The Beijing Economic-Technological Development Area (BDA)  hosted its first "Foreign Diplomats Experiencing Beijing" event on March 28, 2024, welcoming 41 diplomats from the embassies of 23 countries in China, including Ethiopia, the United States, Germany, Japan, Indonesia, Singapore, South Africa, and Cuba.

At the event, diplomats were given a ride in autonomous vehicles, and H.E. Ambassador of Ethiopia to China, Tefera Derbew, joined other dignitaries in praising Beijing's technological research, development, manufacturing, and marketing of autonomous vehicles.

The guests visited the headquarters of JD.com, where they had the opportunity to observe the fully automated "Asia No.1" logistics center and learn about popular foreign brands and sales volumes on their e-commerce platform.

Five sci-tech innovation enterprises - Pony.ai, Soft Robot Technology Co., Ltd. (SRT), WeMed Medical Equipment Co. Ltd., GE Medical Systems, LLC, and Huilongsen International Enterprise Incubator (Beijing) Co., Ltd, - were on hand to acquaint the diplomats with their current cooperation projects.

Economic & Trade Counsellor of the Embassy of the Slovak Republic in Beijing Martina Mihalova spoke of the embassy's intention to hold activities at JD.com, Pony.ai, and other enterprises in the BDA for high-level delegations visiting from Slovakia.

Hector Jesus Dorbecker Herrerra, Counsellor of Economics, Technology, New Industry and Financial Affairs of the Embassy of Mexico in China, keeps a close eye on the development of autonomous vehicles in Beijing.  He wants to use the opportunity presented by the event to connect with Pony.ai and the other enterprises for possible future cooperation.

Economic Officer at the US Embassy in Beijing William Hope and Head of the Consular Section of the Embassy of Bulgaria in China Angel Georgiev expressed admiration for SRT's pioneering Soft Robot Gripper and made known their intentions to explore future collaboration.

Chief Commercial Counsellor of the Embassy of Türkiye in Beijing Atakan Ozdemir exchanged information with the head of Huilongsen International Enterprise Incubation Park on projects currently being carried out in conjunction with Türkiye. Mexican Counsellor Dorbecker expressed his interest in visiting Huilongsen International Enterprise Incubation Park soon to gain a deeper understanding of the business services it provides.

The first "Foreign Diplomats Experiencing Beijing" event of the year was well-received by diplomats, who saw it as an opportunity to enhance their understanding of Beijing and forge mutually beneficial partnerships with China. They noted the enormous potential for cooperation in areas such as commerce, science and technology, and culture, and expressed their eagerness for more diverse economic and cultural activities in the future.

It's been reported that four more "Foreign Diplomats Experiencing Beijing" events have been planned for 2024 at the Zhongguancun National Independent Innovation Demonstration Zone, Beijing Municipal Administrative Center, and Shougang Park.