The drone industry in east China's Zhejiang Province and southwest China's Sichuan Province hit new heights with an increasingly diverse array of application scenarios, driving the steady development of the country's fast-growing low-altitude economy.
Taizhou City in Zhejiang recently has launched 12 standardized drone routes connecting its islands to the mainland, enabling the transport of goods across distances of several dozen kilometers.
"Shipping a mobile phone costs just 18 yuan (about 2.5 U.S. dollars) by drone. If you go downtown to buy one, you’d pay over 200 yuan (about 28.3 U.S. dollars) for a round-trip boat ticket and spend a whole day. In comparison, drone delivery is much more convenient and faster," said Chen Zhenglun, an employee at a Taizhou-based low-altitude economy development company.
Drones are not only used for delivering goods, but also for bridging the daily gaps in island logistics. They enable fresh food, urgent supplies, and even medicines to reach their destinations in a timely manner, allowing island residents to enjoy a quality life on par with that on the mainland.
"For things like snake antivenom and certain vaccines, we had them delivered to our hospital by drone right away. This has saved valuable time for us to treat emergency patients," said Huang Yuanfu, head of a hospital in Taizhou's Dachen Town.
Guihua Town in Pengzhou City, Sichuan, is renowned for its picturesque mountainous scenery and serves as an ideal environment for drone testing. This year, a newly opened testing site has attracted over 100 companies to conduct on-site evaluations of new products before they are launched on the market.
"This drone is equipped with a container here. We can use it to deliver items like coffee, milk tea, and hot pot," said Wu Fan, the person in charge of the exhibition center at a local technology company.
With a surge in testing enterprises, the local authorities are simultaneously developing practical applications for drone technology. Over 50 specialized routes, such as "Coffee Delivery" and "Farm Produce Delivery," have opened one after another, drawing significant tourist interest.
A homestay in Tongji Town delivers pre-prepared hot pot ingredients directly to a mountain campsite via a dedicated drone "airline," a trip that takes a minimum of five minutes.
"This is my first time trying drone meal delivery," said a customer surnamed Zhao. "It's remarkably convenient and impressive."
Drone industry diversifies as low-altitude economy takes off in Zhejiang, Sichuan
Officials and business leaders from both China and the United States gathered in Berkeley, California on Friday to discuss the future of trade and investment between China and the San Francisco Bay Area, with many hoping to overcome the recent strain brought by the Trump administration's tariffs.
The China Council for the Promotion of International Trade hosted a business breakfast exchange meeting on Friday morning, with the council's chairman Ren Hongbin sending out a clear message of the vast economic potential which is there to be tapped into.
"The Chinese economy is very much innovation driven. And the strategic emerging industries, such as new energy, new materials, low carbon, aerospace, bio-pharmacy and the low-altitude economy, will generate a trillion-yuan level or even larger markets. So, I think that will provide enormous opportunities and room for China and U.S. companies to cooperate," said Ren.
He further stressed the China International Supply Chain Expo in Beijing as an example of an event where San Francisco Bay Area companies like NVIDIA and Apple were active participants and direct beneficiaries.
Meanwhile, Chinese Consul General in San Francisco Zhang Jianmin said that against the backdrop of a global economic slowdown, greater cooperation in the innovation sector is now more important than ever.
"The [San Francisco] Bay Area is home to many of the world's top tech companies and offers a sound innovation ecosystem. China has a super big market, rich application scenarios and a complete industrial supporting system. There exists tremendous potential for both sides to have more mutually beneficial cooperation by tapping into their complementary strengths," said Zhang.
Attendees did voice concerns over how the Trump administration's tariffs are impacting business.
With China accounting for nearly 30 percent of the Port of Oakland's total trade volume, the port's executive director Kristi McKenney stressed the need for greater stability and certainty.
"The tariffs in many cases were never actually implemented or were changed before they were implemented. So those linkages are a bit more challenging. I think the bigger issue will be certainty in the economy. And if there's lack of certainty, if we see economic difficulty, then you're going to see job losses," said McKenney.
Oakland's Mayor Barbara Lee said that it is very much business as usual, despite the recent difficulties.
"While we understand the challenges of tariffs, the exports and imports are still continuing, and our port is still a large containerized port doing business with China. And we're going to strengthen that relationship. We may have our differences on issues, on policies, but we here in Oakland understand that we're a global city and we believe the trade brings friendships, brings understanding, and also brings economic benefits to both countries," she said.
Chinese, US officials, business leaders meet in California to deepen mutual understanding
