April 24, 2024, Hangzhou – The 8th All Blossom Conference, guided by the Central Committee of the China National Democratic Construction Association (Minjian) and the China Association for Science and Technology (CAST), and co-hosted by the Zhejiang Provincial Committee of Minjian and the China Investment Development Promotion Association, opened at the Hangzhou International Expo Center. At this premier annual event for innovation and entrepreneurship, the "2024 Hangzhou Unicorn & Emerging Unicorn Enterprises List" was officially released.

The list reveals that as of April 2024, Hangzhou is home to 43 unicorn companies (valued at 1billion or more) and 382 Emerging Unicorn companies (valued at 100 million or more). Having been named to Hangzhou's Emerging Unicorns list in both 2023 and 2024, Westlake Pharma has demonstrated its outstanding strength in technological innovation and its sustained potential for growth.

The Hangzhou Unicorns and Emerging Unicorns lists are a major highlight of the All Blossom Conference each year and serve as a barometer for the city's innovation and entrepreneurship ecosystem. In terms of industry distribution, the number of companies in the healthcare sector on the Emerging Unicorns list reached 117, an increase of six from the previous year, maintaining its leading position.

Zhou Kaibing, Vice President of the China Investment Development Promotion Association and rotating chairman of the Hangzhou Venture Capital Association, noted that, overall, companies in the biopharmaceutical and advanced manufacturing sectors account for approximately 50% of the list. "This gives people a new perspective on Hangzhou, a city often known as the 'E-commerce Capital'," he said. He also added, "A significant portion of today's entrepreneurs come from universities, possessing their own proprietary intellectual property and innovative capabilities. These individuals bring a new dynamic to the entrepreneurial community and have earned the recognition of investors."

Westlake Pharma is a technology commercialization enterprise spun out of Westlake University. Since its founding in 2020, it has grown rapidly with the policy support of the Hangzhou government. The company is actively exploring the frontiers of first-in-class drug R&D and has already achieved milestone results. Its first novel drug has successfully completed clinical trials, with a development speed that surpasses industry norms.

Data from the list shows that from 2018 to 2024, the number of unicorn companies in Hangzhou grew from 26 to 43, with an average annual growth rate of 10.9%. The number of Emerging Unicorn companies surged from 105 to 382, with an average annual growth rate of 44%. As a city leading the nation in innovation and vitality, Hangzhou has consistently maintained a thriving pace of development. The seven-year comparison data from the Hangzhou Unicorns and Emerging Unicorns lists clearly demonstrates this steady yet progressive innovative power.