements, represented by research and development heads from well-known firms and academic experts from prestigious universities and research institutes who are recognized as future tech leaders.

"The three-tiered talent group encompasses the entire process of innovative development, from '0 to 1' in basic research, '1 to N' in industrial innovation, and 'N to the future' in technology leadership," Li Jiang, an official from the EDZ's talent work bureau, told Yicai.

The EDZ will provide support for the three talent categories starting from CNY20 million (USD2.8 million), with top-tier talents in critically needed technology fields receiving up to CNY100 million, Li pointed out.

In addition to providing financial support for projects led by top-tier talent, the local government will also offer a comprehensive range of supplementary support measures, including housing guarantees, equity investment, and high-end services, Li said, adding that the goal is to establish a holistic support system for their development.

The EDZ will also initiate an annual concentrated application process for top-tier projects, Li noted. Various methods will be used to publicly solicit and select the projects that will receive ongoing support, Li added.

The EDZ is a high-tech industry cluster centered around optoelectronic information technology, which includes emerging industries such as integrated circuits, biomedicine, and artificial intelligence. Its gross domestic product reached CNY235 billion (USD32.9 billion) in the nine months ended Sept. 30, up 6.3 percent from a year earlier.

Editors: Tang Shihua, Martin Kadiev