Shenzhen Tech Tour: A Guide to China's Hardware Capital
A Shenzhen tech tour takes you to the headquarters of Tencent, Huawei, BYD, DJI and ZTE, and into the hardware supply chain that turns a prototype into a product faster than almost anywhere else. This guide lists the tech companies headquartered in Shenzhen, the famous names that are actually elsewhere, what each company lets visitors see and a sample 3-day route.
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Plan a Shenzhen Tech Tour With Us
A Shenzhen Tech Tour Guide for Executives and Investors
Shenzhen is where China builds things. Drones, phones, electric cars, telecom networks, robots and genome sequencers are designed and made within a short drive of each other, and the electronics markets of Huaqiangbei supply engineers from all over the world.
This guide is for executives, investors and product teams planning a China tech tour that includes Shenzhen. We checked every company location against the company’s own website or annual report: several brands that most lists place in Shenzhen are headquartered in neighbouring cities.
It is also written from experience: on our latest tech and AI expedition, the group visited UBTech’s humanoid robot exhibition hall and Baidu’s Shenzhen offices, and met teams outside Tencent’s headquarters in Nanshan.
1. Which Tech Companies Are Headquartered in Shenzhen?
The table lists technology companies headquartered in Shenzhen, with the district and what each company publicly says about visits.
| Company | District | What they do | Visits (as publicly stated) |
|---|---|---|---|
 Tencent | Nanshan (Tencent Binhai Towers) | WeChat, games, cloud and fintech | Corporate exhibition hall, by appointment |
 Huawei | Longgang (Bantian base) | Telecom equipment, devices, cloud and chips | Exhibition halls, by invitation only |
 BYD | Pingshan (global headquarters) | Electric vehicles, batteries and electronics | Headquarters exhibition hall, bookable by schools and organisations |
 DJI | Nanshan (DJI Sky City, Xili) | Drones and camera stabilisers | Sky City podium garden open to the public; flagship store at OCT Harbour |
 ZTE | Nanshan (Hi-Tech Industrial Park) | Telecom equipment and 5G | Headquarters exhibition hall for customer visits |
 Honor | Futian (Xiangmihu) | Smartphones, PCs and AI devices | Headquarters exhibition hall on its visit route |
 UBTech Robotics | Nanshan (Nanshan iPark) | Humanoid and service robots | Exhibition hall, visited by InfluChina groups |
 Dobot | Nanshan | Collaborative robot arms and humanoid robots | Exhibition hall (reported by CCTV) |
 Insta360 | Bao’an | 360-degree and action cameras | Retail experience stores in Shenzhen |
 Mindray | Nanshan (Hi-Tech Park) | Medical devices | Delegations visit its headquarters exhibition hall |
 BGI | Yantian | Genomics and sequencing | Delegations visit its exhibition hall and labs |
 Seeed Studio | Nanshan | Open hardware, IoT and edge-AI modules | Chaihuo Makerspace, by appointment |
Source: company websites, annual reports and stock-exchange filings, checked 23 October 2026. Visitor information is as publicly stated by each company; visits are arranged with each host and confirmed per programme.
Other Shenzhen-headquartered names worth knowing: Transsion (phones for Africa and emerging markets) and WeBank in Nanshan, Ping An and China Merchants Bank in Futian, MGI Tech in Yantian and Sunwoda in Bao’an. Groups headquartered elsewhere also run large Shenzhen campuses: Baidu, headquartered in Beijing, has Baidu International Building in Nanshan.
2. Which Famous Companies Are Not Headquartered in Shenzhen?
Many of these companies have large teams in Shenzhen, but their headquarters is in another city. It matters when you plan a route, because a visit to the headquarters means a separate trip.
| Company | Where it is actually headquartered |
|---|---|
| OPPO and vivo | Dongguan, Guangdong (OPPO’s Shenzhen Bay tower is still under construction) |
| XPeng and EHang | Guangzhou |
| Anker | Changsha (with large Shenzhen operations) |
| SHEIN | Singapore |
| Hikvision and Unitree | Hangzhou |
| Roborock | Beijing |
| Dreame and Ecovacs | Suzhou |
Source: company websites and annual reports, checked 23 October 2026.
3. Why Choose Shenzhen for a Tech Tour?
Shenzhen’s advantage is depth in hardware. In one city you can see:
- Platforms and telecom: Tencent, Huawei, ZTE and Honor.
- Mobility and energy: BYD’s global headquarters and battery makers such as Sunwoda.
- Drones, cameras and robotics: DJI, Insta360, UBTech, Dobot and Leju Robotics.
