At the Zhuhai Highway Port of the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge on weekends, Hong Kong and Macao single-plate vehicles slowly enter, with their trunks often packed with fresh produce and daily necessities just purchased from Zhuhai's Sam's Club. Such cross-border shopping scenes have become commonplace.

In 2024, passenger and vehicle flows through this checkpoint exceeded 27 million person-times and 5.55 million vehicle-times respectively, representing year-on-year increases of 72% and 71%, both setting historical records. The 80,000 membership cards issued to Hong Kong and Macao visitors at Zhuhai Sam's Club signify that Zhuhai is becoming a popular weekend and holiday destination for Hong Kong and Macao guests.

Amid these vibrant consumption scenes, few would recall that this city was once merely an inconspicuous coastal town at the Pearl River estuary. In 1980, when the National People's Congress Standing Committee approved the establishment of Zhuhai Economic Special Zone, Zhuhai's gross domestic product (GDP) was only 261 million yuan, ranking 17th in Guangdong Province, with a permanent population of less than 370,000.

By 2024, Zhuhai's GDP had surged to 447.906 billion yuan, climbing to 6th place provincially; per capita GDP reached 178,700 yuan, ranking second in the province after Shenzhen only. Twelve years of free education, per capita livelihood expenditure of 17,400 yuan, and registered residents' life expectancy of 84.5 years paint the picture of one of "China's Ten Most Livable Cities."

Facing unprecedented global changes and accelerating breakthroughs in new technological revolution and industrial transformation, this special zone renowned for "livability" is exploring the breakthrough formula from "small but beautiful" to "strong and excellent," following Guangdong Province's clear positioning and mission to "strive to build an important growth pole in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area and a core city on the west bank of the Pearl River estuary, working to become an urban model of Chinese-style modernization."

**Breaking Ice: Pioneering "Firsts" to Rewrite Opening-up Narratives**

Zhuhai's special zone story began with the "dare to venture and experiment" gene. The multiple "firsts" this city created serve as vivid footnotes in China's reform and opening-up history.

In 1992, Zhuhai pioneered the establishment of "Science and Technology Awards" domestically, launching a "spiritual atomic bomb" to the nation. On March 9 that year, Zhuhai's first "Outstanding Contribution Award for Scientific and Technological Progress" was held, with scientists like Chi Binyuan receiving rewards including cars, housing, and substantial cash prizes.

This reward system, shocking enough to stir the entire nation at the time, instantly transformed Zhuhai into a "magnet" for scientific talent. Giant Group's Shi Yuzhu relocated to Zhuhai, Kingsoft's Lei Jun developed WPS here, and Chen Lihao's Ygsoft became a leader in power informatization. These "golden generation" entrepreneurs from Zhuhai confidently entered the center stage of China's economic theater.

This reward initiative in Zhuhai became a vivid illustration of China's shift toward "development is the absolute principle." Subsequently, the Southern Software Park, hailed as the "Whampoa Military Academy" of China's software industry, made its grand debut, becoming one of the best samples for observing China's "special zone economy."

In April 1993, Southern Software Park was constructed as a key national electronic industry project during the Eighth Five-Year Plan. The park's facilities were considered "top-tier" at the time, laying the foundation for its future role as a "star factory" in China's software industry.

Over 45 years, this park has produced multiple listed companies including Kingsoft, Ygsoft, AiSpeech (formerly Orbita), Allwinner Technology, Century Dingli, Tonwin Technology, FlyingWings Software, and OptoElectronics Technology. It has also attracted world-renowned enterprises and industry giants' regional headquarters or R&D centers, including Citigroup Financial Shared Services Center, OOCL Information Technology, Semikron Electronics, UFIDA Software, and Kingdee Software, becoming the "innovation heart" of the western Pearl River.

Former Zhuhai Science and Technology Commission Director Zhuo Jialun still vividly remembers the bright lights during the preparation of the first science and technology awards. In his view, the science and technology awards are historically significant and planted seeds of respecting knowledge and talent in Zhuhai.

During the pioneering entrepreneurial period, Zhuhai successively welcomed China's first "Zhuhai Fisher Girl" patterned "BOC Card" and the first cross-border industrial zone - the Zhuhai-Macao Cross-border Industrial Zone. These "firsts" were not only policy breakthroughs but also shaped Zhuhai's "opening-up first" urban DNA - it could always use innovation to tear through traditional institutional barriers at crucial moments.

