On March 23, a report on unicorn companies--startup valued at over US$1 billion--in Zhongguancun was jointly published by the Ministry of Science and Technology, the Greatwall Strategy Consultants, and the Zhongguancun Administrative Committee at a press conference in Beijing. The report shows that, in 2017, a total of 70 unicorns were stationed in Zhongguancun with a combined value of US$276.4 billion, accounting for 42.7 percent of all unicorns in China and 43.9 percent of their total value.
In 2017, there were also five decacorns--companies valued over US$10 billion--in Zhongguancun: DiDi (US$56 billion), Xiaomi (US$46 billion), Meituan (US$30 billion), Toutiao (US$20 billion), and Jiedaibao (US$10.8 billion). They accounted for 58.9 percent of the total value of unicorns in Zhongguancun.
Of the 70 unicorns in Zhongguancun, 22 companies emerged in 2017, which covered 17 business sectors including e-commerce, internet finance, transportation, and online education.
Apart from the five decacorns, there were 19 unicorns valued at US$2 billion to US$5 billion, and 44 unicorns valued at US$1 billion to US$2 billion. In Zhongguancun, 60 percent of the unicorns were found in the five major sectors of e-commerce, culture & entertainment, transportation, internet finance, and online education. Meanwhile, half of the country's cutting-edge tech unicorns also gathered in Zhongguancun, doing business in artificial intelligence, genomics, precision medicine, blockchain and new energy, and leading the development of cutting-edge science & technology in China.
Weng Qiwen, deputy director of the Zhongguancun Administrative Committee, said at the press conference that the number of unicorns in Zhongguancun had been on the rise three years in a row. The encouraging atmosphere for innovation and startup business in Zhongguancun provided a favorable environment for producing unicorns.