Early on September 1st, inside the Xiongan Chuangxiangjia OPC community, Xun Shuoyang settled into his workspace, switched on his computer, and began uploading a fresh batch of mini-programs he had developed. Born in 1999, Xun is a large-model algorithm engineer who previously worked in Beijing, Guangzhou, Hangzhou, and Chengdu. A little over a month ago, he registered Hebei Xiongan Navian Intelligent Technology Co., Ltd., which focuses on AI software development, with a team consisting of just himself. His workstation costs 5,000 yuan per year in rent, and he receives six months of complimentary computing power. For an AI entrepreneur, Xun remarks that this is the equivalent of providing farmers with free seeds and tools—an essential head start.

Currently, he has just secured a contract to develop a companion client-side software application for a health vision device company. If successful, the deal could earn him nearly 10,000 yuan. It's not a substantial contract, but for a solo startup just one month old, it marks the pivotal leap from possessing an idea to running a real business. Across Xiongan, technically skilled "super individuals" like Xun are emerging in growing numbers. In May, the city licensed four artificial intelligence OPC (One Person Company) entrepreneurship communities, opening up over 60,000 square meters of industrial space. These communities are specifically tailored to support "super individual" entrepreneurs who operate at a personal level, leveraging AI tools to run their enterprises.

Why is Xiongan shifting its strategy from courting major enterprises to nurturing small-scale startups? Over the past few years, Xiongan's development model has chiefly relied on external support: relocating central state-owned enterprise headquarters and implementing significant infrastructure projects. While these major initiatives are vital, laying the city's foundation, they struggle to quickly generate a self-sustaining industrial ecosystem and adequate employment opportunities. No city can depend indefinitely on external inputs; ultimately, it must create its own momentum. How does one achieve that? By adopting a dual-track approach combining the headquarters economy with OPC, one strategy targets scale and strength, while the other cultivates agility and innovation. The headquarters economy anchors scale, tax revenue, and influence within the industrial chain, while OPCs serve as those small, nimble cells of innovation.

Though they may appear distinctly different, these two forces actually complement each other. Xiongan is constructing a smart and digital city, creating countless application scenarios that demand tailored solutions. Take Xun Shuoyang, for instance. He requires no factory, no massive capital outlay, and no large workforce—just himself and AI can sustain a company. Such entities are adept at addressing the niche, day-to-day needs of a smart city: crafting custom algorithms, building streamlined tools, and filling in the specific segments that large corporations, focused on mega-platforms, often overlook. More importantly, they inject the AI talent and innovative energy Xiongan desperately needs, while simultaneously generating employment and tax contributions.

What approach is Xiongan taking to cultivate this ecosystem? Rather than merely distributing subsidies, Xiongan is constructing a comprehensive support system designed to help one-person companies not just survive, but flourish. For Xun, the most tangible benefits come from the physical facilities and assistance services. The OPC incubation communities in Xiongan are established with strict criteria: a core office area of no less than 2,000 square meters, a minimum of 20 resident OPCs, and a 15-minute living-working circle. Administrative hassles such as business registration, legal and financial matters, and policy applications are all managed by the community, enabling entrepreneurs to simply arrive and start working. "The biggest challenge for OPCs isn't the technology; it's the complex administrative tasks and a lack of market connections," says Xia Jiansong, the founder of the Chuangxiangjia OPC community.

In terms of policy support, recognized OPC incubation communities receive a one-time grant of 150,000 yuan, with an additional 10,000 yuan for every new OPC that joins. The "Xiongcai Cup" AI OPC competition is held regularly to offer funding, workspace, and housing allowances for promising projects. Computing resources are also part of the package; newly established OPCs that pass an assessment receive six months of free computing capacity and tokens. Following this, under the computing voucher management system, annual vouchers worth up to 1 million yuan per OPC are issued to service providers, granting access to essential resource packages. The combined effect of workspace, services, policies, and computational power dramatically lowers the barriers to entry for "super individuals" like Xun.

However, this OPC initiative in Xiongan is still in its infancy, and entrepreneurs have very specific expectations. Xia Jiansong admits that the Chuangxiangjia OPC community is hoping for breakthroughs in three main areas: more extensive opening of urban application scenarios to create more business opportunities, wider and more accessible computing support to benefit a larger pool of entrepreneurs, and the establishment of a seed or angel fund to address the toughest challenge of securing initial capital. The ultimate objective is to have OPCs actively engaged and used in various scenarios, not merely sustained by policy support alone.

Across the nation, cities like Beijing, Shenzhen, and Hangzhou are also venturing into the OPC space. Yet Xiongan holds a unique position: it is one of the few cities in China being built from scratch specifically for the intelligent era. Its city brain, data infrastructure, and intelligent facilities are all designed for AI applications, allowing OPCs to be directly integrated into the city's foundational operating system. If this model succeeds, Xiongan's contribution will be more than just a collection of one-person businesses; it will develop a methodology for how an AI-native city can cultivate new productive forces and fresh economic drivers. A vibrant new city needs towering trees to shape the skyline, but it also requires plentiful grassroots to nurture the soil. As individual "one-person companies" like Xun Shuoyang's flood into the Xiongan New Area, this challenge—one that many cities are trying to solve—is beginning to find a forward-looking answer.