**Solid Work: GDP Growth of 1,716 Times Over 45 Years**

Opening Zhuhai Economic Special Zone's "report card," the most striking feature is a steeply rising GDP curve: from 261 million yuan in 1980 to 447.906 billion yuan in 2024, with an average annual growth of 15.9% over 45 years, representing a total growth of over 1,700 times.

Behind this growth lies a "complete transformation" of the three-industry structure. In 1980, Zhuhai's three-industry structure was 36.4:31.8:31.8, with nearly 40% of the economy depending on agriculture, typical of an "agricultural county." Today, this structure has adjusted to 1.7:42.5:55.8, with the secondary industry centered on advanced manufacturing and the tertiary industry supporting half the economy, forming "4+3" pillar industrial clusters (four leading industries: next-generation information technology, new energy, integrated circuits, and biomedicine & health; plus three advantageous industries: smart home appliances, equipment manufacturing, and fine chemicals).

In 2024, the "4+3" industries achieved above-scale industrial added value of 131.1 billion yuan, accounting for nearly 80% of the city's total above-scale industrial added value, becoming the "ballast stone" for stable growth. Among these, Zhuhai's integrated circuit industry realized main business revenue of 19.495 billion yuan, ranking third in the province, with an average annual growth rate exceeding 20% over the past five years. Zhuhai's integrated circuit design industry scale has consistently ranked among the top ten nationally.

In the first half of this year, despite global economic downturn pressure, Zhuhai's "4+3" industries' added value grew 7.2%. Among them, high-end equipment manufacturing, integrated circuits, new energy, and next-generation information technology grew 17.9%, 16.4%, 16.0%, and 15.2% respectively.

Behind these figures lies the persistence and innovation of numerous enterprises. Over 45 years, this fertile land of Zhuhai has nurtured influential companies including Gree Electric, Motian, Livzon, Landa, Zixiang, Jafron, and Ninestar. In 2024, Gree Electric and China Resources Land both made the "China Enterprise 500" list. Additionally, 81 unicorn and gazelle enterprises have grown in Zhuhai, demonstrating this city's new economic vitality.

Currently, at the crucial juncture of "14th Five-Year Plan" conclusion and "15th Five-Year Plan" planning, coinciding with accelerated global technological and industrial transformation, Zhuhai is targeting cutting-edge fields including low-altitude economy, marine economy, robotics, large models, and RISC-V, laying out strategies to reshape industrial competitiveness and continue writing the special zone's "pioneering" reform chapter.

Looking skyward, Zhuhai pioneered the construction and launch of a low-altitude airspace coordination and operation service platform, breaking through low-altitude flight "management barriers." It opened the nation's first eVTOL (electric Vertical Take-Off and Landing aircraft) route between Zhuhai and Shenzhen, as well as the nation's first public logistics drone delivery route connecting islands, constructing a "land-air coordinated, island-city interconnected" low-altitude transportation network. Statistics show that Zhuhai's low-altitude industry scale exceeded 20 billion yuan in 2024, with the low-altitude economy advancing from "pilot exploration" to "scaled development."

Gazing toward the blue sea, Zhuhai is reconstructing the fundamental logic of marine economic development with "maritime new infrastructure" as the handle. The world's first self-navigating water body natural exchange aquaculture vessel "Bay Area Lingding" successfully launched, solving traditional marine aquaculture's "weather-dependent" challenges. The world's first intelligent unmanned system research vessel "Zhuhai Cloud" achieved "Zhuhai manufacturing," leading marine research into the "unmanned era." The world's first megawatt-level seawater electrolysis hydrogen production device began trial operation in Zhuhai, opening new pathways for marine clean energy development. A series of "globally pioneering" marine equipment and technologies have established Zhuhai's leading advantages in the blue economy track.

Focusing on land, Zhuhai drives the artificial intelligence and robotics industries with dual policy and capital engines. The New Quality Productive Forces Investment Fund with a total scale of 80 billion yuan officially landed. "Several Measures for Promoting High-Quality Development of Artificial Intelligence and Robotics Industries in Zhuhai" constructs a support system from multiple dimensions including technology R&D, scenario applications, and talent cultivation. Industry leaders like Zhiyuan Robotics, UBTECH, and Tianchain Robotics have clustered in, forming an industrial ecosystem of "leading enterprises driving cluster development."

