The Beidou trillion-dollar industry sector sets sail

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Source: Beijing Business Today

The Beidou Satellite Navigation System (hereinafter referred to as “Beidou System”), once considered “distant,” is accelerating its integration into “close at hand” daily life. The China Satellite Navigation Office recently announced that the Beidou System will undergo on-orbit upgrades soon, optimizing and adjusting the operation of some satellites. During the upgrade, efforts will be made to strengthen on-orbit satellite coordination, testing, and service performance monitoring and maintenance to ensure optimal user experience. Industry insiders say this on-orbit upgrade marks Beidou’s transition from “usable” to “user-friendly.” During the 14th Five-Year Plan, China aims to push the Beidou industry past the trillion-yuan mark, with key focus on linking services to the digital economy. Expanding services for emerging fields such as intelligent driving, low-altitude economy, and smart robotics will become core growth drivers.

As a vital national infrastructure providing all-weather, all-time, high-precision positioning, navigation, and timing services, Beidou has been widely applied in transportation, agriculture, forestry, fisheries, hydrological monitoring, meteorological reporting, communication timing, power dispatching, disaster relief, and public safety. Navigation services based on Beidou are adopted by e-commerce, mobile device manufacturers, and location service providers, becoming integral to China’s mass consumption, sharing economy, and livelihood sectors.

For example, the “Beijing East Sixth Ring Tunnel Beidou Positioning and Navigation System” installs Beidou signal transmitters inside the tunnel, bringing satellite signals underground to enable seamless positioning and navigation services inside and outside the tunnel. Users do not need to update their phone or vehicle terminal hardware or software; simply open their usual navigation app to enjoy Beidou positioning services within the tunnel, comparable to surface-level accuracy.

The “Beidou Industry Development Blue Paper (2025)” shows that in 2024, China’s domestic smartphone shipments will reach 294 million units, with approximately 288 million supporting Beidou positioning, achieving an installation rate close to 98%.

According to data from the official Beidou Satellite Navigation System website, there are currently 50 satellites in orbit, with spatial signal accuracy better than 2 meters, global positioning accuracy better than 10 meters, speed measurement accuracy better than 0.2 meters per second, and timing errors less than 20 nanoseconds. Using precise single-point positioning signals, horizontal accuracy can be better than 0.3 meters, and vertical accuracy better than 0.6 meters.

Gao Chengyuan, an expert advisor at the Low-Altitude Economy Branch of the China International Science and Technology Promotion Association, told Beijing Business Today that with current space signal accuracy reduced to within 2 meters, technical barriers for high-density concurrent services are cleared. Global positioning accuracy better than 10 meters directly benefits millimeter- or sub-meter-level applications such as autonomous driving and precision agriculture. The on-orbit upgrade of Beidou is a crucial step from “usable” to “user-friendly,” further promoting “interconnection between space and ground.” The upgraded signal system enhances compatibility and interoperability, fundamentally building a new generation of PNT (Positioning, Navigation, Timing) infrastructure with coordinated high, medium, and low Earth orbit systems.

According to the National Development and Reform Commission, China’s Beidou industry is projected to reach 620 billion yuan by 2025. During the 14th Five-Year Plan, the government will continue implementing large-scale Beidou application projects, aiming to surpass 1 trillion yuan in industry scale within five years and accelerate expansion into numerous emerging fields.

朱克力, founder of the National Research Institute of New Economy and chairman of the National Science and Technology Space Economy Development Center, believes that for the Beidou industry to break through the trillion-yuan scale, expanding into emerging fields (such as intelligent driving, low-altitude economy, smart robotics) is the core growth driver; technological and product innovation is the key force; industry chain collaboration and upgrading are fundamental; and exploring international markets is the external extension.

Reports indicate that in February this year, humanoid robots relying on Beidou achieved centimeter-level real-time navigation, accurately mapping a 186m×100m snow pattern in the -47.4°C extreme cold environment in Altay, Xinjiang. This challenge verified Beidou’s stable positioning capability in high-dynamic, complex environments, providing a technical model for robot applications under extreme conditions.

Gao Chengyuan further added, “The top three emerging markets for surpassing a trillion yuan are emerging fields (like intelligent driving, low-altitude economy, smart robotics), traditional sectors (such as transportation, agriculture digital transformation), and mass consumer markets (wearable devices, short-message services). In emerging fields, intelligent driving and low-altitude economy are the most certain growth areas, with demand for Beidou far exceeding that in traditional sectors. Hardware sales generate one-time revenue, while location service subscriptions, data value-added services, and platform operations provide ongoing cash flow. In other words, the value of a trillion-yuan industry depends on how much shifts from ‘selling devices’ to ‘selling services.’”

Beijing Business Today reporter: Cheng Liang

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