This photo taken on April 25, 2024 shows a scene at the 2024 Zhongguancun Forum (ZGC Forum) Annual Conference in Beijing, capital of China. [Photo/Xinhua]

China boasts a total of 369 unicorn companies, or startups valued at more than 1 billion U.S. dollars, according to a report released on Sunday at the 2024 Zhongguancun Forum in Beijing.

The number of unicorn companies in China amounts to over a quarter of the total number of such companies globally, the report on China's unicorn enterprise development said.

In recent years, China's overall strength in technological innovation has steadily increased. The country has fostered a large number of unicorn companies, providing continuous momentum for nurturing new quality productive forces, experts said.

Presently, China's 369 unicorn companies span 16 sectors, with the fields of artificial intelligence and integrated circuits taking the lead.

In terms of localities, these companies span 47 cities nationwide, and more than 60 percent of them are concentrated in Beijing, Shanghai, Shenzhen, Guangzhou, and Hangzhou.

Sixty-seven of them qualified for unicorn companies over the past year.

Beijing ranks first nationwide with 114 unicorn companies, the report noted.