Shenzhen has secured 44 spots on the Hurun Research Institute’s Global Unicorn Index 2026 released Thursday, ranking sixth among cities worldwide. The index identifies the world’s leading startups founded in the 2000s that are valued at least US$1 billion and have not yet gone public. This year’s tally reached a record-breaking 1,603 unicorns globally, an increase of 80 companies over the previous year. The U.S. leads the global count with 806 unicorns, followed by China with 381. In China, Beijing maintains the lead with 86 unicorns, followed by Shanghai (74), Shenzhen (44), Hangzhou (25), and Guangzhou (24)