Chengdu’s Global Growth: Emerging as a Super Hub for International Trade and Innovation

International Rong is experiencing remarkable growth, evolving into a significant hub for global resource allocation. In the next five years, this city will not only serve as a vibrant frontier for China’s westward and southward opening but will also develop into a “super hub” with global capabilities.

On November 28, 2025, at 12:13 PM, the X8086 China-Europe Railway Express departed from the Chengdu International Railway Port, heading to Poland’s Malaszewicze. When viewed from a global perspective, Chengdu, a city rich in history and culture, known for its fashion and leisure, is increasingly making its mark on the world stage.

During the 12th World Games held in Chengdu in August 2025, the city’s greenways, streets, and night markets were praised as a “second venue,” with the President of the International World Games Association commending the efforts to ensure every guest felt at home. That same year, Chengdu was frequently included in the itineraries of international dignitaries, including visits from King Felipe VI and Queen Letizia of Spain, as well as French President Emmanuel Macron and his wife. Macron was seen jogging along the Jin Cheng Lake greenway, appreciating the wisdom of China’s water management at the Dujiangyan Irrigation System, and engaging with students at Sichuan University, images of which spread globally through the media.

The expansion of Chengdu’s openness to the world is underpinned by its rapid rise as a transportation hub. In June 2021, the Tianfu International Airport began operations, making Chengdu the third city in mainland China, following Beijing and Shanghai, to have two international airports. By the end of 2025, the Chengdu aviation hub welcomed its 90 millionth passenger, with 102 operating international and regional passenger and cargo routes, forming a comprehensive air route network that connects the Silk Road, reaches Europe and America, and links all continents.

Meanwhile, the China-Europe Railway Express has expanded in all directions, with over 36,000 trains connecting 133 cities abroad. More importantly, Chengdu embraces openness while actively promoting its “going global” initiatives, deeply integrating into global industrial, supply, and innovation chains. In 2025, Chengdu’s total import and export value exceeded 850 billion yuan, setting a new historical record and contributing to over 80% of Sichuan Province’s foreign trade total. The “Rong products going global” initiative is transitioning from mere sales to include technology and brand globalization.

By the end of 2025, Chengdu established eight overseas exhibition centers and over 60 overseas warehouses in Central Asia, Africa, and Southeast Asia, creating a logistics closed-loop system of “trains + routes + overseas nodes.” Over the next five years, the “International Rong” will continue to grow beyond borders, gathering resources and enhancing development levels, marking its evolution into a “super hub” capable of global resource allocation.

Smart Meters Go Global

You might find it hard to believe that in the past three years, one in every two smart meters added in the UK bore the “Made in Chengdu” label. A visit to the smart manufacturing workshop of Chengdu Great Wall Development Technology Co., Ltd. revealed a sprawling 10,000 square meters of space, where robotic arms operated with precision and data was clearly displayed on smart screens. Over 10 million smart metering devices (including electric, water, and gas meters) and new energy products are produced here annually, reaching users in over 40 countries and regions.

Chen Ya, the technical director of Great Wall Development, explained that the company relocated to Chengdu in 2016 and was one of the first globally to engage in smart meter research and development. “Smart meters may seem like simple household devices, but they are crucial infrastructure in the energy transition and modernization of power grids,” Chen noted. Traditional power grids face many challenges, including aging infrastructure and difficulties integrating renewable energy sources. Smart meters enable real-time data collection, remote control of equipment, precise fault monitoring, and rapid response, helping power companies improve supply reliability.

In 1998, the Great Wall team collaborated with Italy’s National Electricity Company (ENEL) to deploy the world’s first generation of smart metering devices with automatic reading capabilities in Italy, marking the beginning of their exploration of the global smart metering market. A significant turning point in their international journey was gaining access to the UK market. Company Vice President Yan Jie shared that the UK government has stringent network security and data privacy regulations for energy infrastructure, particularly for foreign suppliers. Great Wall began its deep market entry into the UK in 2010 and obtained the UK National Security CPA certification, enabled large-scale deployments. By the end of 2025, the company had installed over 2.3 million smart meters in the UK, capturing 50% of the new meter market share and serving over ten major energy companies.

