An attendee experiences VR motorcycling at the 2021 World Conference on VR Industry in Nanchang, Jiangxi province, on Oct 19, 2021. (SHI GANGZE / FOR CHINA DAILY)

BEIJING — China's virtual reality (VR) industry attracted strong investment and financing last year as market players raced to tap the burgeoning high-tech sector.

The scale of investment and financing in VR more than doubled in 2021, according to the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology.

China aims to expand VR industry market scale to over 350 billion yuan by 2026

Currently there are over 10,000 VR-related firms in China, pushing the technology's applications into various scenarios in industry, culture, and education, among others.

Earlier this month, China unveiled a plan to boost the industry's development, aiming to expand its market scale to over 350 billion yuan (about $49.4 billion) by 2026.

The plan aims to cultivate 100 top enterprises with strong innovation ability and industry influence, while also aiming to increase the sales of VR to over 25 million units.