- Health and life sciences: Mindray, BGI and MGI.
- Finance and logistics: Ping An, China Merchants Bank, WeBank and SF Express.
For consumer platforms, AI model companies and semiconductors, read our Shanghai tech tour guide.
4. Where Are Shenzhen’s Tech Districts?
- Nanshan: the core of Shenzhen tech. Tencent’s Binhai Towers, DJI Sky City and Transsion in Xili, ZTE and Mindray in the Hi-Tech Park, and UBTech, Dobot and Seeed Studio nearby.
- Futian: the business district, with Ping An Finance Centre, China Merchants Bank, Honor’s new headquarters at Xiangmihu and the Huaqiangbei electronics markets.
- Longgang: Huawei’s Bantian base.
- Pingshan: BYD’s global headquarters.
- Bao’an: Insta360, Sunwoda and the airport logistics hub.
- Yantian: BGI and MGI, on the eastern coast.
Distances are real: Pingshan and Longgang are well east of Nanshan, so a good route groups visits by district rather than by company.
5. What Can You Actually See on a Shenzhen Tech Tour?
Shenzhen companies are more used to receiving groups than most, and many run exhibition halls. Formats you can expect:
- Exhibition halls: Tencent (by appointment), ZTE, Honor, Mindray, BGI and Dobot receive groups in their halls. BYD’s headquarters exhibition hall can be booked by schools and organisations.
- By invitation only: Huawei’s exhibition halls at Bantian are not open to the public.
- Public spaces: DJI’s Sky City podium garden and its flagship store, and Insta360’s experience stores.
- Hardware and supply chain: factory floors, product showrooms and makerspaces such as Seeed’s Chaihuo Makerspace, which takes visitors by appointment.
Visits are always confirmed with each host, and no organizer can promise a specific company in advance. Our guide to company visits in China explains how it works.
6. A Sample 3-Day Shenzhen Tech Tour Itinerary
This is an example route. A real programme follows your sector and each host’s availability.
- Day 1, Nanshan: a platform company’s exhibition hall, a robotics company and DJI’s flagship store, then dinner with local founders.
- Day 2, hardware and supply chain: Huaqiangbei with a local guide, a factory or product-development visit and a session on how Shenzhen hardware start-ups go from prototype to production.
- Day 3, mobility or life sciences: BYD in Pingshan, or BGI in Yantian, depending on your focus; debrief before departure.
- Optional add-ons: Hong Kong is under 20 minutes from Futian by high-speed rail; Guangzhou (XPeng, EHang) is a short train ride away.
7. Shenzhen or Shanghai: Which Is Better for a Tech Tour?
Shenzhen is the stronger choice for hardware, devices and the supply chain; Shanghai for consumer platforms, AI models and semiconductors. Many tech tours combine the two.
| Shanghai | Shenzhen | |
|---|---|---|
| Strongest sectors | AI models, semiconductors, EVs, civil aviation, consumer platforms, gaming | Hardware and electronics, drones, telecom, EVs and batteries, robotics, genomics |
| What a visit feels like | Corporate headquarters, R&D campuses and brand spaces | Exhibition halls, labs, factory floors and the electronics supply chain |
| Best for | Market entry, consumer and platform strategy, AI | Product, hardware, supply chain and manufacturing |
| Easy add-on | Hangzhou by high-speed rail (Alibaba, DeepSeek, Unitree) | Hong Kong, Guangzhou (XPeng, EHang) and Dongguan (OPPO, vivo) |
Source: InfluChina, based on 25+ expeditions delivered; company locations from company filings, October 2026.
8. How to Plan a Shenzhen Tech Tour
- Visas: many nationalities can enter China visa-free for short stays; check the current rules before booking. Our China business trip guide covers visas, payments and apps.
- Hong Kong as a gateway: many groups fly into Hong Kong and cross to Shenzhen by train.
- Lead time: request company visits several weeks ahead, more for large groups.
- Interpreters: technical briefings are often in Chinese; plan interpretation for every meeting.
9. Organizing a Shenzhen Tech Tour With InfluChina
InfluChina organizes bespoke China business tours built around one objective. We design the route, request the visits, brief each host, provide interpreters and handle hotels, transfers and visa support, with our own team in Hong Kong and southern China.
Investors can start with our China tech tours for investors, buyers with our China sourcing trips. For a wider overview, read our China tech tour guide.
Start Planning Your Shenzhen Tech Tour
Shenzhen is the place to see how Chinese technology is built, not just how it is marketed. Group your visits by district, request them early and keep time for the supply chain behind the big names. Tell us about your group and we will propose a route.
