Recently, the Office of the National Leadership Team for the Management of High-tech Enterprise Recognition made public for record and for announcement the three batches of high-tech enterprises recognized and reported in 2023 by the Guangdong Provincial recognition agency. 405 enterprises in Huadu District, Guangzhou are on the list, setting a new record of number of enterprises making the list, and as a result, the existing number of high-tech enterprises in the District exceeds 1,000 for the first time.

In 2023, Huadu's scientific and technological innovation work continued to achieve breakthroughs despite of all difficulties. Effective applications were made for 467 high-tech enterprises in the District, a year-on-year increase of 20.98%, with the number of applications reaching a new high, and the progress of application ranking third in the city. 405 high-tech enterprises were recognized in the year, an increase of 16.05% year-on-year, ranking the second in growth rate and fourth in successful recognition rate in the city, and making the number of high-tech enterprises in the district exceed 1,000 for the first time. 1,320 technology-based small and medium-sized enterprises were included, a year-on-year increase of 28.03%, and a net increase of 289 compared with 2022. As of December 2023, the credit risk loss compensation fund pool for small and medium-sized technology-based enterprises in Guangzhou has provided a total of 2,947 credit lines to 837 enterprises in Huadu District, with a credit amount of 13.663 billion yuan. Guangzhou Land Hai Robot System Co., Ltd. was recognized as a future unicorn of Guangzhou in 2023, delivering the District from the stalemate of not having new future unicorns in the past five years. And four companies including Guangzhou Dehongxi Packaging Materials Co., Ltd. were recognized as the seed unicorns of Guangzhou in 2023.

In 2022, the R&D investment in Huadu District reached a record high of 4.136 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 14.07%, which was 1.97 percentage points higher than the city's growth rate, and ranked fourth in the city; the R&D investment intensity reached 2.34%, an increase of 0.33 percentage points over the previous year, ranking fourth in the city; and the verification rate of enterprise R&D funds of the District was 52.30%, an increase of 10.80 percentage points, and ranking first in the city. Throughout the year, 31 entities applied for the title of provincial engineering center, a year-on-year increase of 63.16%, and the number of applications reached a new high; 6 enterprises passed the 2022 Guangdong Engineering Technology R&D Center certification, and 1 enterprise was included in the first batch of Guangdong Provincial Cultural and Technological Integration Demonstration Bases. In the Guangzhou Division of the China Innovation and Entrepreneurship Competition, 208 enterprises in Huadu District registered for competition, 83 were shortlisted for the quarterfinals, 12 entered the semi-finals of the Municipal Growth Group, 1 entered the finals of the Municipal Start-up Group, and 2 entered the provincial semi-finals, which made a record high. In 2023, a contestant from Huadu District won the first place in the youth group of the Guangzhou Science Popularization Competition, which is the best achievement in the history of the District.

A new "bridge" for communication between government and enterprises was built. On November 29, 2023, the Huadu District High-tech Enterprise Association was established, together with expert committees in the fields of new generation information technology, intelligent equipment and new materials. The Association will provide all-round support services for the development of high-tech enterprises in Huadu District through making publicity of preferential policies for enterprise development, communicating enterprise appeals, and others, so as to assist the government in promoting the high-quality development of technology-based enterprises.