Directive on AI standards points the way to 'intelligent' tomorrow

The central departments recently issued a joint directive on building a national standardization system for artificial intelligence, rolling out a series of measures to further strengthen system planning for AI standardization, and accelerate the construction of a system of standards.

It says that by 2026, China will have formulated more than 50 new national and industry standards for AI, accelerated the formation of national standard system leading high-quality AI development, and participated in the formulation of more than 20 international standards to promote the global development of AI.

In recent years, China's AI has realized rapid development in technological innovation, product creation and industrial applications. Data show that the number of AI enterprises in China exceeds 4,000, and the scale of its AI core industry reached 578.4 billion yuan ($79.52 billion) in 2023, with a growth rate of 13.9 percent year-on-year. The enterprise adoption rate of generative AI in China has reached 15 percent, with a market value of about 14.4 trillion yuan.

AI development has also shown new features such as accelerated breakthroughs achieved in innovative technology, integrated development of industry applications, and deep coordination of international cooperation, necessitating improvements in the AI industrial standard system.

According to the guideline, the AI standards architecture is composed of seven parts, including basic support, key technologies, intelligent products and services, industry applications, and security and governance. With such an architecture in place, the country will next strengthen the research and development and application of cutting-edge technologies, open up new tracks for artificial intelligence, humanoid robots, and 6G, create landmark products, and build new advantages for future AI development.

On Monday, the United Nations General Assembly adopted a resolution proposed by China to strengthen international cooperation on AI capacity-building, which is expected to create more space for international cooperation on its development.

As a major country in AI technology, China attaches great importance to its development, actively promotes the deep integration of the internet, big data, AI and the real economy, nurtures and strengthens the smart industry to accelerate the development of new quality productive forces and provide new drivers for high-quality economic development.

The tide of AI is unstoppable, and China's efforts have pointed out the direction for AI development and its global governance. The international community should work together to inject new momentum into the development of AI and push human society toward a more "intelligent" tomorrow.

-China securities journal