This summer, buzzwords have been trending on overseas social media. Following the global surge in travel to China under the “China Travel” wave, “China Cool” has taken over, reshaping international perceptions of the country across multiple dimensions. As the countdown to APEC’s “Shenzhen Rendezvous” begins, Shenzhen—the host city—has emerged as the most representative case study for decoding “China Cool.” Media professionals from across the Asia-Pacific have been visiting and observing, discovering that behind the online buzzwords lies a three-dimensional, authentic urban identity defined by inclusive technology, openness, and people-to-people exchange.
Walking the streets of Shenzhen, the most immediate impression for foreign visitors is the palpable sense of technology at their fingertips. The world’s first robot 6S store has become a must-visit hotspot for international guests, where robots play the piano, brew coffee, and use dexterous mechanical hands to interact with tourists in games. Within commercial districts, drone food deliveries arrive in under 15 minutes; at night, autonomous logistics vehicles navigate the roads in an orderly flow; and at intersections, robot traffic officers help maintain order. Tech products that once existed only as exhibition concepts are now deeply integrated into everyday life.
After experiencing the city, British tourist Arthur Ashcroft remarked, “These robots are super cool—Shenzhen feels like a city of the future.” This is not an isolated sentiment. This summer, many foreign tourists have come to Shenzhen specifically to experience cutting-edge technology. Wei Miaorong, an English-speaking tour guide with 24 years of experience, notes that “cool” is the most frequently used word among foreign visitors, many of whom encounter tech scenarios here that they have never seen in their own countries. From Leo, a teenager from Canada, to two brothers from Dubai, and a Malaysian couple revisiting Shenzhen after 20 years, all have been awestruck by the city’s pervasive smart applications.
Today, robots are everywhere in Shenzhen: assisting with security checks at Futian Metro stations, making coffee in Nanshan shopping malls, providing nighttime intelligent services at Bao’an government service points, and accompanying residents in sports and entertainment in Qianhai. Singapore’s The Straits Times has even reported on scenes of robot traffic officers on duty in the city. Where overseas perceptions of Shenzhen once centered on Huaqiangbei electronics markets, the innovation scenarios now visible on every street corner are continuously refreshing those outdated impressions.
Sun Jifei, deputy editor-in-chief of The Jakarta Post, cites two personal experiences as particularly telling. Two years ago, drone food delivery was a novelty; today, it is part of daily life for residents. Shenzhen has opened nighttime road rights to autonomous vehicles, with tens of thousands of unmanned delivery robots now in operation, turning advanced technology into ordinary moments like receiving a late-night parcel. In his view, Shenzhen’s most valuable competitive edge is not just the technology itself, but the city’s inclusive atmosphere and the policy environment that allows innovations to land quickly and benefit the public—experience that Indonesia can draw on as it advances its own urban modernization.
Ahead of the upcoming APEC meetings, Sun highlights three priority areas: Asia-Pacific supply chain collaboration, SMEs going global, and green transition. He notes that Southeast Asian countries’ rich natural resources, paired with China’s comprehensive manufacturing base, create strong potential for complementary advantages. He hopes Shenzhen can set an example to help Asia-Pacific SMEs expand into new markets, and that the city’s low-carbon urban development experience can be shared with other APEC economies through the APEC platform.
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