Focusing on International Innovative Thinking and Sharing New Opportunities with Global Pioneers

On 17 January 2019, The Second Italy-Greater Bay Area Innovation Road was held in Tianan Cloud Park, Shenzhen. The event was co-hosted by Intesa Sanpaolo, Gianni, Origoni, Grippo, Cappelli & Partners, Link4Success, Deloitte China and Tianan Success, and supported by New Fortune.

Under the theme of "Innovation Road", the event provided a good opportunity for Italian tech companies to exchange ideas with Chinese businesses face-to-face. Focusing on a wide range of topics including environmental technology, intelligent automation, AI+, Industry 4.0 and food technologies, the event has attracted various prominent entrepreneurs and experts from Italy. It was expected to facilitate communications among entrepreneurs through introduction of projects. In addition, the event aimed to facilitate multinational projects in Shenzhen, promote technological cooperation and market development across countries, enable efficient allocation of innovative resources, and share emerging opportunities of investment and innovation-oriented collaborations.

Many government officials and business executives were invited to the event, namely the Consul General of Italy in Guangzhou Lucia Pasqualini, Vice Secretary-General of Shenzhen Municipal People's Government Li Zhuowen, Deputy Director of Investment Shenzhen Zhang Feimeng, Vice Governor of Longgang District Chen Guangwen, Vice Secretary of the Party Working Committee and Director of the Administrative Office of Longgang District Bantian Sub-district Lin Yitao, Chairman of Tianan Success Hu Aimin, Chief Strategy Officer Ma Shen and CEO Yang Yi. Overall, more than 300 guests from leading Italian organizations in AI+ and Industry 4.0, Chinese listed companies, venture capital investment businesses, as well as domestic and overseas associations and the media were present at the event.  

The Deloitte delegation included Deloitte China National FA Leader Edmund Yeung, TMT Southern China Leader Bong Chan and Nestor Wang, AP ICE Italian Desk Partner Olderigo Fantacci, Shenzhen Office Managing Partner Tom Kwok and Shenzhen & Xiamen FA Managing Partner Alan Wong.

Lucia Pasqualini said that the event was a great opportunity for Italy to showcase its innovative technologies, and a valuable platform for Italian companies to know Guangdong and Shenzhen and access China's vast market. She was confident in the innovation potential of Shenzhen, China's "Silicon Valley", given its abundant industry resources, strong talent pool and education advantages. She hoped this platform would help Chinese and Italian companies enhance mutual understanding and foster integrated development, thereby promoting future cooperation in technology and education.

Li Zhuowen, vice secretary-general of Shenzhen Municipal People's Government, delivered a speech and pointed out that the Greater Bay Area (GBA) has become one of the most well-developed, populated and innovative areas, powered by large-scale economy, sound industry system, highly-concentrated innovation entities and an inclusive business environment. Shenzhen is seizing the opportunity of GBA by building an innovative ecosystem that covers the entire process from foundational research, technological breakthrough and commercial scaling to Fintech. The city will implement a new wave of innovative strategic deployment and commit to the development of frontier sectors like biopharmaceuticals, environmental technologies, AI, robotics and 5G. Going forward, Shenzhen will endeavour to build a world-class business environment that is market-oriented, international and law-based through continuous reform and optimization. By creating an open and advanced economic system in line with the international customs in investment and trading, the city will provide a better entrepreneurial environment for companies in China, Italy and the rest of the world.

In the presence of government officials of Shenzhen municipality and Longgang district, Consul General of Italy in Guangzhou Lucia Psqualini and Deloitte TMT Southern China Deputy Leader Nestor Wang, Deloitte China National FA Managing Partner Edmund Yeung and Tianan Success Chairman of the Board Hu Aimin signed a cooperation agreement. Deloitte is the market leader in providing finance, taxation and consulting services through a global network of member firms in more than 150 countries and territories. Tianan Success is a leading Chinese developer and operator in smart city integration, renowned for founding "Cloud Park", a project that demonstrates Shenzhen's progress in a variety of areas including city evolution, smart area, and corporate and talent service. The cooperation will bring out the strengths and advantages of both sides, who will work hand-in-hand in service innovation to deliver quality one-stop services and help businesses face the challenges in transformation and upgrading.

After the signing ceremony, Deloitte Italy M&A and Tax Managing Partner Francesco Saltarelli shared some insights on mergers and acquisitions in Italy, and talked about his experience in interacting with Chinese businesses, providing valuable suggestion for Chinese companies planning to invest in Italy or hoping to work with Italian businesses.

In the roadshow session that afternoon, representatives from various organizations took the opportunity to ask questions and pave the way for prospective cooperation. 32 renowned Italian companies in biopharmaceuticals, environmental technologies, intelligent hardware, AI+, Industry 4.0 and food technologies presented their technologies and operating model. ST Microelectronics, Omnia Service S.r.l., My Online Therapy, Gellify, Pieriboni Ventures, Nicolis Project S.r.l., Teoresi Group, Menarini Group, Powersoft S.p.A., ABC Alpha Limited (ADC Alfa Ltd.), Hal Service & EmisferaHal, Celi and Future Design, among other leading Italian companies, leveraged the opportunity to advance cooperation with Chinese enterprises.