Deep talent pool aids integration in Yangtze delta

Jake Zhao, a 27-year-old artificial intelligence scientist, had no hesitation in his decision to return to China from the US this year to join a Shanghai-based startup.

Zhao, a Beijing native who used to work for Facebook and Nvidia in the US, chose to work for Tigerobo, a Shanghai-based startup founded in 2017 to develop artificial intelligence (AI) related to financial information search and processing.

“I chose Shanghai because AI opportunities and the future of the science are here,” Zhao said.

Many companies at the vanguard of digital technologies see it that way.

Shenzhen-based Huawei Technologies is building a chip design research center in Shanghai that will employ 30,000 engineers. And Tesla, which is regarded as an AI company as much as an automaker, has located its first overseas factory in Shanghai.

The Yangtze River Delta, including Shanghai, is global magnet for digital talent, according to a recent report conducted by LinkedIn, researchers from Tsinghua University in Beijing and a Shanghai government think tank.

The deep and concentrated talent pool covers software and information technology services, computer hardware and networks, and manufacturing. The region also has talent advantages in “cuttingedge” sectors such as artificial intelligence, blockchain, cloud computing and data analysis, the report said.

The digital economy has become “new engine” for the development of higher-quality integration in the Yangtze River Delta, said Yang Yaowu, researcher and head of the Shanghai Institute of Science and Technology Policy.

China’s high-end manufacturing and technological innovation is still a “short-board,” though its manufacturing scale ranks first globally, said Chen Yubo, head of the Center of the Internet Development and Governance at Tsinghua University’s School of Economics and Management.

Four cities in the delta region — Shanghai, Hangzhou, Nanjing and Suzhou — rank in the top 10 cities of China for digital talent development in IT, software and service and manufacture. Globally, Shanghai and Hangzhou rank in the top 20, according to the report.

The region’s digital talent penetration rate, especially in Shanghai, is up to 27.8 percent, taking the leading position nationwide, according to LinkedIn’s data.

Huawei’s new center in the Qingpu District focuses on research in smart-end chips, wireless networks and the Internet of Things.

Shanghai is building a world-class business environment, with better services and environment for enterprise development, Shanghai Party Secretary Li Qiang said during a visit to Huawei’s new center last week.

Li said the city wants to create a new “highland” of reform and promotion of an innovative economy to boost development and integration of the Yangtze River Delta.

AI scientist Zhao is now vice president of technology in Tigerobo, which has already raised funds totaling 400 million yuan (US$57.1 million) since its founding in 2017.

The city’s AI@Shanghai project supports such startups with attracting potential professional talent, fundraising and marketing. Shanghai’s leading role in digital financial services nationally and globally was an attraction in Tigerobo’s decision to set up operations in the city, the company said.

About one-third China’s AI talent is in Shanghai. The city is home to more than 1,000 professional artificial intelligence firms and about 3,000 enterprises related to AI. They are part of an industry valued at 70 billion yuan a year, taking the leading position in China.

LinkedIn’s Economic Graph contributed data and opinions to the recent report, which also provided recommendations on harnessing talent, setting up training and fostering regional cooperation in the delta region, according to Wang Yanping, LinkedIn China’s general manager of public policy and government affairs.

LinkedIn now has more than