Abstract: Experimentalist governance plays an important role in the governance system of Europe. Some scholars call for a global initiative to move towards experimentalist governance. China has implemented various pilot projects during the course of economic reform, political reform, environmental protection, population control, etc. Can China's unique pilot projects be categorized into experimentalist governance? This paper clarifies the differences in their mechanisms and institutional background. The unique peer review system of experimentalist governance is also very different from the widely diversified paths in China's pilot implementation. Therefore, China's pilot project cannot be regarded as experimentalist governance. Actually, China's governance to deal with some current social problems, such as air pollution and energy sustainability, is a new model that is parallel to experimentalist governance.