Beijing is positioning itself as a global hub for youth innovation and entrepreneurship, supported by a strong concentration of top-tier talent, a comprehensive industrial ecosystem, and robust policy and financial backing, participants said at the Beijing International Youth Innovation and Development Forum held on Saturday.

The forum, a parallel session of the 2026 ZGC Forum Annual Conference, brought together more than 500 attendees, including renowned scientists, entrepreneurs, and young innovators from China and abroad, serving as a platform for global talent to exchange ideas and expand collaboration.

Beijing offers an unparalleled density of talent and a world-class research environment, Zhang Linfeng, founder and chief scientist of DP Technology, a Beijing-based unicorn AI-for-Science company, said.

"For AI development, computing power is critical, and Beijing's intelligent computing resources provide essential support. For scientific research, the city's talent programs and policies ensure that top minds can thrive," Zhang said.

The forum unveiled the 2025 ZGC U30 Winners List, recognizing 30 young entrepreneurs in cutting-edge fields with an average age of 29. Nearly 97 percent of the winners are from strategic emerging industries, including biomedicine, brain science, artificial intelligence, and humanoid robotics.

Launched in 2015, the Zhongguancun U30 initiative aims to nurture young leaders in science and technology and support hard-tech entrepreneurship. To date, it has identified nearly 7,000 young innovators, selected 309 winners globally, and helped foster two publicly listed companies and more than 90 specialized enterprises.

"Beijing is a city willing to invest in imagination," Song Yachen, a 2025 U30 winner and founder and CEO of VAST, a generative 3D company, said.

"Comprehensive support from municipal and district authorities — from residency facilitation to talent development — has helped attract and retain top talent. Financial support and computing subsidies have directly fueled our model training. They are not just administrators, but partners who truly understand our needs."

The forum also introduced Beijing's efforts to build a comprehensive innovation and entrepreneurship ecosystem for young talent, with targeted measures to ease key challenges such as housing affordability and residency access. Going forward, Beijing will provide 30,000 housing units, 3 million square meters of innovation space, and a dedicated service team of 3,000 personnel for young professionals. In addition, a 30 billion yuan ($4.34 billion) development fund will be established to further support youth innovation and entrepreneurship.

A global youth talent empowerment program was also launched, featuring five "Beijing Tour" flagship projects that are expected to attract over 30,000 young participants annually for exchanges, internships, and entrepreneurial ventures in Beijing.

The forum also released the Global Youth Science and Technology Innovation Development Report 2026, conducted by a research team from Peking University's Institute of Area Studies. The report highlights the need to establish mechanisms for identifying and nurturing innovative talent and examines best practices from leading global innovation centers.

In addition, the event marked the launch of the China-Europe Center for Advanced Engineering Technology Talent, which aims to build a public platform for collaboration in talent, technology, and projects between China and Europe, supporting Beijing's key industries while fostering the development of world-class engineers and promoting international technological exchange.