(Yicai Global) Jan. 28 -- Thirty-seven companies, including US automaker Tesla and Chinese artificial intelligence unicorn SenseTime, have become the first in theLingang New Area of Shanghai’sfree trade zone to benefit from a lower rate of corporate income tax.

They will pay income tax at 15 percent instead of the statutory 25 percent for three to five years, theLingang Special Area Administrative Committeesaid in a statement earlier this week.California-based Tesla, which built its first overseas factory in Lingang, will have its tax rate slashed until Dec. 21, 2023, Yicai Global learned.

Shanghai’s government announced thepreferential tax policyin August 2019 to help Lingang, then newly added to the FTZ, to attract firms in the key fields ofartificial intelligence, biomedicine, civil aviation, and integrated circuits.

The LSAAC is in the process of identifying another batch of firms to enjoy the preferential policy, and more will follow soon after that,Sun Xiaohe, deputy chief of the administration’s high-tech industry and technology innovation division, told Yicai Global.

“We’re striving to publish at least two batches a year and include all eligible companies into the scope of the preferential income tax rate policy,” Sun said.

The first 37 companies comprise 18 integrated circuit makers, 15 AI companies, three biomedical firms, and one business in civil aviation.

Editor: Emmi Laine