Shanghai entrepreneurship competition for young engineers opens registration

english.shanghai.gov.cn| July 15, 2025

Registration is underway for the third Shanghai Innovation and Entrepreneurship Competition for Young and Mid-career Engineers.

As the only provincial-level region in China selected as a pilot program that uses competitions to seek and cultivate digital technology talent, Shanghai aims to leverage this event to explore and shape a unique "Shanghai model" for nurturing innovative, entrepreneurial engineers in the digital economy era.

The competition will spotlight 30 standout projects, nurture 30 dynamic teams, and identify 30 promising engineering professionals with exceptional innovation and entrepreneurial potential.

Competition tracks

This year's competition features eight preliminary tracks: information technology and future industries, fintech, "Data Element ×," biomedicine, high-end equipment manufacturing, planning and resources, smart transportation, and urban renewal.

If you are unsure which track best fits your project, you can select any track initially. The organizing office will invite experts to assess your submission. After consulting with your team and reviewing the overall entries, they will help assign the most suitable track.

Here's a quick overview of the eight tracks:

Information technology and future industries

Projects related to computer technology, mobile communications, Internet devices, smart terminals, and cutting-edge tech such as cloud computing, artificial intelligence, and virtual reality.

Fintech

Projects involving applied technology research, product development, service operations, and performance evaluation in fintech sector.

"Data Element ×"

Pioneering data-driven innovations across sectors, including industrial manufacturing, modern agriculture, commerce, transportation, financial services, scientific and technological innovation, culture, tourism, healthcare, medical security, emergency management, meteorology, urban governance, and green low-carbon initiatives.

Biomedicine

Projects involving pharmaceutical R&D and production, medical equipment development and manufacturing, and industry technology services.

High-end equipment manufacturing

Projects involving electrical automation, shipbuilding, aerospace, and other advanced industrial fields.

Planning and resources

Innovations in spatial planning, urban design, and geospatial mapping technologies.

Smart transportation

Digital and intelligent technologies across all stages of transportation systems, from planning to operations.

Urban renewal

Projects enhancing housing quality and improving urban structures for resilient and safe cities, as well as the renewal of old neighborhoods and the preservation of urban heritage.

Eligibility

Project requirements

Innovative projects should focus innovations at the R&D or production stage, such as new technologies, products, or engineering methods. Projects must be practical, feasible, and capable of yielding a tangible product or a visualized solution, with clear goals, defined technical specifications, and a reliable timeline. All technologies must have independent and legally owned intellectual property with no disputes.
Entrepreneurial projects should be engineering outcomes already promoted or operating in the market, featuring mature technologies, clear IP rights, and strong business potential. Projects must comply with national laws, and all intellectual property must be fully owned or licensed without disputes.

Participant requirements

The competition is open to individuals or teams of up to five members. Participants must identify a project lead and a technical lead — the same person can hold both roles.

The technical lead must be an engineering professional. Other team members can be involved in related areas such as engineering, project management, or the commercialization of research results.

To apply for senior engineer qualification in the final stage, you must be either the project or technical lead. Once eligibility is confirmed, team members cannot be changed.

1. No serious legal or disciplinary violations in the past three years; a good credit record is required.

2. A bachelor's degree or above in science or engineering, and around three years of relevant work experience are generally required.

3. Participants should typically work in engineering or technical roles at companies or institutions based in Shanghai. Those employed by centrally administered organizations in Shanghai are required to provide a letter of recommendation.

4. Each participant can only register for one project.

Additional notes for the "Data Element ×" track

If you have already taken part in the 2025 "Data Element ×" Shanghai regional competition, you do not need to register again. Outstanding winning teams from the Shanghai round may be recommended to advance directly to the finals of the 3rd Innovation and Entrepreneurship Competition for Young and Mid-career Engineers, subject to eligibility.

Additional notes for the planning and resources track

In addition to the general eligibility criteria, participants must meet the following conditions:

1. Projects must be submitted by a team.

2. Each team must have one project lead (serving as a mentor) and one technical lead — these must be different people.

3. The project lead (mentor) must:

Have at least 20 years of experience in territorial spatial planning/design or surveying and mapping.
Hold a senior professional title or equivalent, and be no older than 60 years old.

4. Other team members should be no older than 45 years old.

5. Each organization may submit no more than two teams in this track.

Additional notes for the Smart Transportation track

If you have already taken part in the third "Zhe-Gang Cup" Yangtze River Delta Intelligent Transportation Innovation Technology Application Competition (Shanghai division), there is no need to register again.

Projects and teams that received the grand prize, first prize, second prize, or third prize in the Shanghai finals may be recommended to advance directly to the finals of the 3rd Innovation and Entrepreneurship Competition for Young and Mid-career Engineers, based on overall performance.

How to register

Teams or individuals can click here to submit personal information and project materials.

Projects recommended by relevant municipal industry authorities, district-level human resources and social security bureaus, professional senior title review committees in engineering, or two experts holding senior professional titles in related fields will have their eligibility confirmed by the track organizers. In this case, a recommendation form must be uploaded when registering.

Participants may also apply independently. Self-nominated projects will be reviewed and evaluated by a panel of experts organized by the competition office before final eligibility is confirmed.

Timeline

Registration (July 11 to 28, 2025)

Online registration is open until July 28 via the competition website, through self-nomination or formal recommendation.

Development and mentoring (August to September 2025)

Around 50 free expert-led sessions will be organized on trends, operations, and policies. One-on-one guidance will also be provided for digital tech projects.

Preliminary round (Mid to late September 2025)

Finals and project showcase (October to November 2025)

Finalists will present roadshow-style pitches at the 2025 Shanghai Professional Talent and Project Matchmaking Conference. Expert judges will evaluate the finalist projects and select the top performers. Meanwhile, professional title review experts will assess each participant's performance, skills, and capabilities throughout the competition and recommend corresponding professional titles.

Ongoing evaluation and support (long-term)

Outstanding projects will continue to receive attention from the organizing office, track hosts, and partner institutions. Project mentors are encouraged to offer long-term technical support, and past winning projects will be regularly reviewed in future editions of the competition.

Contact

1. Competition office

Contacts: Tao, Cui

Phone: 021-6381-7822, 021-2311-0186, 189-1888-5021

Fax: 021-5072-2533

Email: sh_gongchengshi@163.com

2. Information technology and future Industries track

Contacts: Wan, Xu

Phone: 021-6212-9221, 182-1754-6600

Email: shsttccxcy@sh-sict.com

3. Fintech track

Contacts: Huang, Tang