Beyond this, Zhuhai is planning to build a 10,000P intelligent computing power cluster with "Smart Cloud City" as the brain, reducing enterprise computing costs through "local computing power + cloud computing" collaborative mode. It established 500 million yuan "computing power vouchers" + 100 million yuan "model vouchers" to "reduce burdens and empower" enterprises' digital transformation and large model R&D. From computing power infrastructure to policy support systems, Zhuhai is making full-chain layouts to stride toward "China's Model Capital," allowing the special zone's "dare to venture and experiment" DNA to radiate new vitality in the digital economy era.

**Riding Waves: Finding New Positioning in the "Greater Bay Area Chess Game"**

Previously, the dual predicament of transportation periphery and industrial periphery brought by geographical location trapped Zhuhai in an awkward "darkness under the lamp" situation. In early days, the same container from wharf to Hong Kong cost 3,000 yuan from Zhuhai, while the eastern Pearl River estuary only needed 300 yuan. At that time, then Zhuhai Party Secretary and Mayor Liang Guangda often "gazed at the ocean and sighed."

However, the Hengqin Guangdong-Macao In-Depth Cooperation Zone, which prospers because of Macao, brings new opportunities to Zhuhai. Through the "Macao platform + international resources + Hengqin space" industrial linkage model, Qin-Ao achieved breakthroughs in livelihood, economic trade, and legal rule integration.

Since the new century began, Zhuhai focused on constructing transportation, industrial, and urban "three major development patterns," expanding the city's eastern and western wing development space. The former coastal town formed by multiple connected islands has increasingly clear contours.

Zhuhai welcomed the "Bridge Era" in 2018 and the "Greater Bay Area Era" the following year. The "Development Plan for Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area" clearly stated the need to leverage the polar leading role among Greater Bay Area cities, highlighting the leading development role of strong alliances: Hong Kong-Shenzhen, Guangzhou-Foshan, and Macao-Zhuhai.

The Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area strategy brought Zhuhai back to the forefront of era development. With the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge spanning Lingding Yang, Guangzhou-Zhuhai intercity rail networks extending vertically and horizontally, the Shenzhen-Zhongshan Passage connecting eastern and western shore resources, plus the planned Shenzhen-Zhuhai intercity railway, the western Pearl River shore is transforming from geographical periphery to a strategic pivot linking Hong Kong and Macao while radiating to western Guangdong.

A completely new locational development advantage is quietly forming on the western Pearl River shore.

Currently, Zhuhai fully supports the construction of Hengqin Guangdong-Macao In-Depth Cooperation Zone, deeply advancing new-stage Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area construction. It supports Hengqin's development of "four new" industries, strengthening industrial cooperation and investment promotion coordination, conducting cross-regional layouts of "headquarters + base," "R&D + incubation + industrialization," "e-commerce + manufacturing," "going global + factory," and jointly building cross-border industrial chains.

Yip Kwai-ping, Vice-President of City University of Macao and Director of Macao Center for Research on Social and Economic Development, stated that Zhuhai, positioned within the dual circulation pattern, should actively participate in international competition and cooperation. Internally, it should join hands with Greater Bay Area brother cities to promote factor flow and optimize resource allocation, accelerate Hengqin Guangdong-Macao Deep Cooperation Zone construction, achieve complementary win-win with Macao, and jointly explore overseas markets. Externally, it should deepen trade cooperation, enhance import-export autonomy, create international brands, and elevate Zhuhai's position in global industrial and value chains.

In building an open economic network, Zhuhai should utilize the "four-zone overlay" advantages of Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, Hengqin Guangdong-Macao In-Depth Cooperation Zone, modern international economic special zone, and free trade zone to create an "Macao brand + Hengqin R&D + Zhuhai manufacturing + global market" industrial chain coordination model.

Looking back from the 45th anniversary milestone, Zhuhai continuously evolves from a Pearl River estuary fishing village toward a "western Pearl River estuary core" city. In the future, this special zone combining opening-up DNA with livable foundation will continue advancing through industrial upgrading, talent aggregation, and regional coordination.

Those vehicle flows shuttling across the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge each morning perhaps represent this city's future hope - they connect Hong Kong and Macao resources while carrying Zhuhai's dreams for the next 45 years.