How can every AI idea be rapidly transformed into real-world applications? How can a world-class innovation hub evolve into a self-sustaining, continuously advancing urban intelligence system?
At the AI Open Source Frontier Forum during the 2026 Zhongguancun Forum Annual Conference, Beijing's Haidian District unveiled its latest "answer": a "Century-Old Jingzhang AI Innovation Belt", stretching nine kilometers and covering 37 square kilometers, is now open to global proposals for integrated planning. This initiative extends an open call to the global community of AI developers and users, aiming to deeply integrate AI technologies into every stage of the innovation belt's planning and design.
The AI Genesis Community in Haidian District, Beijing. (Photo provided by the Publicity Department of the CPC Haidian District Committee)
To achieve the optimal allocation of innovation resources across the entire district, the revitalization and upgrading of urban spaces, and the successful implementation of demonstration projects, Haidian has innovatively formulated a new planning framework. This framework integrates specialized plans, such as development planning, spatial planning, and transportation planning, and will be systematically advanced across three spatial levels, to create new application scenarios where AI benefits people's daily lives.
The century-old Beijing-Zhangjiakou railway is a testament to the nation's strength and resilience. Today, around the Beijing-Zhangjiakou Railway Heritage Park, innovation forces are once again converging, transforming the area into fertile ground for the age of artificial intelligence. Prestigious research institutions such as Tsinghua University, Peking University, and the Chinese Academy of Sciences are rooted here. Leading technology companies like Douyin, Zhipu, Moonshot AI, and Tencent have established a strong presence. New R&D institutions such as the Beijing Academy of Artificial Intelligence are thriving. Over ten million square meters of industrial space are ready for development, and 95,000 AI professionals are deeply engaged in work here.
In its efforts to build a global hub for the artificial intelligence industry, Haidian has already taken decisive and steady steps. In 2024, Haidian took the lead in planning the nation's first AI innovation zone, establishing a new platform for AI industry development. In January 2026, its core area, the AI Genesis Community, was selected as one of the city's first four AI innovation zones, serving as a key engine for AI innovation. Building on this foundation, the Beijing municipal government and Haidian District have jointly advanced the development of the world-class "Century-Old Jingzhang AI Innovation Belt", ushering in a new phase for Haidian's AI development.
"We aim to answer a critical question of our time: how can a world-class innovation region evolve into a self-sustaining, continuously evolving urban intelligence system", said Yue Li, Deputy Party Secretary of the Haidian District Committee. He explained that Haidian has deeply integrated planning needs with industrial policies, carefully packaging them into a "Haidian Skill" toolkit, which is now being shared globally through mainstream open-source platforms. This initiative is not only a global invitation but also embodies the spirit of open source, inviting developers from around the world to participate, co-build, and co-share, making the "Century-Old Jingzhang AI Innovation Belt" a collective achievement of global wisdom.
"Currently, artificial intelligence is evolving at a rapid pace. One of the core trends is the shift from generative AI to agentic AI. Agentic AI has begun to be deeply applied across various industries, with its application scenarios continuously expanding, making it an important form through which AI technologies move from laboratories to industrial sectors," said Ya-Qin Zhang, Dean of the Institute for AI Industry Research of Tsinghua University.
Haidian's deep talent pool is the foundation that enables it to be among the first to sense the waves of AI innovation. Beijing has issued major policy documents such as the Action Plan for Building an AI Innovation Hub and the Implementation Plan for Building Beijing's Open Source Ecosystem (2026–2028), striving to establish Beijing as a global AI innovation hub that combines technological origination capabilities with industrial competitiveness. "With 135 of the AI 2000's top global scholars and 31 youth leaders from the One Hundred Year Study of Artificial Intelligence (AI100) program, Haidian accounts for 34 percent and 47 percent of the national totals, respectively", said Zhang Ge, Party Secretary of the Haidian District Committee. "As the core area for Beijing's AI development, Haidian has always been at the forefront of technological innovation, leading the new frontier of artificial intelligence and shouldering the responsibility of building a global AI innovation hub."
In the age of artificial intelligence, the speed of innovation determines the height of development. An idea that cannot be rapidly transformed into real-world applications risks being left behind.
At the AI Genesis Community in Haidian—recognized as one of the "world's top ten innovation zones", a "ten-minute rule" is widely praised by entrepreneurs: within a ten-minute walk, entrepreneurs can engage in face-to-face discussions with top professors in AI industry to explore research directions and solve technical challenges, hold meetings with multiple venture capitalists to negotiate partnerships and secure funding, and easily find reliable computing power providers and a complete industrial chain support system.
Just as deep waters nurture large fish and rich soil fosters thriving forests, on January 8, 2026, Zhipu, a Haidian-based company spun out of Tsinghua University, was successfully listed in Hong Kong, becoming the "world's first publicly listed company focused on large AI models," setting another benchmark for the development of Haidian's AI industry. In 2025, Haidian added nine newly listed companies, covering hardcore technology sectors such as energy storage systems, artificial intelligence, and semiconductor chips. This accounted for 37.5 percent of the total number of newly listed companies in Beijing, ranking first in the city and demonstrating the strong resilience of the technology industry's development.
As the core area for Beijing's artificial intelligence development, Haidian stands as the "hardcore engine" of China's AI growth: over 2,000 AI enterprises have taken root and are thriving here; 26 unicorn companies have emerged strongly and are leading their fields; 130 large models have been registered; and the core AI industry's output value has exceeded 350 billion yuan, accounting for 30 percent of the national total.
With open source as its brush and innovation as its ink, Haidian is painting a new picture of urban evolution and development. As the construction of the "Century-Old Jingzhang AI Innovation Belt" begins in earnest, developers, entrepreneurs, and dreamers from around the world will join hands and work together to shape the future.
Source: Xinhua Daily Telegraph
