Shenzhi Cup AI Competition Draws 1,451 Teams From 30 Nations; 40 Finalists Head to Shanghai

The inaugural Shenzhi Cup AI innovation competition wrapped up its preliminary round with 1,451 teams from 30-plus countries, sending 40 finalists to Shanghai. The final round runs July 14-18. Winners will show their work at the World AI Conference later that month. The prize pool is RMB 4 million.

The competition covered four real-world tracks: AI computing power and chip performance, embodied intelligence and robotics, scientific computing (AI4S), and a terminal-device hackathon. Each track required on-site testing with real data. The embodied track pitted teams on industrial sorting, material handling, and component assembly in live machine competitions.

Shanghai State-owned Capital Investment, which manages nearly RMB 300 billion in assets, co-hosted the event alongside the China Academy of Information and Communications Technology (CAICT). Organizers said the competition was designed to bridge the gap between laboratory research and production lines. CAICT provided technical evaluation and industry guidance.

Teams came from leading tech companies, universities, research institutes, startups, and independent developers. Overseas teams tended to excel in algorithm originality and interdisciplinary approaches, while domestic teams were stronger on scenario understanding and engineering implementation, according to the organizers. Some projects have already entered joint verification phases with manufacturers.

The final round coincides with the lead-up to WAIC. Outstanding projects will get access to capital matchmaking and application scenarios through Shanghai State-owned Capital Investment's industrial ecosystem.