Shenzhen has opened a research funding call covering some unusually specific questions about where technology is taking the city.
Among them: whether Shenzhen should consider a robot tax（机器人税）, how the economic gains created by AI might be shared, what role space computing（太空算力） could play in future infrastructure, and how technologies such as RISC-V, OpenHarmony, quantum computing and embodied AI should fit into the city’s industrial strategy.
The programme is the 2026 Shenzhen Science and Technology Strategic Research Project（2026年度深圳市科技战略研究项目）, organised by the Shenzhen Science and Technology Innovation Bureau（深圳市科技创新局）.
Applications opened on July 20 and close at 18:00 on August 19, 2026 through Shenzhen’s science and technology project management system.
RMB 1 million for priority research
The programme separates projects into priority and general research topics.
A priority project can receive up to RMB 1 million, while general projects can receive up to RMB 500,000. Funding is paid after the project contract is signed, and projects are normally expected to run for no longer than one year.
This is an important distinction: this is not a conventional startup accelerator or a grant for building a commercial product.
Shenzhen is paying organisations to study questions that could influence future science, technology and industrial policy.
The expected output is research: analysis, recommendations and material that can support government decision-making.
Why is Shenzhen studying a robot tax?
One of the most striking areas concerns what happens when AI and automation begin changing employment at scale.
The research agenda asks participants to examine how Shenzhen’s economic relationships and governance mechanisms could evolve under an increasingly intelligent economy.
That includes the idea of a 机器人税 — robot tax, but also broader questions around distributing the gains created by AI, adapting social protection and preparing workers for occupations that may change or disappear.
Rather than treating AI only as a technology policy, Shenzhen is also asking what happens to the people and economic structures around it.
Space computing, RISC-V and OpenHarmony
Other topics are much closer to industrial strategy.
太空算力 — space computing is part of Shenzhen’s wider push into commercial space infrastructure. The city is already identifying space-based computing technology as one of the areas it wants to support alongside satellite constellations, space energy and intelligent satellite systems.
Another research direction examines the relationship between RISC-V and OpenHarmony（开源鸿蒙）.
The question is bigger than either technology individually. Shenzhen is interested in how processors, operating systems, development tools, standards and the surrounding ecosystem could work together as part of a more independent technology stack.
Humanoid robots and next-generation semiconductors
Embodied intelligence is another part of the picture.
Shenzhen has been increasing support for 具身智能机器人 — embodied intelligent robots, including AI chips, robotic components, multimodal sensing, control systems and foundation models. The city’s current robotics plan targets a much larger local industrial cluster by 2027.
The strategic research programme also looks further ahead at technologies such as quantum computing and next-generation semiconductor materials.
The point is not that Shenzhen expects every one of these technologies to become commercially dominant.
It is trying to decide where the city should place its next industrial bets before those markets are fully formed.
Who should look at the programme?
Companies are not the only potential participants.
The programme is designed for organisations capable of carrying out strategic research, including companies, universities, research institutions and other qualified entities.
That makes it more relevant to research-heavy startups, technology companies, universities and organisations already connected to Shenzhen’s innovation ecosystem than to an early-stage founder simply looking for startup capital.
Applications must also be submitted directly by the participating organisation. Shenzhen explicitly states that applicants should apply independently rather than relying on intermediaries to submit the project.
Application snapshot
Programme: 2026年度深圳市科技战略研究项目
Authority: 深圳市科技创新局
Location: Shenzhen, China
Priority funding: Up to RMB 1 million per project
General funding: Up to RMB 500,000 per project
Application deadline: August 19, 2026 — 18:00
Application system: 深圳市科技业务管理系统
Focus: Technology strategy, industrial policy and future technology research.
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Author — Adrià Mas Rodríguez
This article is provided for information purposes and does not constitute an investment recommendation or solicitation.