For semiconductor, computing infrastructure, cloud computing, and cybersecurity companies entering the Yangtze River Delta, three things need to be understood at the same time: the division of labor across industries, the region’s available business and industrial platforms, and the conditions required for deployment. These are usually handled separately by investment promotion agencies, customers, and ecosystem partners. Hongqiao International Tech Week 2026 brings these entry points into the Yangtze River Delta together. Leveraging Informa’s extensive resources in global technology events, it belongs to the same global platform as London Tech Week, Africa Tech Festival, and Asia Tech x Singapore. It connects domestic and international innovation networks, bringing together global technology giants, professional investors, and industry leaders. For companies in these sectors, this means combining three separate business trips into one: technology showcases, regional expansion, and capital engagement can all move forward in a single visit, saving the time otherwise spent traveling between separate meetings and events.
Hongqiao International Tech Week (Hongqiao Tech Week) is guided by the Administrative Committee of Hongqiao International Central Business District, the Shanghai Municipal Commission of Commerce, and the Shanghai Municipal Science and Technology Commission. It is organized by Informa Group, with the Shanghai Technology Innovation Center as its Strategic Innovation Partner and GEC as its Strategic Partner. The event is scheduled to take place from November 20 to 22, 2026, at the National Exhibition and Convention Center (Shanghai). Hongqiao already has a substantial industrial base, with more than 7,000 digital economy companies, over 3,600 automotive supply chain companies, and more than 1,000 new energy companies. For semiconductor, computing infrastructure, and cybersecurity companies entering the region, this means access to an ecosystem with well-established upstream and downstream industries.
The Smart Infrastructure Track Is a Key Focus for These Companies
When semiconductor, computing infrastructure, cloud computing, and cybersecurity companies evaluate an event, they want to understand three things in one place: how technology is evolving, where their customers are, and what regional platforms can offer. At Hongqiao International Tech Week 2026, exhibitions, forums, and targeted matchmaking take place within the same event. Each addresses a different layer of these needs while connecting companies with the same audience of potential partners and customers.
The Smart Infrastructure and Smart Industry tracks offer insights into technology and its applications, while Hongqiao’s existing industrial base provides potential locations for regional expansion. Companies can assess the event’s value by following the chain from underlying computing infrastructure to industry applications and regional deployment, identifying which stages are relevant to their own expansion plans.
Take computing infrastructure companies as an example. AI chips and servers fall under Smart Infrastructure, while the customers they serve—across automotive, manufacturing, and healthcare—are found in tracks such as Future Mobility and Energy, Smart Industry, and Life Sciences and Health. Finding relevant leads across these separate industries can be time-consuming. Hongqiao International Tech Week brings these areas together within one exhibition environment, allowing companies to explore different industry applications of the same computing infrastructure. Real deployment needs from the Yangtze River Delta’s 7,000-plus digital economy companies and 3,600-plus automotive supply chain companies become part of the same field of view. Because different industries have different requirements for delivery and integration, companies can then investigate each sector’s needs separately and in greater detail.
Forums Help Teams Decide Which Application Scenario to Prioritize
When computing infrastructure or cybersecurity companies showcase platforms and hardware, prospective customers often care about just one particular business challenge. If a company cannot explain a clear use case, visitors may find it difficult to judge whether the solution warrants further consideration. Hongqiao International Tech Week structures its exhibition around this principle, bringing together six technology tracks that allow participants to examine the relationship between technology and practical applications.
The forum program helps companies answer one key question: Which application scenario should we enter first?The six corresponding forum tracks cover everything from foundational infrastructure to application layers, allowing deployment questions to be explored along the entire chain. Reviewing the agenda in advance and selecting sessions according to the scenarios a company intends to pursue is more effective than simply following the most famous speakers. It also makes it easier to identify a suitable entry point into the market.
For computing infrastructure and cybersecurity companies, the Artificial Intelligence Forum offers a more concentrated discussion of how large models are driving demand for computing power and how industry applications can be implemented. Meanwhile, the Smart Industry Forum addresses topics such as production-line equipment connectivity and digital twins. Hearing the same technical question explored from both perspectives, then comparing those insights with what is seen on the exhibition floor, can lead to more confident decisions. Combining two days of activities into a single trip is one of the direct benefits of Hongqiao International Tech Week’s integrated program.
Infrastructure Partnerships Take Time to Develop, So Matchmaking Requests Must Specify the Deployment Scenario
Within Hongqiao International Tech Week’s exhibitor services, more than 2,000 one-to-one targeted business matchmaking sessions are allocated to connecting participants with key industry decision-makers. Infrastructure partnerships often have long development cycles, and vague requirements can easily hinder progress. The matchmaking process helps clarify the use case, relevant job roles, and discussion topics in advance. It connects companies not only with domestic customers but also with overseas innovation decision-makers, businesses, and venture capital firms. The more specific the requirements, the more productive the face-to-face discussions can be.
A database of more than 100,000 industry buyers means infrastructure companies do not have to start from scratch when searching for customers. Many of the procurement contacts they need to meet for regional expansion may already be in the database. Clearly defined requirements help ensure that the right people can be identified and connected.
