Technology transfer and industrial relocation in Shanghai’s biomedical industry: challenges and policy implications

Background The biomedical industry is one of three priority industries for development in Shanghai. However, the contradiction of ‘conducting research and development (R&D) in Shanghai, while technology transfer flows elsewhere’ is increasingly apparent. Although Shanghai has a high concentration of R&D institutions, innovative talent, and capital, much of its R&D is industrialized in the surrounding Yangtze River Delta and beyond. This structural separation brings potential public-health risks, including supply-chain fragility and inequity of medical product access. Objective This paper analyzes the causes of this relocation from a Shanghai perspective, qualitatively assesses its potential consequences for Shanghai’s economy, public finances, national innovation ecosystem and public health, and proposes countermeasures. Results Industrial relocation enables Shanghai to upgrade its industrial structure and clarify its positioning as an innovation-driven city. Although the relocation of industrialization activities has a certain degree of structural inevitability, its effects are conditional. The specific outcomes depend on which segments are relocated, the relationships of ownership and control, knowledge-feedback mechanisms, industrial supporting capacity, and cross-regional benefit-sharing arrangements. Unmanaged separation of R&D and manufacturing may threaten medical supply-chain resilience. Conclusion Shanghai’s biomedical industry is characterized by R&D agglomeration and industrial relocation, a structural feature shaped by cost, policy, and ecosystem factors, calling for regional collaborative governance to mitigate both economic and public-health risks.