Suzhou forging photonics powerhouse amid AI uptrend
City in Jiangsu turning more lab breakthroughs into global competitive edge
"If there had been no policy support from Suzhou New District, we would not have been able to make the breakthrough from zero to one," Min said. "This is a place where we can focus on innovation."
At Maxphotonics, the power of light can be measured on an entirely different scale.
Its 160-kW ultra-high power fiber laser, which the company describes as a world first, can handle cutting at the meter scale in some applications and stably process conventional thick plates of more than 500 millimeters, according to the company.
Such systems have potential applications in heavy industries where manufacturers must cut extremely thick materials quickly and precisely.
But the headline number — 160 kW — tells only part of the story.
Behind the machine is a supply chain of laser chips, optical fibers and other components that Chinese manufacturers once struggled to produce domestically.
"Laser chips, which are among the core components, used to rely mainly on imports. Now they can be supplied locally in Suzhou," said Dang Jiantang, deputy general manager of Maxphotonics' Suzhou subsidiary.
The company has developed technologies ranging from high-power components to triple-cladding fiber solutions as it seeks greater control over its core supply chain.
For Maxphotonics, Suzhou offered something that financial incentives alone could not provide: proximity.
Suppliers are nearby. Customers are nearby. Engineers and universities are nearby. And beyond Suzhou lies the wider Yangtze River Delta, one of the world's densest manufacturing regions.
Maxphotonics settled in Suzhou's Xiangcheng district in 2018. Its local workforce has since grown from around 40 or 50 people to more than 1,900.
The company recorded revenue of 1.5 billion yuan in 2025 and invested more than 50 million yuan in R&D, equivalent to more than 3 percent of its main business revenue.
Local measures included three years of free rent for 1,000 square meters of space and talent support worth up to tens of millions of yuan, according to materials provided by the local government.
