AI integration, wider use will empower industries

China will continue to empower industries through artificial intelligence while seeking deeper and broader cooperation to benefit a larger population, said officials and experts attending the main forum of the 2026 World AI Conference and High-Level Meeting on Global AI Governance, held in Shanghai on Friday.

While AI has become "a key variable to drive high-quality economic growth", China will further deepen the integration between AI and innovation while advancing coordinated technology breakthroughs in terms of algorithm, computing and data, said Ke Jixin, vice-minister of industry and information technology.

Robots, which are the embodiment of AI, should have their capabilities improved further so that industries' needs can be truly addressed in various scenarios and AI technology can be implemented on a larger scale, he said.

Meanwhile, China will accelerate the formulation of key standards, implement a pilot program for AI ethics review, and provide open-source, high-performance large models to the world, so that AI can better serve people around the globe, he added.

Chen Jie, vice-mayor of Shanghai, said, "Holding the World AI Conference for the ninth consecutive year, Shanghai aims to establish itself as an internationally influential highland for AI by achieving breakthroughs in core technologies such as cutting-edge models and chips, and by applying AI in a wider range of scenarios."

On Thursday, representatives from 29 countries signed an agreement to establish the World Artificial Intelligence Cooperation Organization, which is set to guide the sound and orderly development of AI in a direction that is beneficial, safe and equitable, ultimately benefiting all of humanity.

As the organization's headquarters will be in Shanghai, the city will use this opportunity to promote open-source AI and the inclusive sharing of technological advances. "This will ultimately bridge the global AI gap and ensure that AI serves the common good," Chen said.

Shen Yichen, founder and CEO of Lightelligence, an optical computing company based in Shanghai, called for closer cooperation among Chinese AI startups, especially in the chip sector, as it is vital to building stronger computing capabilities. In this sense, a more open ecosystem should be established to encourage more efficient technology innovation, he said.

Zha Hao, chairman and CEO of Shanghai Smart Logic Technology, an intellectual property licensing and chip service company, emphasized the closer ties between companies in the industrial chain. He said that industries should first raise questions about, for example, the difficulties in rolling out a new drug or developing a new material. Then tech companies specializing in such things as chips, computing structures and deployment should step in, he added, calling this the right path by which AI can truly empower industries.

The forum is a key part of the four-day 2026 WAIC, which opened on Friday. With a record exhibition area of 100,000 square meters, this year's conference will see 349 products released for the first time. A total of 108 chips will be demonstrated, along with more than 300 embodied intelligence robots. Among the 1,117 exhibitors, over 200 specialize in intelligent computing.