Who Will Be the Future Leader? Chinachuangye Heima and VB Insights Launch the 12th 'Specialized, Refined, Differentiated, and Innovative' Heima Competition 2022 – Healthcare & Life Sciences Track

In 2011, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) first proposed in the “12th Five-Year Plan for Small and Medium-sized Enterprises” that “specialized, refined, distinctive, and innovative” development should serve as an important pathway for the transformation and upgrading of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). Since then, multiple policy documents supporting the development of such “specialized, refined, distinctive, and innovative” SMEs have been successively issued at the central government level: In 2018, the MIIT launched the inaugural cohort of “Little Giant” enterprises specializing in niche markets with refined operations, distinct characteristics, and innovative capabilities; in July 2021, the development of these specialized SMEs was elevated to a national strategic priority; and in September of the same year, the Beijing Stock Exchange announced its establishment, with its core mission being to serve these “specialized, refined, distinctive, and innovative” SMEs.

“Specialized, Refined, Distinctive, and Innovative” refers to enterprises characterized by specialization, refinement, distinctiveness, and innovation. Innovation is the essence of being “Specialized, Refined, Distinctive, and Innovative.” The continuous policy support for such enterprises at all levels, from central to local governments, is fundamentally aimed at guiding small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) toward innovative development.

China’s healthcare and wellness industry is entering an innovation cycle. Multiple interacting factors—including policy support, growing demand, technological breakthroughs, and the ongoing pandemic—are reshaping the landscape of China’s healthcare and wellness sector. Empowered by next-generation information technologies, new business models such as internet-based healthcare (including telemedicine and tiered diagnosis and treatment) and AI-driven healthcare are flourishing. As established paradigms are disrupted, a new round of transformation is underway across all segments of the industry, featuring ecosystem restructuring and supply chain renewal. Innovation has become both the solution and the core mechanism for industrial upgrading, as well as an imperative for corporate transformation and development. The “Specialized, Refined, Differential, and Innovative” (SRDI) initiative aims to boost innovation capacity within the healthcare and wellness industry by identifying, encouraging, supporting, and nurturing innovative enterprises that focus on niche markets, concentrate on their core businesses, demonstrate strong innovation capabilities, and exhibit high growth potential, thereby empowering high-quality industrial upgrading.

To identify the future stars of “Specialized, Refined, Differential, and Innovative” (SRDI) enterprises cultivating China’s medical and health industry, Dark Horse Ventures and VCBeat have jointly launched the 2022 12th “SRDI” Dark Horse Competition – Medical and Health Track. The competition aims to discover and nurture leading “dark horse” companies with innovative vitality and growth potential. By accelerating cognitive development, capital access, and resource integration, it helps innovative enterprises achieve digitalization and securitization, empowering them with tools for industrial advancement, capital operation, and technological innovation. This initiative enables companies to break through bottlenecks in transformation and upgrading, thereby prospering the ecosystem of the medical and health industry, redefining healthcare scenarios, and promoting high-quality development of China’s medical and health sector.

This event is open to startups across the entire healthcare and wellness industry in China, covering areas including but not limited to medical devices, biopharmaceuticals, digital health, healthcare services, and healthcare commerce. Ultimately, outstanding entrepreneurial ventures will be selected to advance to the annual finals of the Dark Horse Competition, where they will compete alongside qualifying companies from the advanced manufacturing, new energy materials, and digital economy sectors for a spot among the Annual Top 100 Dark Horses.

Participating companies shall, in principle, meet the following criteria:

① Aligns with industry development trends, completed company registration before May 2021, and has a stable core team;

② The enterprise’s operating revenue in the previous year was ≥ RMB 3 million or its valuation was ≥ RMB 10 million, and the average annual growth rate of its main business revenue over the past two years was ≥ 10%; frontier technology teams incubated by research institutes, well-known central state-owned enterprises, or listed companies;

③ Focus on the healthcare and wellness market, with product sales revenue accounting for more than 50% of the company's total business revenue. Possess a certain market position and market share in the industry;

④ Strong innovation capabilities, with recently granted invention patents within the past two years or proprietary technologies such as unique and exclusive processes and formulas;

⑤ Possess sound management systems for finance, intellectual property, technical standards, and quality assurance.

Co-produced by Dark Horse and VCBeat, the 2022 12th “Specialized, Refined, Differential, and Innovative” Dark Horse Competition · Medical and Healthcare Track will provide strong empowerment to innovative enterprises across four key dimensions: industry, capital, resources, and branding.

● Industry Empowerment: A distinguished panel of judges comprising top-tier investment firms, research institutes, industry leaders, representatives from key industrial cities, and renowned securities firms will support the growth of innovative enterprises through various initiatives, including mentoring sessions, corporate visits, and team-led competitions.

● Capital-Driven Support: Over 100 investment institutions are engaged, accompanying event processes and supporting the growth of innovative enterprises, providing capital to help companies achieve transformation and upgrading.

● Resource Integration: Establishing channels to connect innovative enterprises with capital, policy, industry, and urban resources, facilitating precise demand matching for innovative enterprises, and accelerating ecosystem development and collaboration throughout their growth journey.

● Brand Empowerment: Engage in deep strategic collaborations with national-level media outlets such as Xinhuanet, implementing a saturation penetration communication strategy. Through live streaming, video, and multimedia articles, we provide promotional support and nationwide exposure for innovative enterprises, thereby establishing their corporate brand and social image.

1. From now until June 15, 2022, participating entities may register via the official competition portal.

Registration Link:http://form.heimadata.com/k/form_3499?fm=s.vbdata(Complete the form and click Submit to register.)

2. The preliminary round will be held on June 21, 2022. Judges will evaluate and score the participating projects based on six dimensions: team strength, relevance to pain points, solution innovation, case implementation, technical feasibility, and market potential. The top 50% of participants will advance to the semi-finals.

The Summer Finals are tentatively scheduled for June 30, 2022, and the China National Finals for December 30.

3. Due to uncontrollable factors such as the pandemic, this preliminary competition will be conducted in the format of online roadshows and reviews.