On the production floor of Visionox, one of the world's leading suppliers of advanced displays based in Kunshan, Jiangsu province, a line of technicians in cleanroom suits closely monitor a sheet of deep-purple glass the size of a door.

A few kilometers away, the scene could not be more different: forklifts shuttle across the yard of KSHG, an auto wire-harness supplier whose customers range from domestic electric vehicle makers to German brands.

At first glance, these companies share little in common except for a Kunshan address. Yet together they capture the twin pillars of a county-level economy that has quietly become one of China's most competitive manufacturing bases.

This is what Kunshan local officials and executives say will define the city's next decade: a dense mesh of optoelectronics, precision components, automotive parts, advanced materials and artificial intelligence-ready electronics.

And it is this mesh — diversified but deeply interlinked — that Chinese policymakers are watching closely as they start shaping the 15th Five-Year Plan (2026-30), a national development blueprint for the next half-decade.