China released its new five-year policy blueprint on Thursday at the opening session of the National People's Congress, positioning artificial intelligence as the central operating system for the world's second-largest economy rather than a standalone technology sector. The plan repeatedly emphasizes embedding AI across manufacturing, healthcare, education, and logistics as the lever to offset slowing growth and demographic pressure.
The country will "seize the commanding heights of science and technological development" and seek "decisive breakthroughs in key core technologies," according to the plan released March 5 to coincide with the NPC opening. A separate report by the state-planning body asserted that China was outpacing rivals in AI research and development as well as other key areas.
Premier Li Qiang elevated technology—an area the government calls "new quality productive forces"—to the opening paragraphs of the main government work report, far more prominent than last year's positioning. The strategic emphasis signals Beijing's determination to use AI and robotics to boost productivity across sectors as traditional growth drivers weaken.
From Sector to Operating System
The "AI+" framework marks a conceptual shift from treating artificial intelligence as an industry to positioning it as infrastructure that transforms existing sectors. The approach mirrors China's earlier "Internet+" strategy but with significantly greater scope and urgency.
"Beijing's goal is to use AI and robotics to boost productivity and performance in a wide range of sectors, from manufacturing and logistics to education and healthcare," said Kyle Chan, fellow in Chinese technology at the Brookings Institution. The government framed the plan as essential to maintaining economic competitiveness amid trade tensions and technology restrictions.
The Chengdu-Chongqing region exemplifies the implementation strategy. The area's 15th Five-Year Plan Outline directs the twin cities to jointly upgrade the Chengdu-Chongqing national hub node of China's integrated computing power network and build a "Digital Chengdu-Chongqing" region. By the end of 2025, Chongqing had established 1,231 digital workshops and 211 smart factories, including 34 national-level 5G factories.
Industrial Deployment at Scale
The policy approach involves using large state-owned enterprises to drive AI adoption in manufacturing, thereby pulling smaller specialized firms into broader implementation, according to analysts. This strategy is expected to alter the nation's industrial landscape while potentially benefiting larger, capital-intensive producers who can manage integration costs over smaller companies.
Chongqing's strengths lie in industrial application scenarios supported by automobiles, electronic information, and equipment manufacturing. As a mountainous megacity, it also offers diverse testing environments for intelligent connected vehicles, urban governance, and digital culture applications.
Chengdu contributes technological capacity through the University of Electronic Science and Technology of China and Sichuan University, which have accumulated research strengths in large model algorithms, computer vision, and natural language processing. By the end of 2025, Chengdu had more than 1,000 AI-related companies.
Open-Source Strategy as Competitive Weapon
The plan positions open-source AI as a flagship strategy and competitive advantage against the United States, according to technology policy observers. China's reliance on U.S. chips and advanced technology has been a major source of frustration as trade tensions escalated, with both sides placing export controls on key products—advanced semiconductors from Washington and rare earths from Beijing.
"I believe China has studied this very carefully and decided to make open-source AI a flagship strategy," said one analyst quoted in coverage of the plan, suggesting the approach aims to circumvent U.S. technology restrictions while building an alternative ecosystem.
Implementation Timeline
The next five years represent a critical window for developing the AI industry in regions like Chengdu-Chongqing, which still lag behind Beijing, Shanghai, and Guangzhou in industry scale, enterprise numbers, high-level talent, and total computing capacity, according to Deng Lanyan, vice president of the Chongqing Comprehensive Economic Research Institute.
The region plans to strengthen industrial internet infrastructure, expand AI applications in agriculture, consumption, and healthcare, build computing centers and research platforms, and increase efforts to attract and train AI talent.
The plan arrives as global competition in AI intensifies and as China seeks decisive breakthroughs in quantum computing, humanoid robots, and other emerging technologies to establish what it calls "commanding heights" in scientific development.
