Currently, there are 409 unicorn companies in China, ranking second in the world; The total valuation of unicorn companies is about $1.5 trillion, and the financing ability of hard tech unicorn companies is strong... The latest research data shows that Chinese unicorn companies play an important role in the development of the new economy, demonstrating strong innovation capabilities and market potential. The reporter noticed that in recent times, many regions have successively introduced support measures to establish mechanisms for discovering and cultivating growth of gazelle and unicorn enterprises, strengthen empowerment support in innovation, finance, talent and other aspects, and help unicorn enterprises to grow and run. The number of enterprises worldwide accounts for nearly 30%. Recently, the "China Unicorn Enterprise Development Report (2025)" (hereinafter referred to as the "Report") jointly released by multiple authoritative institutions such as Zhongguancun Unicorn Enterprise Development Alliance, China Electronics Information Industry Development Research Institute Science and Technology Standards Research Institute, and Tsinghua University China Science and Technology Policy Research Center shows that there are currently 409 unicorn enterprises in China, accounting for nearly 30% of the global unicorn enterprises and ranking second in the world; The total valuation of related enterprises is approximately $1506.8 billion. Unicorn enterprises generally refer to unlisted companies that have been established for no more than 10 years, have a valuation of over 1 billion US dollars, and possess unique core technologies, competitive advantages, and market potential. It is worth noting that unicorn companies in emerging industries are growing rapidly and receiving significant attention from the capital market. The above report shows that 409 unicorn companies are distributed in 12 fields. In terms of quantity, enterprises in the fields of new consumption and retail, artificial intelligence, integrated circuits, intelligent equipment, and healthcare rank among the top five, accounting for a total of 68.0%. In terms of valuation, unicorn companies in the fields of artificial intelligence, new consumer and retail, and integrated circuits are ranked among the top three, with valuations of $461.2 billion, $203.9 billion, and $192.5 billion, respectively. Unicorn enterprises have the characteristics of strong innovation ability, good growth potential, and high market recognition, and are the 'barometer' of the development of the new economy Cheng Nan, Director of the Institute of Science and Standards at the China Academy of Electronic Information Industry Development, said that in particular, hard tech unicorn companies have developed rapidly and demonstrated strong financing capabilities. By 2024, nearly 60% of newly financed unicorn companies will be concentrated in fields such as artificial intelligence, new energy technology, autonomous driving, and robotics. Multiple regions continue to release policy benefits. Currently, a series of policy benefits are being continuously released to promote and support the development of unicorn enterprises. This year's government work report proposes to cultivate innovative enterprises in a gradient manner, promote the development and growth of specialized, refined, unique, and new small and medium-sized enterprises, support the development of unicorn and gazelle enterprises, and enable more enterprises to accelerate in new fields and tracks. The reporter noticed that recently, Shanghai, Shenzhen, Zhejiang, Sichuan and other places have successively introduced relevant support measures, focusing on emerging industries and key areas of future industries, and building mechanisms for discovering and cultivating growth of gazelle and unicorn enterprises. For example, the recently released "Shenzhen Strong and Effective Support for the Development of Gazelle Enterprises and Unicorn Enterprises Action Plan (2025-2027)" proposes to focus on the "20+8" strategic emerging industry clusters and future industrial fields, explore multiple channels, and establish a gradient cultivation library for gazelle enterprises and unicorn enterprises. By 2027, a total of 1000 gazelle enterprises and 80 unicorn enterprises will be cultivated. Sichuan plans to accelerate the cultivation of a group of seed unicorn enterprises, whose main businesses and core technologies belong to industries such as electronic information, aerospace, and biomanufacturing, as well as new fields in future industries such as 6G, quantum technology, metaverse, neuromorphic intelligence, deep space and deep earth, and high growth emerging fields such as artificial intelligence and embodied intelligence. Unicorn companies often possess breakthrough technologies, innovative business models, or unique services that can disrupt existing market patterns or open up new market tracks Chang'an Yun, Deputy Director of the Artificial Intelligence Research Institute at the Saizhi Industry Research Institute, believes that the emergence and growth of unicorn enterprises can strongly attract high-end innovation factors such as talent, capital, and technology, promote deep coupling and efficient collaboration between the industrial chain and innovation chain, optimize the overall industrial structure of the local area, and stimulate regional innovation vitality. Multiple measures will be taken to support the growth of unicorn and gazelle enterprises. At the same time, a combination of policies such as improving the innovation ecosystem, strengthening financial empowerment, and increasing talent security will be further strengthened to support the growth and expansion of unicorn and gazelle enterprises. The Ministry of Industry and Information Technology previously stated that it will support unicorn enterprises in technological innovation, encourage and guide unicorn enterprises to carry out technological research and development around national strategic needs, and master more "unique skills". Increase financial support for unicorn companies, leverage the role of industry finance cooperation platforms, and support unicorn companies in going public, mergers and acquisitions, and restructuring. In addition, Shenzhen has proposed to effectively leverage the role of government guided funds, with various policy funds prioritizing investment in gazelle and unicorn enterprises in the gradient cultivation pool; Relying on financial institutions, we tailor financial service solutions for every gazelle and unicorn enterprise, promote the "investment loan linkage" model, and provide combined financing support according to enterprise needs. Changsha Economic Development Zone proposes to reward newly evaluated unicorn enterprises and gazelle enterprises with up to 1 million yuan and 200000 yuan respectively. The growth of unicorn companies requires both their own technological strength and a favorable development environment Cheng Nan said that in the future, enterprises can further expand their innovation space and resources, develop innovation incubators, promote the deep integration of technology and finance, and provide more capital support and market opportunities for innovative enterprises; Encourage enterprises to increase their research and development efforts, and form a technology innovation system with enterprises as the main body, market-oriented, and deep integration of industry, academia, and research; Improve the intellectual property protection system, promote the rapid development and marketization of new technologies and products. An Yun stated that it is necessary to further construct a full cycle policy support system and implement differentiated support measures for enterprises at different stages of development; Intensify financial and tax incentives in basic research and core technology fields, innovate talent introduction mechanisms, and strengthen international talent service guarantees; Promote the sharing of major scientific research facilities, enhance the efficiency of scientific and technological achievements transformation, establish a special fund for emerging industries, and further guide social capital to tilt towards early hard technology projects. (New Society)