High-tech firms top Hurun’s list of China’s 500 most valuable private companies in 2024

The Hurun China 500 Most Valuable Private Companies in 2024 was released on Tuesday, with high-tech firms making up the majority of the list, epitomizing China's rapid advancement in technology innovation.

The list shows that 26 percent of the private firms are involved in software or services. Many companies specialize in artificial intelligence (AI), robotics or smart manufacturing. AI applications are evident in both the hardware and software sectors.

The ascendance of high-tech companies on the list shows new trends in China's economic development. High-tech products, semiconductors, and software services top the list, reflecting the nation's steadfast progress in digitalization and smart manufacturing, according to a press release sent to the Global Times by Hurun Research Institute.

The total output value of the listed firms increased by 13 percent to $7.8 trillion. Among the 291 companies that gained market value, 74 were newcomers to the list.

The list ranks the top 500 Chinese private enterprises according to their market value. As the closing date for the list was November 15, 2024, DeepSeek is not on this year's Hurun China 500 as the AI start-up caught global attention after the cut-off date, the institute noted.

And, 72 of the Hurun China 500 made it to the Hurun Global 1000 in 2024. "The average age of Hurun China 500 companies is only 29 years old, making them, on average, 38 years younger than their counterparts in the Hurun Global 1000 list," it said.

"The companies on the Hurun China 500 list form the backbone of China's economy. They employ 13.5 million workers," said Rupert Hoogewerf, chairman and chief researcher of Hurun, noting that the list highlights the private sector's influence on the Chinese economy.

According to official data, the total number of private entities in China has reached 180.86 million, accounting for 96.37 percent of the country's total business entities. Among China's high-tech enterprises, private businesses accounted for 92 percent.

The innovative vitality and immense potential of China's private enterprises are becoming more apparent, and the central government's determination to inspire the development of the private sector continues to strengthen, Li Jin, chief researcher at the China Enterprise Research Institute in Beijing, told the Global Times.

On February 17, China held a high-level symposium, calling for more efforts to promote the healthy and high-quality development of the private sector, according to the Xinhua News Agency.

Six representatives of private entrepreneurs - Huawei CEO Ren Zhengfei, BYD Chairman Wang Chuanfu, New Hope Group Chairman Liu Yonghao, Will Semiconductor Chairman Yu Renrong, Unitree Robotics CEO Wang Xingxing, and Xiaomi Chairman Lei Jun - spoke at the symposium, according to Xinhua.

Among them, BYD ranked ninth, while Huawei secured the 10th spot on the Hurun China 500 list. Xiaomi followed closely, ranking 11th.

The symposium highlighted the central government's focus on the development of private enterprises and their tech innovation. Private enterprises have played a crucial role in driving innovation in the country, Yang Delong, chief economist at Shenzhen-based First Seafront Fund, told the Global Times on Tuesday.

China has released support policies to propel the development of the private sector. For example, on February 18, one day after the symposium, the National Development and Reform Commission announced new measures to encourage greater private-sector participation in major national projects and programs.

The Ministry of Industry and Information Technology announced on February 18 that it would release more inclusive and targeted measures, aiming to promote the digital transformation of 40,000 small and medium-sized enterprises in 100 cities by 2026.

"The growth of the private sector is sure to ramp up market confidence. In the stock market, I closely track industries such as AI, humanoid robots, the low-altitude economy, unmanned smart driving and other sectors that represent the development of new quality productive forces. These industries benefit from both policy support and China's economic transformation," said Yang.