The Guangzhou International Financial City is under construction. [Photo/Nanfang Metropolis Daily]

The district of Tianhe in Guangzhou, capital city of South China's Guangdong province, is set to sell 45 plots of land this year. Forty such land parcels, a majority of which are located in Guangzhou International Financial City and Tianhe Intelligence Business District (IBD), will be reserved for commercial and service industries.

In its work report earlier this year, the local government said that the district will accelerate the urban renewal of Guangzhou International Financial City and Tianhe IBD to further unleash development potential and optimize land transactions.

As of the middle of July, the district had sold 10 land parcels for commercial and service industrial development.

On July 9, Kugou Music, a subsidiary of Tencent Music Entertainment in Guangzhou, purchased a land parcel in Guangzhou International Financial City for about 1.46 billion yuan ($225.78 million).

The successful transaction demonstrates that Guangzhou International Financial City has equally opened its door to both the financial sector and other industries.

A representative of Kugou Music said in an interview that as a major component of Guangzhou pilot zone for artificial intelligence (AI) and the digital economy, Guangzhou International Financial City has already become home to many leading firms in the fields of digital finance, digital cultural creation, big data and online cultural & entertainment services. The representative said that Kugou will fully leverage AI and other new technologies to expand its business scope in digital music, helping more customers gain access to high-quality music products and other affiliated services, and assist Tianhe in the building of an integrated development zone for AI and the digital economy.

Zi Yingkun, deputy general-manager of Guangzhou ZWSOFT CO Ltd, said in a recent interview that the CAx (CAD/CAM/CAE) solutions provider visted several other places before it decided to set up a branch in Tianhe IBD in January this year.

He said the IBD is adjacent to the local central business district and both the size and price of the land parcel is appropriate for his firm.

Moreover, it took just four months for the firm to complete all the necessary steps in the land transaction due to the simplified administrative procedures and sound governmental services.

Tianhe IBD has been home to over 2,200 technology firms, a majority of which are involved in software and information services. Advanced software firms have become the driving force of a new generation of information technology industries in the IBD.

Earlier this year, the local government released guidelines to stimulate the high-quality development of Tianhe IBD. The IBD will further leverage the roles of digital economy and AI and inject new elements into its integrated growth strategy between urban construction and industrial development with urban renewal in a drive to build a new area for intelligent industries and pleasant living.

According to the guidelines, Tianhe IBD will incubate 300 innovation-driven technological firms and Tianhe AI Valley will be home to the same number of high-tech companies as the IBD in the next five years.