In addition to the European market, Great Wall is actively expanding into the Middle East under the Belt and Road Initiative, having shipped 4.5 million smart metering products to the region. In 2025, they invested in a wholly-owned subsidiary and production base in Brazil to enter the South American smart energy market. What allows Great Wall to stand out in the global market as an “invisible champion” in smart metering products? “Our long-term commitment to independent innovation has given us a deep understanding of the industry, products, and customer needs, forming a professional service system. From understanding customer needs to product development, delivery, and after-sales support, we have streamlined every process. This hard strength is our core confidence and the deepest ‘moat’ we have,” Chen explained. By early 2026, Great Wall had delivered over 107 million smart metering products globally, holding more than 160 valid patents and 30 software copyrights. This Chengdu enterprise has evolved from developing smart metering products to providing integrated smart energy management system solutions, actively engaging in smart water management and energy storage.

“Our goal at Great Wall is to become a global leader in smart energy management solutions, promoting China’s proprietary smart energy solutions worldwide,” Yan Jie told reporters.

Robots Teaming Up for Global Expansion

Various “Chengdu-made” robots are also teaming up to venture abroad, actively working in airports, mines, and factories worldwide. In 2023, Chengdu Guimu Robot Co., Ltd., headquartered in Longquanyi District, officially secured a project at Rome Airport, where its robots conduct ground inspection tasks. They later successfully entered an airport in Ireland and were accepted as a Chinese intelligent inspection equipment supplier by the European Airports Association.

In March 2025, Guimu’s automated pavement health inspection robots began operations at Cagliari Elmas Airport in Italy. Why would a European hub airport with strict infrastructure requirements accept a supplier from China? Guimu’s Deputy General Manager Deng Yongjun explained that they are more than just a simple equipment supplier; they have built a comprehensive system of “self-developed hardware + full-stack software + industry data closed-loop,” which constitutes Guimu’s core competitiveness. Airports that have been operational for years often face ground cracks, potholes, and potential safety hazards in underground structures. The intelligent inspection robots produced by Guimu not only serve as detection devices but also provide a full lifecycle digital maintenance solution based on big data, helping airports transition from reactive repairs to preventive maintenance, effectively addressing issues like tight funding for infrastructure maintenance and low efficiency in manual inspections.

Guimu’s self-developed mining conveyor inspection robots are currently operating at the Simandou Iron Mine in Guinea, known for being the world’s largest and highest-quality iron ore reserve, with confirmed reserves of approximately 4.4 billion tons. Deng noted that the production environment in mines is highly challenging, and human inspections are often limited. Guimu’s robots are equipped with dual-light fusion vision technology, allowing them to accurately identify potential hazards such as belt damage and roller detachment through visual, temperature, and sound detection. They are the world’s first track-based inspection robots with belt damage identification capabilities. These robots provide proactive maintenance rather than reactive repairs, and they can continue monitoring even in the mountainous regions of Guinea where network signals are weak.

Currently, Guimu’s business scope covers various scenarios such as road data services, hazardous chemicals, and mining inspections, offering full-chain services from equipment to data. Looking ahead, Guimu has laid out a clear expansion plan for global markets. “We aim to further expand into European, Southeast Asian, African, Middle Eastern, and South American airport and transportation infrastructure inspection markets. Additionally, we will leverage the Simandou Iron Mine project as a foothold to expand into the African mining intelligent inspection market and actively explore the Southeast Asian region to meet local infrastructure’s intelligent upgrade needs,” Deng stated.

