Jiading No. 1, China’s first high-performance satellite independently developed by a commercial company, was successfully launched from Jiuquan in west China’s Gansu Province on November 20.

It carried the first space-based Internet of Things detection system Xiangyun.

Compared to traditional satellite constellations, Xiangyun is dexterous and very expansible, weighing 45 kilograms and costing 10 million yuan (US$1.45 million), a third of the usual cost.

It will play a role in oil exploitation, power transmission and shipping management.

It was designed by Nanxiang enterprise Space OK Aerospace Science and Technology Co Ltd and has more than 100 invention patents pending.

It is a breakthrough from assembling imported parts or being an OEM for a traditional national aerospace enterprise.

The Jiading-based company has a record for advancing the innovation of satellite products and commercial applications. It has provided many independently developed data transmission systems for China’s remote sensing satellite as well as satellite Beidou No. 3.

Government support from Jiading and Nanxiang has powered the company with capital and talent, according to Space OK.

In March 2017, it was granted a special fund from Zhangjiang National Innovation Demonstration Zone and, in September, Shanghai’s fund for research in social use.