Construction began on Nov 1 on a joint R&D center for artificial intelligence and the life sciences in the Lin-gang Special Area in Shanghai, which marked the groundbreaking of a major International Collaborative Innovation Zone there.

The Lin-gang Special Area holds a groundbreaking ceremony for the International Collaborative Innovation Zone on Nov 1. [Photo/WeChat account: shlgguanweihui]

It is understood that the zone will focus on developing cutting-edge technology industries such as integrated circuits, life sciences, AI, and the digital economy.

The zone, situated on a site covering 6.95 square kilometers, consists of three sections: the innovation headquarters bay, World Laureates Association Science Community and the sci-tech innovation town community.

The proposed innovation headquarters bay, which faces the sea and the river, will cover an area of 0.52 sq km. This area will undertake R&D functions and be responsible for the development and construction of a premier waterfront business space that hosts scientific and technological professionals and companies.

The WLA Science Community facility, on a planned area of 3.2 sq km, will attract some of the foremost personnel in their fields in the world. Plans are for it to be the permanent site of the World Laureates Forum, a joint R&D center, a commercialization center for scientific and technological achievements and a Mobius science park, as well as offering other support facilities.

The innovation town community will cover 3.2 sq km and will rely on first-class university resources in Lin-gang, to form a development configuration that integrates university campuses, the science and technology park and the public community.

The permanent site of the WLF completes the lifting of its roof grid on Oct 6. [Photo/WeChat account: shlgguanweihui]

To date, the permanent site of World Laureates Forum has completed the lifting of its roof grid and is planned to start operations in October 2022 as the site of the 5th WLF.

More than 1 million sq m of R&D buildings – including Crystal Innovation Towers – have already been put into use in the innovation town community that is being established, attracting more than 300 R&D institutions, science and technology enterprises and more than 5,000 R&D personnel.

An impressive wide view of the Crystal Innovation Towers. [Photo/WeChat account: shlgguanweihui]

It is expected that by the end of the 14th Five-Year Plan period (2021-25), the International Collaborative Innovation Zone will have attracted and built more than 30 first-class scientific research institutions and scientist workstations at home and abroad.

Additionally, it will have attracted 30,000-50,000 top-flight staff and have added 1,000 innovation enterprises and R&D institutions.