UAE Embassy Delegation Visits Crostars Shanghai — Talks Cover Drone Shows and the Low-Altitude Economy
On July 29, a delegation from the United Arab Emirates visited Crostars’ Shanghai headquarters for an afternoon of conversation about drone technology, low-altitude economy development, and what a deeper partnership between the two sides might look like.
The group was led by Khaled AlShehhi, Deputy Head of Mission at the UAE Embassy in China, and included H.E. Muhannad Alnaqbi, UAE Consul General in Shanghai, and Omer Osman, Economic Research Officer at the UAE Consulate. They were joined by Zhou Zhengying and Hu Xiaoping from the Shanghai International Exhibition Group’s Pudong branch.
Crostars Chairman Shi Zheyuan, Board Director Yuan Haotang, and CFO Chu Liusun received the delegation.
The Visit Started with a Showroom Tour
Before the formal meeting, Director Yuan Haotang took the group through the Crostars showroom — covering the company’s history since 2017, its global performance record, awards, and where it’s headed. The wall of project photos tells part of the story on its own: Dubai is on there, along with performances across Asia, Europe, and the Americas.
The C5 drone system was the technical centerpiece of the presentation. Chairman Shi walked AlShehhi through the specifications: shows up to 25 minutes, speeds up to 12 m/s, stable in complex outdoor environments, 16.77-million-color RGB lighting. Four Guinness World Records. But Shi framed it less in terms of hardware and more in terms of what the hardware makes possible: “The essence of drone performance is the ability to embed an artist’s creative vision into something that moves through the air with precision — and turns that vision into a visual experience that carries meaning.”
What Was Actually Discussed
The more interesting part of the afternoon was the conversation about scope. Shi Zheyuan made clear that Crostars’ interest in the UAE isn’t limited to putting on shows. The company wants to build into the broader low-altitude economy infrastructure — industrial drones for logistics, inspection, agricultural applications. The entertainment side is a calling card; the ambition is wider.
H.E. Muhannad Alnaqbi responded positively. He called the direction forward-looking and strategically well-aligned with what the UAE is trying to build. The UAE has been investing heavily in drone technology integration across sectors — it’s not a new conversation for them, but finding the right partners to move it forward is.
Khaled AlShehhi was direct about his assessment: “The UAE has high expectations for drone technology applications. Crostars’ development philosophy and cooperation vision align closely with what we need. The potential here is significant.” The two sides then moved into a more detailed discussion of specific cooperation models.
How This Visit Fits Crostars’ Middle East Strategy
Crostars has been building its Middle East presence steadily. The company has already performed in Dubai — a show that established real on-the-ground credibility in the region before any formal diplomatic conversations began. The SADEX 2025 exhibition in Riyadh in September followed, where the C5 system was presented to the wider Gulf market.
This visit sits in that same trajectory. A UAE Embassy delegation coming to Shanghai to look at a drone company isn’t a routine courtesy call — it takes some groundwork to get to that point. The meeting ended with a shared understanding that there’s more to discuss, and a foundation for what comes next.
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