SHENZHEN will leverage government guidance funds to support early-stage and long-term investments in hard tech startups, aiming to set up a service system to nurture 1,000 gazelle end 80 unicorn companies by 2027.

The city will establish a mechanism for identifying, cultivating, and strengthening gazelle firms and unicorns, according to a policy document the Shenzhen Municipal Bureau of Industry and Information Technology released Monday.

Gazelle companies are fast-growing innovative startups, typically with at least a 20% sustained revenue growth over four years and a base revenue of US$100,000. Unicorns are usually privately held startups worth at least US$1 billion and set up no more than 10 years ago.

Focusing on 20 strategic emerging industry clusters and eight future industries, the city will form and improve a full-chain service system for potential gazelle and unicorn companies, including precise identification, gradient cultivation, and ecological empowerment, the document said.

Shenzhen will establish a gazelle and unicorn enterprise service alliance to provide “one-on-one” targeted services for promising local startups, especially companies or projects that have achieved original and breakthrough innovations, according to the document. The services include tailoring financial service plans for each gazelle and unicorn firm, providing financial guarantees, and issuing exclusive loans.

The city pledges specific measures for improving the gazelle and unicorn enterprise innovation ecosystem, including providing affordable research, manufacturing, and office spaces, research subsidies, and facilitating the application scenarios for these firms’ products and services.

The city also promises one-stop and all-rounded preferential policies to lure and nurture high-level talents needed to drive the growth of these firms.

The number of gazelle firms and unicorns is an important indicator for measuring a region’s economic activity, innovation and entrepreneurship vitality, and development prospects.

China had 369 unicorns as of March last year, ranking second worldwide, according to the annual China Unicorn Enterprise Development report released by the Zhongguancun Unicorn Enterprise Development Alliance. Beijing had the most with 114 unicorns, followed by Shanghai with 63 and Shenzhen with 32. The number of gazelle companies in China exceeded 35,000 as of the end of last July, according to statistics from the Gazelle Cloud Database.(SD-Agencies)