Positive Review: The Rise of KylinSoft and the Mutual Empowerment between the Breakthrough of Domestic Operating Systems and Tianjin’s Industrial Ecosystem
KylinSoft has become the first unicorn in Tianjin in 2025 with a valuation of over 8 billion yuan and completed a super – financing of 3 billion yuan. This event is not only a milestone in the field of domestic operating systems but also a typical microcosm of China’s information and technology innovation industry breaking through “neck – choking” technologies and the upgrading of local industrial ecosystems. Its positive significance can be deeply analyzed from three dimensions: technology, industry, and the city.
Technological Breakthrough: The Crucial Leap of Domestic Operating Systems from “Usable” to “Good to Use”
For a long time, the operating system market in China has been dominated by international giants such as Microsoft Windows, Google Android, and Apple iOS. The “hollowing – out” in the field of basic software threatens national security and industrial autonomy. The growth history of KylinSoft is precisely the struggle history of domestic operating systems from “catching up” to “leading”. After integrating Zhongbiao Software (with 30 years of technological accumulation from China Software) and Tianjin Kylin (relying on the super – computer technology of the National University of Defense Technology), it has formed three major brands, namely “Galaxy Kylin”, “Zhongbiao Kylin”, and “Xingguang Kylin”, covering multiple scenarios such as servers, desktops, and intelligent terminals. It has ranked first in the Chinese Linux market share for 13 consecutive years. Its performance of 1.438 billion yuan in revenue and 502 million yuan in net profit in 2024, as well as the practice of serving more than 70,000 users (including major national projects such as the “Chang’e Lunar Exploration” and the “Shenzhou Series”, and key infrastructure such as power and transportation), prove that its products have shifted from “policy – driven substitution” to “market – recognized necessity”. After this financing, KylinSoft has accelerated the layout of AI operating systems (such as the Galaxy Kylin desktop AI version), aiming at the global “AI – oriented” wave of operating systems and seizing the first – mover advantage for domestic software in the next – generation technology competition.
Industrial Collaboration: The “Combination Punch” of State – owned Capital and Industrial Capital Activates Ecological Value
The 3 – billion – yuan financing lineup of KylinSoft is truly “luxurious”: there is not only a strategic investment of 2 billion yuan from China Software itself but also the participation of 10 state – owned and industrial capitals such as Gongrong Shunxi (affiliated with Industrial and Commercial Bank of China), China Mobile Capital (China Mobile), Sinopec Capital (China Petroleum & Chemical Corporation), and CCB Financial Asset Investment (China Construction Bank). This model of “state – owned capital leading the investment + industrial capital following the investment” not only solves the pain points of the long R & D cycle and large capital demand of domestic basic software but also magnifies the ecological value through resource collaboration. For example, as an important source of demand for information and technology innovation, China Mobile’s investment can directly drive the implementation of the Kylin operating system in the operator field; the participation of energy enterprises such as Sinopec can promote the customized development of the operating system in vertical scenarios such as industrial control and energy management. In addition, the participation of the Greater Bay Area Fund as the leading investor reflects the support of cross – regional capital for “neck – choking” projects, breaking the traditional pattern of fragmented regional industrial resources. This deep – seated binding of “capital + industry” provides a closed – loop support of “demand – R & D – application” for the commercialization of domestic basic software.
Urban Empowerment: The Qualitative Change of Tianjin’s Information and Technology Innovation Industrial Ecosystem from “Industrial Chain” to “Industrial Ecosystem”
The rise of KylinSoft is the result of the long – term accumulation and development of Tianjin’s information and technology innovation industry. Currently, more than 1,000 upstream and downstream enterprises in the information and technology innovation field have gathered in Tianjin, covering the entire industrial chain of “CPU – operating system – database – whole – machine server – peripheral terminal – super – computing – information security”. It has leading enterprises such as Phytium Technology, Hygon Information (CPU), and Nanda Tongyong (database). The financing and the leap in valuation of KylinSoft mark that Tianjin’s information and technology innovation industry has shifted from “perfecting the industrial chain” to “exploding the industrial ecosystem”: on the one hand, as the “chain master” in the operating system link, it can further attract enterprises in the chip, middleware, and application software links to gather, strengthening industrial collaboration; on the other hand, the benchmark effect of the unicorn will increase Tianjin’s attention in the national technology venture – capital circle, attracting more talents and capital to gather locally. For example, the Haihe Industrial Fund (Tianjin’s government – guided fund) participates in the investment through sub – funds such as Zhongwan Haihe, which not only reflects the support of local capital for local technology enterprises but also deeply binds KylinSoft with Tianjin’s industrial strategy through the capital link, injecting new impetus into Tianjin’s “1 + 3 + 4” modern industrial system (led by the intelligent technology industry).
