AI Emerges as Hot Topic at National Two Sessions, Paving Way for Intelligent Economic Development

Artificial Intelligence (AI) has once again become a high-frequency hot topic at this year’s National Two Sessions. The Government Work Report proposes to further expand "AI +", promote the accelerated popularization of a new generation of intelligent terminals and agents, drive the commercial and large-scale application of AI in key industries and fields, and foster new intelligent native formats and models.

As a strategic technology leading the new round of technological revolution and industrial transformation, AI has become a new focus of international competition and a new engine for economic development. As the Minister of Industry and Information Technology noted at the first "Minister’s Passage" during the National Two Sessions, AI, as a "key variable", is becoming a "strong increment" for high-quality economic development.

A member of the National People’s Congress (NPC), who is also an academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering and director of a laboratory, drew attention at the group meeting of the Guangdong delegation to a topic called "raising lobsters" — an open-source intelligent agent known for "taking over computers and freeing hands", named after its red lobster icon. He believes that the unexpected popularity of this agent reflects the continuous improvement of China’s AI innovation capacity and epitomizes AI’s role in empowering various industries and promoting industrial upgrading.

Commenting on the Government Work Report’s first mention of building a new form of intelligent economy, the NPC member stated that combining AI technology with existing economic activities will surely give rise to a new form of intelligent economy, adding that "the commercialization of AI needs to align with market demand, prioritizing areas with sufficient funds and strong demand".

Another NPC member, who is the chairman and CEO of an automobile company, said the new proposal of building a new form of intelligent economy left a deep impression on him. He noted that the intelligent economy, initially proposed in 2025, is developing rapidly, and its inclusion in the Government Work Report fully demonstrates the country’s accurate grasp of technological change trends.

He added that in 2025, the added value of China’s core digital economy industries accounted for more than 10.5% of the gross domestic product, and this proportion will continue to grow. The integration of the real economy with AI will not only transform existing industries but also spawn new ones and new jobs, ultimately changing people’s lives in various ways.

As a new type of infrastructure in the AI era, computing power, along with data and algorithms, is listed as a key production factor of the intelligent economy. The academician emphasized that with the accelerated breakthrough of new-generation information technology and industries, computing power has become a key national infrastructure and strategic resource. To further promote the large-scale application of AI in the future, it is necessary to consolidate the digital foundation of computing power.

In terms of computing power layout, he suggested systematic planning: while relying on national guidance to build large-scale computing power centers and use low-cost electricity for model training, distributed and small-scale computing power centers should also be deployed in areas requiring real-time responses to meet user needs. He also stressed the need to balance the development of software and hardware, support domestic technologies while allowing mature foreign technologies invested in the early stage to continue playing a role, and promote the coexistence of open-source and closed-source models to form a healthy development pattern of mutual complementarity and promotion.

Expanding application scenarios is equally important for building a new form of intelligent economy. The automobile company CEO said he was encouraged by the Government Work Report’s inclusion of low-altitude economy as an emerging pillar industry for the first time. His company’s low-altitude economy team has been in operation for 13 years, and he expects flying cars to be mass-produced and delivered by the end of this year. With significant advantages in special geographical areas, flying cars are expected to enter thousands of households with technological innovation, safety and quality assurance, and scale expansion.

He also introduced that his company has fully transformed to develop humanoid robots since 2023, realizing interconnection between robot and automobile technology platforms by relying on technologies and chips accumulated from 10 years of autonomous driving R&D. He believes bipedal humanoid robots will become the largest category of robots and expressed expectations for cooperating with more Chinese enterprises to expand overseas markets, hoping for more policy guidance to support technological enterprises in going global for mutual development and win-win results.

While focusing on the popularity of AI technology, deputies and members at the National Two Sessions also emphasized the importance of AI governance. A member of the National Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) stated that innovation without safety cannot go far or steady, and safety and innovation are not opposites but two wings of the same body. It is crucial to set "safety barriers" for AI, he added, calling for accelerating the upgrading of the cybersecurity system to consolidate the national digital security barrier in response to the changing "AI +" scenarios.

Attaching equal importance to development and governance and promoting them in an integrated manner has always been the Chinese government’s attitude towards AI development. This year’s Government Work Report not only proposes to further expand "AI +" but also emphasizes improving AI governance, meaning that while encouraging AI technological innovation, safety boundaries will be defined through laws, regulations and standards.

The academician noted that this year will be a critical period for the application and implementation of intelligent agents, requiring both technical specifications and ethical constraints to promote their healthy development. "The development of new technologies cannot be left unchecked, nor can it be stifled by regulation. We must adhere to the principles of ‘technology for progress’ and ‘technology for good’ to achieve a dynamic balance between innovation and supervision," he said.