WISE2024 Annual Enterprise Release | The Right Thing, Striding Forward
Discover representative enterprises that provide innovative impetus for the long-term development of the industry and global economic growth.
Authors｜Deng Yongyi, Yang Yafei, Wang Fangyu, Hu Xiangyun, Li Anqi, Lin Qingqing, Lan Jie
Compiled by｜Yang Yafei
In a complex and intertwined situation, the global economic recovery in 2024 has significantly slowed down. Compared with developed economies, developing economies are growing faster, but they also face greater challenges. The Chinese economy is a key driving force among them. Driven by the new-quality productive forces and a package of incremental policies, it has generally shown a recovery trend this year, especially in the past October, when the momentum of economic recovery has significantly strengthened.
China's economy is in a critical period of structural adjustment and transformation, and the proportion of the "Three New" economy in GDP has further expanded. Behind this, the transformation of old and new kinetic energy has been carried out more rapidly in the past year: AI technology has been integrated into the entire chain of enterprise operations, financing for new material enterprises has continued to increase, the integration of transportation and renewable energy has accelerated, and the cultural export represented by 3A games has flourished.
Hard But Right Thing. For enterprises, innovation is the core kinetic energy for survival and development, and it is also the ballast to deal with many uncertainties in the environment. However, this correct thing is easier said than done, and it requires long-term investment and in-depth exploration.
In October this year, 36Kr specially launched the research of "WISE2024 Business King Series Annual Enterprise List". At a time when the global economy is calling for recovery, we focus on discovering representative enterprises that provide innovative impetus for the long-term development of the industry and global economic growth, and set up "WISE2024 Business King Annual Most Commercially Valuable Enterprise", "WISE2024 Business King Annual Most Commercially Potential Enterprise" two categories and nine new economic fields. After several rounds of selection of hundreds of reporting enterprises, combined with the opinions of professional analysts, we hereby officially and heavily release "WISE2024 Business King Series Annual Enterprise List".
01 Artificial Intelligence
Searching for PMF
Pursuing AGI (General Artificial Intelligence) has rarely been mentioned in the AI industry in 2024. The entire industry has rapidly moved from "massively training basic models" to application implementation, which is a battle that Chinese companies are more accustomed to and good at.
The iteration speed of top models led by OpenAI has slowed down. While people are arguing whether the Scaling Law is ineffective, the industry has also seen explorations of different routes - OpenAI's Sora has kicked open the door to multimodality and embodied intelligence, becoming the hottest sub-field in 2024.
Chinese large model companies are facing increasingly difficult challenges. In 2023, the "Six Tigers" who quickly entered the game, received large amounts of financing, and had high valuations, are facing a more intense financing competition and a more stringent market this year. In the homogenization of AI applications and the search for business models, large model companies are evolving different positions and directions to get rid of homogeneous competition.
Beyond the model layer, the AI application presents a situation where both large companies and small teams are flourishing - domestic large companies have quickly laid out and bet in the fields of AI assistants, image/video, etc. More flexible independent developers and small teams have been on the global market stage since day one, facing the competition of the world's top AI products directly.
WISE2024 Business King Annual Most Commercially Valuable Enterprise
In the field of artificial intelligence
02 Advanced Manufacturing
"Intelligent" Manufacturing, One Step Further
In the past year, the development of advanced manufacturing has almost been a race against time. IFR data shows that the density of industrial robots in China has exceeded that of Germany and Japan, ranking third in the world, and the number of industrial robots in possession and the annual installation volume have led the global market.
Innovative technologies are important catalysts for the high-end, intelligent, and green process of the manufacturing industry. In the past year, there have been more breakthroughs in advanced manufacturing technologies: 50-megawatt heavy-duty gas turbines have been successfully commercially operated, the third-generation aluminum-lithium alloy has been successfully applied in domestic large aircraft, and nearly 10,000 digital workshops and intelligent factories have been built nationwide, and the pace of scientific and technological innovation has been continuously accelerating.
WISE2024 Business King Annual Most Commercially Valuable Enterprise
In the field of advanced manufacturing
03 Digital Production
"Artificial Intelligence +"
The digital transformation represented by generative AI to improve "intelligence" and efficiency continues to deeply cover the entire industry.
Gartner data shows that global IT spending will increase by 7.5% in 2024, which is twice the growth rate of last year. Against the background of the intensive introduction of policies in various regions, Chinese small and medium-sized enterprises have increased their digital investment this year. From manufacturing to core operational links such as finance, supply chain, and R & D, the business process is being rapidly reshaped by innovative technologies, and the role of improving production efficiency is prominent.
A clever woman cannot cook without rice. The "digital divide" in the industry still exists. On the whole, the investment level of digital transformation of small and medium-sized enterprises is relatively low, and there are obvious differences in the application degree and preference of innovative technologies in different fields. The methodology of digital transformation still needs to be continuously explored. In the current uncertain situation, this not only tests the "internal strength" of technological innovation of enterprises, but also needs to solve the deviation between large-scale supply and individualized demand.
WISE2024 Business King Annual Most Commercially Valuable Enterprise
In the field of digital production
04 Frontier Technology
Innovations Emerge, Crossing the Cycle
The frontier technology track in 2024 is a year of winnowing the chaff and preserving the essence. Under the pressure of the global economic cycle, the new energy industry has shown a distinct cyclicality. The photovoltaic, new energy vehicle, and energy storage industries have all experienced a mismatch between supply and demand, and the profit ability has significantly declined. Medical insurance cost control and medical anti-corruption continue, and the risk-averse sentiment in the capital market still exists.