Negative Review: Behind the Halo, KylinSoft and Tianjin Need to Face Three Major Challenges
Behind the glorious moment of KylinSoft, there are still hidden concerns at the technical, market, and ecological levels; and Tianjin’s goal of rising with the help of technology also faces the dual pressures of regional competition and its own shortcomings.
Pressure of Technological Iteration: The Ability Test from “Following” to “Leading”
Although KylinSoft occupies a leading position in the Linux market, its underlying technology is still based on the Linux kernel, and there is a generation gap compared with the “full – stack self – research” of international giants such as Microsoft and Google (such as the Microsoft Windows kernel and the Google Fuchsia system). With the popularization of technologies such as AI, the Internet of Things, and edge computing, the functional boundaries of operating systems have been redefined – from “managing hardware resources” to an integrated platform of “intelligent scheduling + data processing + security protection”. Although KylinSoft has launched an AI – version operating system, its accumulation in key technologies such as large – model adaptation, multi – modal interaction, and end – edge – cloud collaboration still needs to be verified. In addition, international giants have accelerated the layout of the domestic substitution market (such as Microsoft’s launch of the “Windows Information and Technology Innovation Edition”), and domestic competitors such as Tongxin Software and Puhua Basic Software have also emerged. If KylinSoft cannot maintain an advantage in the speed of technological iteration, its market share may be squeezed.
Marketization Ability: The Challenge of Balancing Dependence on State – owned Capital and Business Sustainability
The financing structure of KylinSoft is mainly composed of state – owned capital (China Software, Gongrong Shunxi, China Mobile Capital, etc. all have state – owned backgrounds). Although this can ensure the early R & D investment, it may also weaken its market – oriented competitiveness. For example, some state – owned shareholders may pay more attention to the policy goal of “domestic substitution” rather than the long – term profitability of the enterprise; excessive dependence on state – owned orders (such as those in the Party and government and national defense fields) may lead to insufficient motivation for expanding the civilian market. The net profit margin of KylinSoft reached as high as 34.9% (502 million yuan / 1.438 billion yuan) in 2024, which reflects strong profitability. However, if the expansion of the civilian market (such as consumer electronics and industrial Internet) fails to meet expectations in the future, the sustainability of its performance growth will be tested. In addition, the state – owned – capital – dominated equity structure may lead to a lengthy decision – making process, limiting the efficiency in responding to rapidly changing market demands.
Tianjin’s “Technological Presence”: The Dual Pressures of Regional Competition and Its Own Shortcomings
Although the success of KylinSoft has given a boost to Tianjin’s technology industry, the crisis of Tianjin’s “marginalization” in the national technology venture – capital circle has not been fundamentally resolved. Compared with technology hubs such as Beijing (Zhongguancun), Shanghai (Pudong New Area), and Shenzhen (Nanshan District), Tianjin lags behind in terms of the number of financing events of technology enterprises, the number of listed companies, and the entrepreneurial activity. For example, the news mentioned that “except for the 3 – billion – yuan financing of KylinSoft, there are few reports on the financing and listing of Tianjin’s technology enterprises”, which reflects the weakness of the local entrepreneurial ecosystem – lack of sufficient early – stage project reserves, low concentration of angel investment and VC institutions, and inflexible technology achievement transformation mechanism. Although Tianjin has universities such as Tianjin University, and the Haihe Industrial Fund has participated in the investment of more than 130 local private enterprises (10 of which are listed) through sub – funds, compared with the Shenzhen Angel Mother Fund (with a scale of over 100 billion yuan) and the Beijing Science and Technology Innovation Fund (with a scale of over 200 billion yuan), the support of capital for early – stage projects in Tianjin is still insufficient. In addition, although Tianjin’s information and technology innovation industrial chain is complete, the radiation and driving effect of the “chain master” enterprises has not been fully released, and the technology upgrading and commercialization ability of small and medium – sized supporting enterprises still need to be improved.
