Recently, at the 2025 China (Shenzhen) Unicorn Enterprise Conference, the Research Report on Shenzhen Unicorns and Gazelle Enterprises 2025 was released. Under the guidance of the Shenzhen Municipal Bureau of Industry and Information Technology and after evaluation by the Shenzhen Gazelle & Unicorn Enterprise Evaluation Committee, ZH Energy was named a “2025 Shenzhen Seed Unicorn Enterprise” in recognition of its technological innovation, rapid growth and market potential in the new-energy storage sector.

The award is jointly granted by the Shenzhen Municipal Bureau of Industry and Information Technology and the Shenzhen SME Service Bureau. The Evaluation Committee carried out multiple rounds of review, focusing on founding team, product technology, market prospects and capital recognition, to select companies with “hard-core” technology and explosive-growth potential. The Research Report on Shenzhen Unicorns and Gazelle Enterprises 2025 shows that the number of Shenzhen unicorns rose sharply in 2024: 42 unicorns in total, with 13 new entrants—ranking first nationwide. Seed unicorns reached 143, commanding an aggregate valuation of about RMB 64.3 billion and an average valuation of roughly RMB 450 million. They are concentrated in “hard-tech” tracks such as artificial intelligence, robotics, integrated circuits and clean energy, acting as the vanguard of Shenzhen’s new-quality productive forces.

To accelerate the high-quality development of Shenzhen’s “20+8” industrial clusters, the Bureau of Industry and Information Technology has issued the Shenzhen Action Plan for Robust Support of Gazelle and Unicorn Enterprises (2025–2027). Through a full-chain support mechanism of “policy backing + capital empowerment + ecosystem cultivation,” the city is building a tiered incubation system for unicorns and nurturing a cohort of high-growth innovators with core technologies, injecting strong momentum into industrial upgrading and digital-economy growth.


Founded in 2021, Shenzhen ZH Energy Technology Co., Ltd. is a world-leading developer and manufacturer of key materials and equipment for flow batteries, dedicated to the R&D, manufacturing and application of long-duration flow-battery storage. By developing revolutionary, low-cost and high-performance key materials, ZH Energy aims to solve the industry pain point of high upfront installation costs and make flow batteries a long-duration, low-cost and safer large-scale storage technology, helping China achieve its dual-carbon goals.

Leveraging the decade-plus industrial experience of founder Dr. Wei Xie in the U.S. flow-battery sector, ZH Energy has designed a new-generation flow stack with world-leading performance and built a 100-MW-per-year stack production line, establishing a complete R&D and manufacturing system covering both vanadium and sulfur-iron chemistries. Its standardized 500 kW vanadium-flow-battery modules have been deployed in several MW-scale projects at home and abroad, demonstrating large-scale production and O&M capability. Jointly with Central South University, ZH Energy is developing the next-generation low-cost sulfur-iron flow battery whose electrolyte cost is 85 % lower than that of vanadium systems, offering an economical and safe large-scale storage solution. In partnership with State Grid, the company has commissioned the world’s first sulfur-iron flow-battery demonstration project, now operating stably with globally leading performance; a national first 1-MW-class sulfur-iron flow-battery demonstration plant is under preparation. ZH Energy has secured equity investments from Sequoia China, Hidden Hill Capital and CMB International and operates centers in Shenzhen and Changsha to solidify its foundations.

Officially recognized as a “Seed Unicorn Enterprise,” ZH Energy receives authoritative validation of its valuation and growth potential, while confirming its benchmark role within Shenzhen’s “20+8” industrial clusters as a hard-tech leader in the flow-storage space. From this new starting point, ZH Energy will continue to deepen its R&D and manufacturing of key flow-battery materials and equipment, focusing on technological innovation and industrial deployment. Empowered by policy and market opportunities, the company will accelerate its growth to provide global customers with long-duration, low-cost and safer energy-storage solutions.

Product Series：

Flow Battery Test Platform

LAB Series R&D Demonstration Equipment

Vanadium Redox Flow Battery - Energy Storage System / BMS

Liquid Flow Battery - Non-Fluorinated Ion Exchange Membrane

NeLCOS® Energy Storage System Levelized Cost of Energy Calculator