Fortunately, beneath the surface, the frontier technology track continues to have innovations emerge, accumulating the power to cross the cycle.
In 2024, the photoelectric conversion efficiency of photovoltaic perovskite batteries has continuously made new breakthroughs, and the mass production process is accelerating; solid-state battery technology is accelerating innovation, and the distance to mass production is getting closer; driven by the demand of AI, the small modular reactor track has received heavy bets from large technology companies, becoming a small trend; the top-level voice of "fully supporting innovative drugs in the entire chain" continues to convey warmth to the outside world.
In 2024, the life science industry has made significant breakthroughs in precision medicine, and the development of personalized therapies and cell therapies is particularly remarkable. The application of digital health in the medical and health field is growing rapidly, and the process of industry-university-research in domestic synthetic biology has significantly accelerated.
From an industrial perspective, Biotech is actively looking for a way to generate blood, and large-scale BD authorizations and M & A transactions continue to emerge, reaching 160 by the end of October; NewCo's going global has become a trend, and Chinese companies have begun to deeply participate in the capital operation of the global biopharmaceutical industry. At the same time, the momentum of domestic substitution of medical devices has not decreased, and the wave of going global continues.
Energy and life science are two basic industries related to the living standards and quality of human beings. Their industrial innovations cannot be achieved overnight, but are a wave-like and gradual upward process. Cycle changes, the ebb of the tide, and the low point of the industry are also accompanied by the elimination of "pseudo-innovation" and the germination of "true innovation". Human exploration of energy and life science never stops.
WISE2024 Business King Annual Most Commercially Valuable Enterprise
In the field of frontier technology
05 Smart Mobility
New Energy Penetration Rate Exceeds Half, Intelligent Driving Enters the Era of the Masses
The price war has continued from last year to the present, involving automakers, supply chains, and automotive retailers in the storm.
At the beginning of the year, BYD's call for "the same price for fuel and electric vehicles" has brought unprecedented pressure to traditional fuel and joint-venture automakers; Huawei and Xiaomi, as cross-border carmakers, have seen their sales and voices rise simultaneously, and new forces are also moving towards a million sales. In this intense competition, fuel and joint-venture automakers are stubbornly holding onto sales and the market with their past glory, but while reducing prices for promotions, they have also given up profit figures.
Under the fierce price battle, cost reduction has become a common proposition for the automotive industry. However, as the penetration rate of new energy vehicles breaks through the critical point of 50%, battery manufacturers are gradually extricating themselves from the price quagmire. Going global is a longer-term goal. The new energy vehicle industry chain represented by batteries will face a difficult and magnificent journey.
AI and intelligence have become the peak of the second half of the new energy vehicle. Technical hotspots such as "intelligent driving that can be used nationwide", "end-to-end" large models, and "door-to-door" are coming one after another. This is not only a race for automakers to compete for the high point of intelligent driving technology, but also the starting point of the era of intelligent driving for the masses.
Only those players who step on the driftwood of the wave and survive in the cruel competition will have the opportunity to become the footnote of the era of new energy vehicles.
WISE2024 Business King Annual Most Commercially Valuable Enterprise
In the field of smart mobility
06 Cross-border Services
A New Era of Going Global, Breaking Waves and Accelerating
In 2024, the cross-border e-commerce channel is full of turmoil, and brands have become the builders of the global business ecosystem. The term "going global" has been given a new mission of brand internationalization. Crossing geographical, cultural, and economic boundaries, cross-border service providers, with their profound experience, lead enterprises to move forward steadily in the wave of globalization.
Accurate products and services are the key to meeting the needs of global consumers. Global competition is not only a contest of hard power, but also an arena of soft power. Chinese service providers are deeply engaged in the fields of advertising marketing and human resource management, helping enterprises achieve deep localization in operations, sales, and talent recruitment, and stabilizing their position in the global market.
In 2024, the cross-border payment field has ushered in an innovation wave. The emergence of new payment solutions provides a more efficient and secure flow channel for global transactions. At the same time, innovations in logistics, such as automated warehouses and intelligent distribution systems, ensure that goods reach every corner of the world quickly and on time. Agile service providers provide localized services in marketing, payment, logistics, and human resources, helping brands overcome the obstacles of cross-border trade.
The seamless connection of the global market is becoming a reality. A closer and more harmonious business network is being formed. This is not only a business story, but also a profound change that is unfolding on the global stage.
WISE2024 Business King Annual Most Commercially Valuable Enterprise
In the field of cross-border services
07 Consumption Upgrade
Seeking Efficiency in Details, Waiting for Blossoming
Doing a good job in expectation management is a knowledge at any time, and this year's consumer market especially tests the mentality of entrepreneurs. After experiencing the rebound from the bottom last year, consumer brands have experienced more new challenges in 2024: the price war is intensifying, consumer demand changes are difficult to capture, and M & A shuffles are constantly ongoing.
Cost reduction and efficiency improvement is a phrase that consumer entrepreneurs often talk about, but it is not a panacea that applies to everyone. Cost control is indeed a key issue for long-term operation, but it should not be at the expense of experience and quality, otherwise it will fall into the dangerous vortex of single-price competition.
The unique charm of the consumer market is that opportunities will always appear in some unexpected form. This year,