The paradigm has changed.
From “Made in China” to global benchmark.
For twenty years the West described China as the factory of the world: low-cost products, modest quality, imitation rather than invention. Today that story is simply false. In high-tech sectors China is no longer catching up: it sets the standard.
The Innovation Bridge China 2026 mission — From the Silk Road to Technological Innovation — was created with one clear goal: to witness this paradigm shift up close, company after company, and bring it back to Italian businesses with data and first-hand accounts, not through the filter of analysts or newspapers.
On this mission too, university students traveled alongside entrepreneurs and managers. The first bridge the Foundation wants to build is the one between senior leaders, who often hold the decision-making power, and young people, who represent the future in every sense.
Ten days, four cities.
Images from the mission
Click to enlargeFrom giants like Alibaba and Tencent to robotics pioneers like Unitree and EngineAI — 19 organizations across 4 cities in 10 days.
22 people, one bridge between generations.
22 people from business, finance, media, innovation and academia, including two university students. The full list of participants — names, roles and companies — is available in the field report.
The field report, company by company.
Xiaomi, Tencent, BYD, the humanoid robots of Shenzhen, the Shanghai Data Exchange, the Alibaba campus: every visit told through data, impressions and what it means for Italian companies.
Read the field reportHow to join the delegation.
With your company
Members get priority access to every mission, and can bring their own people along. It's what members single out as the most tangible benefit of membership.
With a dedicated donation
A €4,500 contribution funds a seat in the delegation. It's tax-deductible — and it makes a difference you can see.
As a student, with a scholarship
Scholarships funded by the 5×1000 (Italian income-tax allocation to nonprofits) and by supporters bring university students into the delegations, alongside the people who make the decisions.
Lead the change — don’t be led by it.
Missions like this one exist thanks to people who believe in the project. Every contribution funds free keynotes, international missions and AI training across Italy.
Don't miss the next mission.
Delegations, keynotes and news from the tech world, before they go public: one email a month, zero spam.