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Shandong Data Industry Push: What Foreign Founders Need to Know

Shandong province has issued a new implementation opinion to accelerate high-quality development of its data industry, targeting over 25,000 data enterprises and 70 listed data companies by 2028. For foreign founders, this signals expanded opportunities in data services, AI, and digital infrastructure, along with clearer pathways for market entry and operation in China.

Shandong's Data Industry Ambitions

Shandong Province has released an implementation opinion aimed at accelerating the high-quality development of its data industry. The policy focuses on strengthening the role of data as a production factor and artificial intelligence as a driving force, cultivating data enterprises, and expanding the data industry cluster. For foreign founders considering establishing or expanding a business in China, this policy outlines specific targets and support mechanisms that could shape market opportunities and operational considerations.

Key Targets and Enterprise Cultivation

By 2028, Shandong aims to have more than 25,000 data enterprises, including over 70 listed companies and more than 500 unicorn and gazelle enterprises. The province will establish a provincial data enterprise cultivation database and conduct regular cultivation for six categories of data enterprises: data resources, data technology, data services, data applications, data security, and data infrastructure. A gradient cultivation action will identify and support growth-oriented data enterprises, with eligible firms receiving financial services and computing power support.

The policy encourages traditional data-intensive enterprises, industry leaders, and internet platform companies to establish independent data business entities through new setups or restructuring. Traditional enterprises are urged to break down data barriers in production, manufacturing, circulation, and sales to upgrade into data application enterprises. Professional third-party institutions such as legal, accounting, auditing, and asset valuation firms are supported to expand into data compliance certification, security auditing, quality evaluation, asset valuation, and risk assessment.

Municipalities are encouraged to improve investment promotion policies for data enterprises, identify key targets, and conduct targeted promotional activities. They may revitalize idle parks and buildings, exploring equity participation or cooperative construction to attract data business from leading internet companies.

Sector-Specific Development Directions

Data Annotation and Processing

The policy supports the development of data annotation industries serving artificial intelligence in qualified cities and counties, enhancing employment absorption. It promotes intelligent annotation and 4D annotation technologies, improves complex data annotation capabilities in fintech and biomedicine, and pushes the industry toward technology-intensive, high-value-added areas.

Data Resource Development

Enterprises are encouraged to increase innovation investment in data collection, aggregation, computing and storage, circulation and trading, development and utilization, and security governance. Support includes forming innovation consortia with upstream and downstream enterprises, universities, and research institutes, and utilizing provincial key laboratories and technology innovation centers.

Data Asset Value-Added

Public data authorized operation agencies are supported to enrich data products and services, strengthening vertical industry data circulation platforms in marine, healthcare, and transportation sectors. The policy aims to cultivate data brokerage, consulting, and hosting, and to orderly promote data asset confirmation, measurement, and information disclosure by administrative institutions and enterprises. It also explores data asset operation models such as capital contribution and financing guarantees cautiously.

Clustering, Synergy, and AI Integration

Shandong will advance pilot data industry cluster zones in Jinan and Qingdao, and encourage other cities to develop specialized "small and refined" clusters based on local strengths. By 2028, the province aims to form more than 30 data industry clusters, with average annual growth of over 20%. Digital empowerment platforms and public service platforms will be built to support cluster development and cross-enterprise data circulation.

Chain leader enterprises are supported to integrate data resources across the entire chain, driving collaborative innovation. Leading firms are encouraged to provide data and computing resources to SMEs. The province will map a "1 atlas" of the data industry and "N lists" of projects and scenarios to address weak links.

The policy emphasizes mutual empowerment between the data and AI industries. It promotes "data as a service," "knowledge as a service," and "model as a service." By 2027, more than 50 high-quality industry datasets will be built in 16 key fields including scientific research and healthcare, supporting AI model training. A "model-data resonance" action will explore combining data, technology, scenarios, and funding to develop industry and scenario models.

Data industry and traditional industry transformation will also be mutually reinforced. Activities will match data products with application scenarios and industry needs with solutions. Qualified counties may explore integration paths in agriculture, transportation, healthcare, and urban governance. Traditional enterprises are encouraged to recruit data enterprise "partners" and authorize their data resources to data enterprises for product development and revenue sharing.

Supply, Talent, and Financial Support

Public data openness will be expanded with annual lists updated. Authorized operation mechanisms will supply high-value public data products to data enterprises. Enterprise data management will be guided, and leading firms and internet platforms are encouraged to open data under classification and protection rules.

Data talent cultivation includes implementing a chief data officer system in qualified enterprises. Universities, research institutes, and enterprises are encouraged to jointly build data industry colleges and training bases. By 2028, about 10 data-related disciplines will be supported in universities, with about 5 new doctoral and master's programs. Technical education digital literacy programs and AI general courses will be promoted.

Financial support includes provincial fiscal funds for data enterprises and pilot projects, and recommendation of qualified projects for central budget investment. Eligible data enterprises can broaden financing through IPOs, science and technology innovation bonds, and data asset securitization (ABS). Government investment funds will increase support, and financial institutions are guided to innovate financial products suited to data enterprises under compliant and risk-controlled conditions.

Infrastructure, Going Global, and Security

The province will accelerate building an integrated computing power service platform and improve supply-demand matching. Enterprises are supported to build secure and trustworthy data infrastructure and participate in enterprise, industry, and city trusted data spaces. A "Qi Computing Interconnection" action will promote computing-network integration, providing millisecond-level network access within urban areas, with Jinan and Qingdao piloting "millisecond computing" initiatives.

For data enterprises going global, the "Shanhai Jing Going Global Comprehensive Service Port" will provide full-chain public services and solutions. A cross-border data circulation service system will be built, leveraging the Qingdao International Communication Business Gateway to offer low-latency, high-bandwidth, and secure international data transmission. New service models such as "data processing for re-export" and "token export" will be explored under compliance. Cities are encouraged to pursue national international cooperation pilots in data.

The policy also stresses security, requiring implementation of national data classification and grading protection systems and strengthening protection involving national security.

Practical Implications for Foreign Founders

Foreign founders looking to enter China's data sector may find opportunities in Shandong's push to cultivate data enterprises, develop annotation and AI datasets, and build industry clusters. The policy's emphasis on attracting data businesses, supporting SMEs, and developing cross-border data services could create entry points for foreign-invested enterprises. However, compliance with data security and classification rules remains essential. Engaging with local investment promotion policies and utilizing support platforms may help navigate the landscape.

Call to Action: Foreign founders can contact ChinaMNC on WhatsApp / WeChat at +86 153 1898 8535 for help registering and operating a company in China.

This summary is based on information published by the relevant Chinese government website and is general information, not legal or tax advice.