China's commercial space sector has reached a pivotal milestone as Spacety, a private aerospace company, has officially obtained approval from the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) to conduct commercial trial operations for satellite IoT services, with the trial period set to last two years.
This approval marks a significant step in bringing private enterprise satellite IoT operations under the national telecommunications regulatory framework, paving the way for market-oriented access in China's satellite IoT sector. Private companies are no longer restricted solely to satellite launch and constellation deployment tasks, as they can now legally conduct pilot operations within the regulatory system.
During the trial period, Spacety will leverage its fully self-developed low-orbit satellite IoT constellation to offer global users connectivity services characterized by broad coverage, low power consumption, and high reliability. The services will span intelligent connected vehicles, construction machinery, marine fisheries, energy and water resources, transportation and logistics, and low-altitude mobility sectors. Additionally, the company will continue conducting IoT NTN technology trials to advance 6G satellite communication research and commercial applications.
Spacety has established a complete closed-loop industrial chain, encompassing constellation system design, satellite R&D and mass production, constellation operations, as well as chips, modules, terminals, and industry applications. The company has successfully transitioned from validation to large-scale deployment across multiple sectors.
At present, Spacety has completed the first phase of its constellation deployment, with 64 satellites currently in orbit. This constellation can achieve global communication coverage except for the polar regions, processing approximately 340 million communication requests daily and supporting connections for up to 20 million users worldwide.
On the international front, Spacety's globalization strategy is advancing in parallel. The company has established partnerships with telecom operators in more than 20 countries across Asia, Africa, and Latin America, and has secured orders from multiple markets in the Middle East and South America. These orders are scheduled for delivery and implementation in 2026, creating a dual-circulation development model that balances overseas and domestic growth.
Looking ahead, Spacety aims to further unleash its full-stack open capabilities and ecosystem-building strengths. By collaborating with global industry partners, the company seeks to foster a synergistic and mutually beneficial satellite communication ecosystem, accelerating the adoption of low-orbit satellite IoT technology across various industries and delivering affordable, efficient, and secure space-ground integrated communication services to users worldwide.
In other regional developments, the National Advanced Computing Industry Innovation Center (Anhui) was officially launched on August 20, alongside the inauguration of Sugon's Anhui headquarters base. The center, led by Sugon, will focus on three core areas—chips, systems, and applications—to drive key technology breakthroughs, results commercialization, and industrial collaboration. Targeting sectors such as science intelligence, integrated circuits, new displays, and new energy vehicles, the center will facilitate software-hardware adaptation, application verification, and solution incubation. The co-located Hefei cluster adopts Sugon's next-generation AI supercomputing cluster technology, providing computational support for AI industry development.
Additionally, a new direct flight route connecting Chaoyang and Nanjing was launched on August 20, marking the first direct air link between Nanjing and the western Liaoning region. Operated exclusively by West Air, the route will run three times weekly on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays. The flight departs Nanjing Lukou Airport at 16:05, arriving at Chaoyang Airport at 18:10, with the return leg departing Chaoyang at 19:00 and landing at Nanjing Lukou International Airport at 21:00. The total flight time is approximately 2 hours, dramatically reducing the previous travel time of nearly 8 hours that required transfers. The route is currently in a promotional phase, with early-bird fares available for as low as 400 yuan, and West Air will adjust flight frequencies based on passenger demand to ensure stable operations.