Apple announces increased investment in China! What do they see as a point?

Apple's investment in applied research laboratories in China has exceeded 1 billion yuan and is continuing to grow.

Apple recently announced the expansion of its application research laboratory in China, not only enhancing the capabilities of its Shanghai research center, but also choosing to open a new application research laboratory in Shenzhen. In a press release, Apple Vice President and Managing Director of Greater China, Ge Yue, referred to the company's laboratory in China as a "world-class facility.".

Like Apple, more and more foreign-funded enterprises are expanding their R&D and innovation centers in China.

China has become a "source of development" for foreign enterprises

Zhang Yihao, Global Executive Vice President of GE Healthcare and President and CEO of GE Healthcare China, told China News Agency that China is a direct train, and currently, Chinese made products account for 80% of its sales in China, more than twice as much as three years ago. In the next three years, research and development investment in China will double again.

Yin Zheng, Executive Vice President of Schneider Electric and President of China and East Asia, stated that China, as one of the company's four global research and development bases, is an "important source of innovation and development".

The change in mindset of foreign-funded enterprises, which used to produce in China but now research and development in China, stems from the continuous improvement of China's innovation capabilities.

The 2023 global intellectual property declaration statistics released by the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) show that China is the largest source country for international patent applications and has been ranked first for four consecutive years. In another report previously released by the organization, China ranked 12th in the global innovation index in 2023, making it the only middle-income economy among the top 30.

"The fundamental driving force of innovation lies in people." Mo Anzeng, President of Youshibi China, a biopharmaceutical company headquartered in Brussels, Belgium, gave an example. China has accumulated a strong team of professional talents in the field of medicine and health, including experts, researchers, and practicing physicians. This huge team has driven medical innovation and the rapid development of the pharmaceutical industry, Thousands of medical schools and research institutions in China actively participate in new drug discovery and clinical trials, providing strong support for the industry's technological foundation.

In addition, China's abundant medical data resources and massive medical big data provide important information for pharmaceutical research and development.

The super large scale market enables innovation to be implemented

China is a huge economy with a population of over 1.4 billion and a gross domestic product of 126 trillion yuan. The super large market size provides broad space for enterprises to innovate and implement.

Schneider Electric believes that the ultra large single market is a prominent advantage for China. China's new energy development is at the forefront of the world, and its huge market size is a key driver of technological progress. How to seize the speed of China's new energy development and better support the demand brought by new energy scenarios through energy innovation is the core topic of its concern.

Nearly 60% of the global mining giant Rio Tinto Group's 2023 revenue was contributed by China.

Rio Tinto Group's Chief Business Officer, Bai Ruiming, told China News Service that China is a direct train, and the group has established the China Technology and Innovation Center in Beijing to better connect China's leading research, technology, and innovation capabilities.

China is further developing itself into an innovative country. According to this year's government work report, China will strengthen the layout of its basic research system, provide long-term stable support for a number of innovation bases, advantageous teams, and key directions, and enhance its original innovation capabilities. Analysis suggests that as China becomes a global innovation hub, its "magnetic force" towards foreign investment will continue to rise.

According to official statistics, in January this year, foreign investors invested in 4588 newly established foreign-funded enterprises in China, a year-on-year increase of 74.4%. Xu Xinxiong, CEO of Thai Tencel Group, believes that we will further seize the vast opportunities in the Chinese market and seize the "unchanging" and "changing" of the Chinese economy - China's super large market size and domestic demand potential will not change, but the constantly redefined market will drive continuous innovation and rapid iteration of the industry.