Suggestions for Entrepreneurs: Seize the Opportunities in Information and Technology Innovation and Find Breakthrough Points in Technology, Ecosystem, and Region
The case of KylinSoft provides multiple inspirations for entrepreneurs. Combining the current trends of the information and technology innovation industry and the characteristics of Tianjin’s industrial ecosystem, entrepreneurs can focus on the following directions:
1. Focus on “Neck – Choking” Technologies and Build Competitive Barriers through “Integration + Deep – Dive”
The success of KylinSoft started with the integration of Zhongbiao Software and Tianjin Kylin – the former has 30 years of technological accumulation, and the latter relies on the super – computer technology of the National University of Defense Technology. The two complement each other to form an operating system matrix covering multiple scenarios. When entrepreneurs tackle technological problems, they can learn from this idea: on the one hand, integrate the scattered technological resources in the industry (such as university laboratories and small and medium – sized technology enterprises) through mergers, acquisitions, and cooperation to quickly improve the technological maturity; on the other hand, focus on niche scenarios (such as industrial Internet of Things operating systems and Internet of Vehicles operating systems) for in – depth development, avoid direct competition with international giants, and build barriers with “absolute advantages in vertical fields”.
2. Make Good Use of “State – owned Capital + Industrial Capital” and Balance Policy Dividends and Marketization Ability
The financing structure of KylinSoft shows that the collaboration between state – owned capital and industrial capital can provide dual support of “funds + demand” for technology – intensive enterprises. Entrepreneurs can actively connect with local government – guided funds (such as the Haihe Industrial Fund) and central – enterprise industrial capitals (such as China Mobile Capital and Sinopec Capital), and obtain order resources and industrial – chain support through equity binding. However, they need to pay attention to simultaneously improving their marketization ability: for example, while serving state – owned orders, actively expand the civilian market (such as the digital transformation needs of small and medium – sized enterprises) to avoid excessive dependence on a single customer group; establish a flexible decision – making mechanism to ensure a balance between the requirements of state – owned shareholders and the market response speed.
3. Take Root in the Regional Industrial Ecosystem and Become a Two – Way Empowering Entity between the “Chain Master” and the “Supporting Enterprises”
The integrity of Tianjin’s information and technology innovation industrial chain (covering links such as CPU, operating system, and database) provides an advantage for entrepreneurs. For technology – based entrepreneurs (such as those in chip design and middleware development), they can actively connect with the needs of “chain master” enterprises such as KylinSoft and provide customized supporting services (such as industrial software compatible with the Kylin operating system), and quickly open up sales channels through the market share of the “chain master”; for platform – based entrepreneurs (such as information and technology innovation testing and certification platforms and developer communities), they can rely on Tianjin’s industrial – chain resources to build a public service platform of “technology R & D – testing and verification – application promotion”, reducing the overall innovation cost of the industry and enhancing the stickiness of the regional industrial ecosystem.
4. Plan for Technological Iteration in Advance and Seize the New Opportunities of AI and the Internet of Everything
The launch of the AI – version operating system by KylinSoft reminds entrepreneurs to pay attention to the trend of the “AI – orientation” of operating systems. In the future, the operating system will not only be a hardware manager but also a “distribution platform” for AI capabilities (such as intelligently scheduling computing power and optimizing the operation efficiency of large models). Entrepreneurs can develop an AI – driven operating system toolchain (such as a compilation tool that can automatically adapt to different chips), an AI security protection module (such as an operating – system – level security strategy for large models) around this trend, or develop a “lightweight + intelligent” edge operating system for the Internet of Things scenario, and seize niche markets in technological iteration.
5. Utilize University Resources and Local Policies to Accelerate the Transformation of Technological Achievements
The presence of universities such as Tianjin University in Tianjin and the recent extension of the duration of the Haihe Industrial Fund (until 2040) by the local government, which has increased the support for the transformation of technological achievements, provide opportunities for entrepreneurs. Entrepreneurs can actively connect with university laboratories (such as the artificial – intelligence and integrated – circuit laboratories of Tianjin University) and accelerate the implementation of technologies through the model of “university R & D + enterprise transformation”; at the same time, pay attention to local policy dynamics (such as the establishment direction of sub – funds of the Haihe Industrial Fund) to seek early – stage financing support and avoid missing market opportunities due to a shortage of funds.
In conclusion, the rise of KylinSoft is not only a microcosm of the breakthrough of domestic operating systems but also a sign of the upgrading of the regional industrial ecosystem. For entrepreneurs, they need to be patient in technological breakthroughs, flexible in resource integration, and find their right positions in regional collaboration to seize opportunities in the wave of information and technology innovation and technological self – reliance and achieve a leap from “starting a business” to “leading the industry”.