In February 2026, Chengdu Xingjin Humanoid Robot Technology Co., Ltd. launched its unique “Dangba” robot, officially kicking off its global expansion plan. The name “Dangba” is derived from the well-known century-old street “Dangba Street” in Chengdu’s Chunxi Road business district. The “Dangba” robot is a bipedal robot approximately 1 meter tall, weighing about 30 kilograms, with a square head featuring a 19-inch screen and electronic eyes. It can smoothly perform actions such as leaning forward, backward, tilting left and right, and turning its antenna. The robot incorporates advanced technologies such as biomimetic gait, robust balance control for complex terrains, multimodal emotional perception, and group control systems, primarily used for autonomous security patrols and smart guided tours in cultural and tourism settings. This robot is entirely developed in Chengdu, featuring multi-language voice interaction capabilities and showcasing Chengdu’s cultural symbols such as Sichuan opera masks and giant pandas through exclusive cultural accessories.

Rong Products Take Flight

Now, the “Rong products going global” initiative has progressed from a quantitative accumulation to a qualitative leap—products are not only sold across the globe but also advancing towards brand and technology globalization. In January 2026, the CES (Consumer Electronics Show), renowned as the “Global Tech Spring Festival,” kicked off in Las Vegas, USA. Chengdu-based AR smart glasses manufacturer, Yingmu Technology, showcased its flagship models INMO GO3 and INMO AIR3 for the first time at CES. The year 2025 was labeled the breakout year for AR smart glasses, with major tech giants including Apple, Google, Facebook, Huawei, Xiaomi, Alibaba, and Baidu accelerating their entries into the market.

Recognized as one of China’s “Four Little Dragons” in AR glasses, Yingmu Technology is a pioneer in lightweight “integrated AI + AR” smart glasses. Its latest generation AR smart glasses, INMO GO3, launched in October 2025, are the first in the industry to achieve “real-time translation for bidirectional dialogue,” enhancing cross-language communication naturally and efficiently, with a total weight of only 53 grams. This product also includes an interesting social application—an AR social business card that can identify the names and companies of individuals, awakening memories at a glance and eliminating the awkwardness of “face blindness.”

Yingmu Technology’s founder, Yang Longsheng, shared that CES was the overseas debut of INMO GO3, and its fashionable and lightweight design along with its flexible smart interaction experience attracted considerable attention from overseas audiences and media. Yingmu Technology received significant brand recognition on the world stage, winning the “Best Application Innovation 2026” award from the World AI Glass Alliance (WAEA) and ShowStoppers, along with multiple accolades from authoritative industry media.

In addition to strengthening its domestic market, Yingmu Technology plans to enhance its global brand expansion efforts, adopting a “dual approach” of online and offline strategies. This includes maintaining strong performance on core channels such as Amazon and its official independent site while focusing on key markets in North America, Japan, and Europe for offline efforts, gradually opening regional distribution collaborations and establishing localized experience settings for overseas users to experience the products up close, creating a complete “experience—purchase—service” cycle overseas.

It is notable that behind the rush of Chengdu enterprises to go global is a continuously improving and innovating governmental service system. In January 2026, the Chengdu Municipal Bureau of Commerce led the establishment of a “Product Promotion and Rong Products Going Global Task Force,” creating a dedicated workforce to promote international expansion. The “Rong Products and Enterprises Going Global Comprehensive Service Center Online Platform,” built by Chengdu International Trade Group, was officially launched, achieving full coverage of goods trade and service trade, along with a dual service model of “online intelligent platform + offline physical space,” providing one-stop and comprehensive services throughout the entire cycle for enterprises going global.

Relevant officials from the Chengdu Municipal Bureau of Commerce stated that in the future, Chengdu will focus on “cultivating brands, building platforms, and optimizing services,” delving into country-specific markets for various product categories, conducting precise matching, and enhancing the “1+N” comprehensive foreign trade service system. They aim to integrate global resources to provide full-chain support, assisting more Rong products and enterprises in setting sail and continuously enhancing the international competitiveness of “Made in Chengdu.”