Nanshan & Shekou

Nanshan district occupies the western peninsula of Shenzhen, a position that was strategically irrelevant during the city's early development but became central to its identity as the technology economy matured. Tencent — the company behind WeChat and one of the world's most valuable technology enterprises — chose to base its global headquarters on the Nanshan coastline, and the decision shaped everything around it.

The Tencent Binhai headquarters, completed in 2022 to NBBJ's design, consists of two towers connected by a bridging element housing meeting rooms and recreational facilities. The building reflects Tencent's self-presentation as a company that blurs work and lifestyle — the bridge contains a running track, restaurants, and shared spaces that embody a particular vision of technology workplace culture. The campus is not publicly accessible but the tower is highly visible from the adjacent coastal path.

Shekou, at the tip of the Nanshan peninsula, was developed from 1979 as a special industrial zone by China Merchants Group, making it one of the earliest reform-era development experiments. The industrial function brought foreign engineers and managers who established the expat enclave culture still visible today — bars, international schools, and Western-style supermarkets that serve a now smaller but persistent foreign resident population alongside returning Chinese professionals.

Sea World Plaza, built around the hull of the Minghua, a retired French passenger ship that was towed here in 1983 and has served as a hotel, restaurant, and event venue since, is Shekou's social anchor. The ship-as-building is an oddity that has become genuinely iconic; the surrounding waterfront development has expanded substantially but the Minghua remains its centrepiece.