Shanghai Aims to Become the "World's eVTOL Capital"

Shanghai's stance on the low-altitude economy is shifting from directional layout to industrial implementation.

Recently, the Shanghai Municipal Commission of Economy and Informatization and other departments jointly issued the "Several Measures of Shanghai on Connecting the Yangtze River Delta to Accelerate the Construction of an Advanced Manufacturing Cluster for the Low-Altitude Economy" (hereinafter referred to as the "Several Measures"). For the first time, in the form of an advanced manufacturing cluster, clear phased goals have been set for the low-altitude economy: By 2028, the scale of Shanghai's core low-altitude economy industries will reach approximately 80 billion yuan, a complete industrial chain system for new low-altitude aircraft will be formed, a national advanced manufacturing cluster for the low-altitude economy will be established, and Shanghai will accelerate its progress towards becoming the "World eVTOL Capital" with prominent comparative advantages.

This is another policy document with a stronger "industrial implementation orientation" following Shanghai's systematic deployment of the development roadmap for the low-altitude economy in 2024. Many industry insiders believe that the new policy marks that Shanghai's low-altitude economy is accelerating from the "planning period" and "concept period" into the substantial promotion stage centered on manufacturing capabilities and commercialization.

The Framework of the Advanced Manufacturing Cluster Takes Shape

Shanghai's new low-altitude policy this time is not an isolated policy release.

In July 2024, Shanghai issued the "Action Plan for the High - quality Development of the Low - Altitude Economy Industry in Shanghai (2024 - 2027)", which outlined a "roadmap" for Shanghai's low - altitude economy in terms of industrial positioning, development path, and key directions. At that time, the policy mainly answered the questions of why Shanghai should develop the low - altitude economy and what the key focuses should be.

The "Several Measures" issued this time are more like a supplement to the above - mentioned action plan, directly targeting core issues such as manufacturing capabilities, enterprise echelons, application scenarios, and regional collaboration.

"This new policy is an industrial supporting and incentive policy to support the action plan, and the goal of becoming the eVTOL Capital is clear. It is a real benefit to Shanghai's low - altitude enterprises, and eligible enterprises can apply." A relevant person in charge of Yufeng Future said.

In the view of Jiang Jun, the founding partner of Shidi Technology, the release of the "Several Measures" for the advanced manufacturing cluster of the low - altitude economy in Shanghai this time is another major measure following the 14th Five - Year Plan of the central government. "It has injected a 'booster shot' into the development of our low - altitude economy enterprises. Each measure reflects that the government has thoroughly studied the development stages of the industry, and enterprises can get corresponding industrial support at different stages."

Jiang Jun said that Shanghai and the Yangtze River Delta region have significant industrial advantages in building the "World eVTOL Capital". The core lies in relying on the strong aviation industry and advanced manufacturing foundation, as well as rich talent advantages. Shanghai has gathered most of China's leading aircraft manufacturers and leads the country in attracting 50% of relevant leading enterprises to cluster here. On this solid foundation, the advantages of regional collaboration are constantly being strengthened. Shanghai is also building an efficient network for technological research, industrial chain support, and infrastructure sharing.

Manufacturing Pre - positioned, Aircraft - Making Capabilities Quantified

In terms of content, the "Several Measures" put forward three key tasks around the construction of the advanced manufacturing cluster for the low - altitude economy.

In terms of enhancing high - end manufacturing capabilities, Shanghai has given clear quantitative indicators.

According to the "Several Measures", Shanghai will target mainstream technology directions such as eVTOL, industrial drones, and new - energy general aviation aircraft, cultivate and attract 10 leading aircraft - making enterprises, form a batch - manufacturing capacity of more than 500 new aircraft, and drive the industrial chain to achieve new investments of over 20 billion yuan.

Behind these figures lies an unavoidable real - world problem in the development of the low - altitude economy: manufacturing scale and industrialization capabilities.

In the past few years, the domestic low - altitude economy has mostly remained at the stage of technology verification and prototype development. There are many enterprises, but there are not many aircraft - making manufacturers that truly have the ability to make continuous deliveries and move towards large - scale manufacturing. In contrast, Shanghai has a foundation in high - end manufacturing and the integrity of the industrial system, but in the field of new low - altitude aircraft, it still needs to "make up for the gaps" more quickly through policy guidance.

Making "leading aircraft - making enterprises" and "batch - manufacturing capabilities" the core indicators in this policy is also regarded as an important signal of the change in Shanghai's judgment on the maturity of the low - altitude economy industry.

