Shanghai's Pudong New Area has inaugurated the Zhangjiang Artificial Intelligence innovation town to attract global AI innovators and accelerate the shift from laboratory research to market-ready products. The project offers immersive, interactive scenarios that showcase the everyday value of advanced technology.

The town integrates three main categories of intelligent scenarios — industrial development, urban governance and lifestyle services. This design fosters a city of technology, imagination and human warmth, energizing industrial innovation while offering citizens a vivid preview of future living.

AI is no longer cold and impersonal. In the town, residents can experience a morning coffee made by a robot, personalized services provided by digital social workers, and interactive AI companions at home. Phones, cars, and home devices are becoming smarter and more intuitive, adapting to individual needs.

Jidou Technology, a resident enterprise, focuses on AI-powered automotive solutions, using large AI models to make vehicle cabins smarter and more attuned to drivers and passengers. "We are redefining in-car interaction, so a car becomes an intelligent partner," said Zhao Bin, the company's strategic cooperation general manager.

Zhao added that scenario-based applications allow businesses to connect with restaurants, hotels and transport services across the town, linking them to broader resources and partners throughout the industrial chain for joint AI innovation and market expansion.

The Model Power Community, the nation's first vertical large-model industry cluster, is located within the town. After more than a year of development, it has built a close-knit ecosystem where neighbors on different floors collaborate as part of the same AI value chain. 

"Unlike a traditional industrial park, the town focuses on real-life application scenarios," said Zhu Hui, general manager of Zhangjiang Science Gate Technology Development Co. "AI here is tangible and enhances daily convenience and industrial upgrades."

Planned as a 24-hour AI city, the town merges technological empowerment with human-centered care. Its intelligent layout across education, healthcare, commerce and tourism offers residents an immersive, convenient lifestyle that balances futuristic design with everyday warmth.

Pudong provides combined policy, space and capital support to attract entrepreneurs, scientists and early-stage startups worldwide. These resources help startups validate technology, secure funding and connect to markets, so good ideas find applications and secure orders. 

The newly opened Model Power Box Intelligent Complex functions as an AI application store, showroom and service center. It gathers advanced products for interactive experiences, allowing visitors to glimpse the future, engage with smart technology and take innovation home. 

The Zhangjiang AI town Linkage Fund, totaling 2 billion yuan ($280 million), was launched by GL Ventures and Pudong Venture Capital. It targets broad AI technologies and application scenarios, complementing the Pudong AI Seed Fund to incubate high-potential projects and future unicorns.

Plans call for continuous expansion into healthcare, finance and transportation. Leveraging 69,000 AI-computing resource cards and the 2-billion-yuan connectivity fund, the town aims to become a source of technological breakthroughs, an industrial cluster and a model of thriving AI development.

By opening its doors to global talent and resources, Zhangjiang Artificial Intelligence innovation town turns cutting-edge research into market realities, establishing itself as a true global home for AI dreamers where innovation meets opportunity.