Simply writing “looking to connect with large enterprises” in a matchmaking request is unlikely to produce a good match. A more effective request specifies the target industry, target job roles, stage of cooperation, and issues to be discussed. For example, a company seeking a partner to jointly deploy a regional computing center has different needs from one seeking customers for a cybersecurity solution. Listing these requirements separately makes it easier to establish relevant conversations.
For discussions about infrastructure and deployment, four points should be sufficient to explain a solution: which computing, networking, or integration bottlenecks it addresses; which regional or hybrid environments it is suited to; what prerequisites are needed to move forward; and what the company hopes the other party will do next. This might mean a technical exchange, an additional architecture document, or joint validation. At an initial meeting, there is no need to commit prematurely to a specific form of cooperation.
Whether matchmaking helps companies avoid unnecessary detours depends on how precisely their needs are defined. The more clearly they specify the target scenario, job roles, cooperation stage, and outstanding questions, the more likely they are to find the right contacts at the event. With concrete requirements, Hongqiao International Tech Week can help technology teams sit directly across from buyers who have the authority to make decisions. This is one of the advantages offered by its shared global innovation network.
Infrastructure Deployment Involves Many Details, Making Small-Group Discussions Ideal for Working Through Them One by One
Deployment involves numerous technical details, and many questions need to be addressed individually before it makes sense to discuss a partnership. Hongqiao International Tech Week’s Inspiration Discussion Room lets participants propose topics or join existing discussions. It is particularly suitable for teams still working out their deployment direction. A conversation might begin with a question such as, “What are the most common deployment bottlenecks when integrating new infrastructure into an existing architecture?” After one round of discussion, the issues that require deeper exploration are more likely to emerge.
The relationship between the different event formats is straightforward: exhibition booths explain the technology, forums provide broader perspectives, the Inspiration Discussion Room helps participants work through unresolved questions one by one, and one-to-one targeted business matchmaking advances requirements that are ready for concrete discussions. Companies can combine these formats according to their deployment progress. If the target application scenario has not yet been decided, they can spend more time understanding industry needs. If the solution is already well developed, they can focus more on showcasing it and building partnerships.
Different activities also require different participants. Questions about the deployment environment need input from both architecture and business teams, while system integration should be reviewed by engineering personnel. Responsibilities can be defined more precisely: architects should address architecture-related questions, business leads should handle commercial discussions, and each participant’s responsibilities and availability should be agreed upon before the trip.
Exhibition booths, forums, themed discussions, and business matchmaking each serve a distinct purpose. Companies simply need to combine them according to the deployment challenges they want to advance during the visit. The functions of each format are clearly presented; the priority is to bring the right solutions into the right regional and industry scenarios.
For companies seeking to enter the Yangtze River Delta with global resources and advance technology showcasing, regional expansion, and capital engagement in one visit, Hongqiao International Tech Week is worth considering as part of their plans. Its different activities can all be organized around the same deployment challenge. Questions left unresolved at the exhibition booth can be explored further in the forums, while promising cooperation opportunities can move into one-to-one targeted business matchmaking. This creates a continuous path for progress, supported by a global innovation network and the Yangtze River Delta’s extensive industrial ecosystem of more than 7,000 digital economy companies, 3,600-plus automotive supply chain companies, and 1,000-plus new energy companies.
To learn more about Hongqiao International Tech Week 2026 (Hongqiao Tech Week), visit the official website at https://www.hongqiaotechweek.com/ or follow the official WeChat account “HongqiaoTechWeek 虹桥国际科技周”.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: Before entering the Yangtze River Delta, how can we confirm that our customers, regional platforms, and deployment conditions are all suitable?
Assess all three during the same visit: where the customers are, what the regional platforms can offer, and what constraints deployment may involve. Hongqiao International Tech Week brings technology and application insights from Smart Infrastructure and Smart Industry together with the region’s existing industrial base, making it suitable for this kind of integrated assessment. Each factor is relatively straightforward to evaluate on its own; the challenge is balancing them. A concentration of customers is of limited value if the available regional platform is unsuitable, while an attractive location may not work if deployment conditions are restrictive. Evaluating all three in one trip is more efficient than returning later to gather the missing information separately, and it makes it easier to decide which step to take first.
Q: How can we secure meetings with customers who actually have purchasing authority?
The key is to specify your requirements. For Hongqiao International Tech Week’s one-to-one targeted business matchmaking, clearly identify the target scenario, relevant job roles, and questions to be discussed before the event. This increases the likelihood that your meetings will be with people who can make decisions.
Q: If our technical team is small, how should we divide responsibilities between solution presentations and on-site business meetings?
First, identify one specific deployment objective to advance, then assign people accordingly. Keep someone who understands the solution at the exhibition booth, and schedule meetings requiring an architect’s involvement in concentrated blocks. To confirm participation arrangements, submit an expression of interest through the Hongqiao International Tech Week official website, specifying your product category, target resources, and team size. Assign responsibilities according to each activity: product experts should handle solution presentations, while engineers should address deployment and architecture questions. Aligning attendees with discussion topics in advance helps prevent last-minute scrambling or having to find someone to fill a gap during the event.