Compared with the quantitative goals for the manufacturing end, the "Several Measures" emphasize the construction of systematic capabilities at the second level. The policy emphasizes leveraging the advantages of regional collaboration, and through the cooperation between the city and districts and with cities in the Yangtze River Delta, greater synergy will be formed in industrial chain division of labor, manufacturing support, and production capacity coordination.

The policy proposes to strengthen the cooperation between the city and districts and the linkage with the Yangtze River Delta, basically complete the construction of a national - level mid - stage verification platform for new low - altitude aircraft, and focus on promoting application scenarios such as low - altitude intelligent logistics, public governance, and production operations, so as to build core competitiveness from R & D and manufacturing to mid - stage verification and airworthiness, and then to scenario application and ecological integration.

Jiang Jun told a reporter from the "Science and Technology Innovation Board Daily" that the Yangtze River Delta region has the most complete and mature aviation industry system and high - end manufacturing foundation in the country, and is one of the regions with the most comprehensive advantages for developing the low - altitude economy in China. The policy's clear proposal of "building a collaborative high - ground for the low - altitude economy in the Yangtze River Delta" provides institutional guarantees and development space for enterprises to integrate resources, optimize layouts, and improve efficiency on a larger scale, and also brings substantial benefits to low - altitude economy enterprises for in - depth regional collaborative development. Taking Shidi Technology as an example, relying on Shanghai's core leading role in technological innovation, industrial organization, and institutional supply, Shidi Technology has deeply integrated into the Yangtze River Delta aviation industry ecosystem.

On the supply chain side, the company has established strategic cooperation relationships with leading aviation enterprises in the region such as AVIC Systems, and has carried out in - depth cooperation in flight control, avionics, and power distribution systems. It has also carried out in - depth collaboration with Huamo Technology in three core directions: simulation equipment R & D, training system construction, and overseas market expansion in the eVTOL field, jointly promoting the improvement of the commercial operation system of the eVTOL industry. On the material side, it makes full use of the leading carbon fiber composite material industrial cluster in the Yangtze River Delta, providing strong support for the high - strength and lightweight structure of eVTOL products.

Overall, the development model of "taking Shanghai as the innovation origin and industrial coordination center, and the Yangtze River Delta region for collaborative manufacturing and supporting" is a positive practice of the policy's "building a collaborative high - ground for the low - altitude economy in the Yangtze River Delta". At the same time, through the Yangtze River Delta collaboration, Shanghai is also trying to solve the problem of the natural cross - regional nature of the low - altitude economy - manufacturing, test flights, and application scenarios are not necessarily completed in one region.

Real Investment in R & D and Certification

From the feedback of enterprises, the most obvious change in this new policy is the clearer financial support for the R & D and certification stages.

Yufeng Future believes that the policy clearly provides real financial support for R & D, certification, etc., directly reducing the cash - flow pressure and trial - and - error costs of innovative small and medium - sized enterprises in the stages of cutting - edge technology research and market verification. It marks that Shanghai's low - altitude industry has officially entered the "large - scale implementation and commercial breakthrough stage" from the "concept and planning period".

In the industry's view, the mid - stage verification and airworthiness stages require large investments, have long cycles, and high risks, and are the most difficult stages for low - altitude economy enterprises to bear independently. Local governments' intervention in this stage through policies is essentially "sharing risks" for enterprises and accelerating the pace of technology moving from the laboratory to the market.

From a national perspective, the low - altitude economy has been included in important policy documents for two consecutive years, and the actions of local governments have also accelerated significantly. Since 2024, many places have been competing in terms of airspace management, application scenarios, and industrial clusters. Shanghai's characteristic is that it has always promoted the low - altitude economy in the context of advanced manufacturing and future industrial systems.

The attention of the capital market has also increased. In June 2025, the China Securities Regulatory Commission issued and implemented the "Opinions on Setting up a Science and Technology Innovation Growth Layer on the Science and Technology Innovation Board to Enhance the Inclusiveness and Adaptability of the System". The opinions clearly state that the scope of application of the fifth set of standards will be expanded to support more cutting - edge technology enterprises in fields such as artificial intelligence, commercial space, and the low - altitude economy to apply the fifth set of listing standards on the Science and Technology Innovation Board.

Jiang Jun told a reporter from the "Science and Technology Innovation Board Daily" that the company is continuously promoting airworthiness work, will continue to carry out full - aircraft system - level tests, material and component verification tests, and complete more airworthiness verification work.

It will speed up the site - selection work for its headquarters base and manufacturing base in Shanghai, implement the strategic cooperation agreement signed with the city and district governments during the China International Import Expo, and truly achieve the integration of R & D, manufacturing, and delivery in Shanghai.

This article is from the WeChat official account "Science and Technology Innovation Daily", author: Zhang Yangyang, published by 36Kr with permission.