High-tech investment rose 4.6% year on year in the first half as venture capital activity recovered, with money accelerating into AI, quantum technology and computing power.
China's venture capital market showed further signs of recovery in the first half, helped by a rebound in funding for advanced technology sectors and a sharp rise in AI dealmaking. High-tech industry investment increased 4.6% from a year earlier, while financing by Chinese AI startups exceeded 300 billion yuan in the first half of 2026, surpassing the total for all of 2025. Industry participants broadly see AI as the main force behind the latest venture capital upswing, with capital flowing more quickly into AI, quantum technology and computing power. The concentration of funds has also pushed valuations higher at speed, making competition to secure allocation in primary market rounds a defining feature of the current cycle.