Shanghai’s Foundation Model Innovation Center (SMC) is rewriting the rules of AI development, positioning itself as a global hotspot for generative AI innovation. Since its 2023 launch, the incubator has drawn nearly 400 AI enterprises to Xuhui District, blending academic brainpower 🧠, cutting-edge tech, and big ideas.
From Chips to Chatbots: A Blueprint for Success
SMC isn’t just coding—it’s building the infrastructure. Hybrid computing chips? Check. 'AI computing power supermarkets' giving developers on-demand resources? Double-check ✅. The goal? A 100% homegrown tech stack to compete globally.
Policy Meets Punk-Rock Energy
Shanghai’s gov flipped the startup playbook with a 'challenge-and-grant' model: industry giants set R&D challenges 💡, startups solve them. The result? Over 90% of founding teams rock Ivy-League-level credentials, while 80% focus on industry-specific AI (think healthcare robots 🤖 and self-driving cars 🚗).
With 255 companies and 34 certified large models already thriving, SMC’s 'nuclear explosion point' strategy aims to blast AI into every corner of society. As one dev quipped, 'We’re not coding the future—we’re compiling it.'
