Beijing produced a number of significant scientific innovations in 2017, including the first observation of three-component fermions, the production of synthetic yeast chromosome XII, and the first deep-learning processor for commercial use - the Cambricon-1A chip. 

These achievements benefited from a series of reforms and new measures implemented by the Beijing municipal government to build the city into a national science and technology innovation center. The central government has recently given commendations to the city for its innovation-driven development strategies, major national technology reforms and development policies. The city has also been commended for its promotion of independent innovations and its work in facilitating technology transfers. 

In 2017, Beijing launched 215 key projects among its four major science and technology development zones, completing 96 percent, according to a report by a third-party evaluator. 

The city also announced a package of measures on the construction of new world-class research and development institutions, such as the Global Health Drug Discovery Institute, the Beijing Academy of Quantum Information Sciences, and the Central Institute for Brain Science Research, in order to explore scientific management and operational mechanisms that match with international standards. 

In addition, Beijing has set up a science and technology innovation fund of 20 billion yuan (US$3.45 billion) to attract private capital to jointly invest in high-end "hard technology" innovations. The city plans to raise the fund to 100 billion yuan or more in the next five years. Moreover, Beijing has published a catalogue of high-end industrial standards and industry categories to promote the development of 10 key industries, including new information technology.

As the national bellwether in terms of science and technology, Beijing's spending on research and development reached 5.7 percent of its GDP in 2017, the most in China. The city received 78 State Science and Technology Prizes, accounting for 36.1 percent of the total awards for national general projects. Its overall level of technology innovation ranked first among all provinces and regions.

More importantly, Beijing has issued innovation vouchers to support small and medium-sized innovative companies. Small companies and startup teams can use the vouchers to pay for scientific research services provided by universities and institutions. According to statistics provided by the Beijing Municipal Science and Technology Commission, vouchers worth a total of 140 million yuan have been used to support 2,115 small companies and 111 startup teams working on 2,402 innovation projects.

Apart from the vouchers, the Beijing municipal government has supported the technology transfer of scientific and technological achievements through a series of policies. It set goals in 36 key tasks, started reforms in income distribution and human resources management, and encouraged universities to create positions for technology transfers. With the implementation of the policies, the science and technology service industry has developed rapidly, reporting a total added value of 231.23 billion yuan for the first three quarters of 2017.

Beijing has also taken the lead in piloting equity incentives in Zhongguancun. One hundred and five pilot projects of equity and dividend incentives submitted by state-owned enterprises, universities, and research institutes in Zhongguancun have been approved, and 405 scientific research and management employees have obtained equity.

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