3rd global digital trade expo highlights AI innovations, low-altitude economy

HANGZHOU - The third Global Digital Trade Expo opened in Hangzhou, capital of East China's Zhejiang province, on Wednesday, showcasing the latest technological innovations and business development of the digital economy sector.

Themed "Digital Trade, Global Access," this year's edition has attracted more than 1,500 enterprises from home and abroad, among which over 300 are international companies. Over 30,000 purchasers have signed up for the event, with more than 6,000 of them from foreign countries and regions.

A total of 446 new products and technologies are scheduled to be showcased at the five-day expo. Notably, this year's expo has set up special exhibition areas for robots equipped with artificial intelligence (AI) innovations and the smart traffic solutions of the low-altitude economy.

The size of China's low-altitude economy is estimated to have exceeded 500 billion yuan (about $70.1 billion) in 2023, with its scale expected to rise to 2 trillion yuan by 2030, according to the Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC).

Co-hosted by the Zhejiang provincial government and China's Ministry of Commerce, the event is currently China's only digital trade themed expo at the national level. China's digital industry has seen robust growth in recent years, reporting a total revenue of 32.5 trillion yuan in 2023.