Shanghai is going to extensively promote high-growth and innovation-driven enterprises and make them an important driving force for stimulating emerging industries and nurturing more gazelles and unicorns, according to a three-year action plan.

The plan, issued by the Shanghai Commission of Economy and Informatization, has defined high-growth enterprises into four categories, namely gazelles (in development phase), potential gazelles (in startup phase), unicorns (in mature phase), and potential unicorns (in expansion phase).

The goal of the plan is to cultivate more than 1,000 high-growth enterprises by 2027, including 400 potential gazelle enterprises, 300 gazelle enterprises, 200 potential unicorn enterprises and 100 unicorn enterprises, as well as have at least two new unicorn enterprises each with a valuation of more than $10 billion.

Consisting of seven actions and 21 detailed measures, the plan looked to make Shanghai lead the nation in the number of high-growth enterprises, therefore driving technological innovation and contributing to global development, said the plan.

These efforts are in line with the central government's guideline on supporting the development of unicorn and gazelle companies in 2025, according to a government work report submitted to the national legislature for deliberation earlier in March.

The work report said China will advance tiered development of innovative enterprises and promote the growth of small and medium-sized enterprises that use specialized and sophisticated technologies to produce novel and unique products.