Eight Government Departments Jointly Issue Implementation Opinions on “AI + Manufacturing” Special Action, Outlining Development Blueprint for Smart Manufacturing by 2027

To thoroughly implement the national strategic plan for developing new quality productive forces and accelerating new industrialization, eight departments including the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, the Cyberspace Administration of China, the National Development and Reform Commission, the Ministry of Education, the Ministry of Commerce, the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission of the State Council, the State Administration for Market Regulation, and the National Data Administration have jointly issued the Implementation Opinions on the “AI + Manufacturing” Special Action (hereinafter referred to as the Opinions). The Opinions systematically outline the path and objectives for the deep integration of AI technology and the manufacturing sector. They aim to empower the transformation and upgrading of manufacturing in an all-round and deep-seated manner through a “dual-pronged approach” — advancing “intelligent industrialization” by strengthening technological supply and accelerating “industrial intelligence” by promoting enabling applications. This initiative is designed to provide strong momentum for building a strong manufacturing nation, a cyberpower, and a digital China.

Clear 2027 Targets: Core Autonomy, Leading Scale, Prosperous Ecosystem

The Opinions set clear development targets for 2027: China will achieve secure and reliable supply of core AI key technologies, with its industrial scale and enabling capabilities remaining at the forefront globally. Specific quantitative indicators include:

Technology Application Level: Promote the deep application of 3 to 5 general-purpose large models in manufacturing, forming a specialized and comprehensive industrial large model system. Create 100 high-quality industrial datasets, promote 500 typical application scenarios, and launch 1,000 high-level industrial intelligent agents.

Industrial Entities Level: Cultivate 2 to 3 ecosystem-leading enterprises with global influence and a group of specialized, sophisticated, distinctive, and innovative SMEs. Develop a cohort of enabling application service providers that “understand intelligence and are familiar with the industry,” and select 1,000 benchmark enterprises in application.

Development Ecosystem Level: Establish a globally leading open-source and open ecosystem, comprehensively enhance security governance capabilities, and contribute Chinese solutions to global AI development.

Seven Key Tasks Deployed to Foster a New Pattern of “Mutual Empowerment”

To achieve these objectives, the Opinions detail 21 specific measures across seven dimensions, with the core focus on promoting the deep integration of AI technological innovation and industrial innovation, realizing “mutual empowerment” between technology and application:

Strengthen the Innovation Foundation, Solidify the Enabling Base: Enhance computing power supply, making breakthroughs in key technologies such as high-end training chips, edge-side inference chips, and intelligent computing cloud operating systems. Develop high-performance industry models tailored to manufacturing characteristics, cultivating key industry large models and specialized small models for segmented scenarios. Launch the “Model-Data Resonance” initiative to promote deep synergy between high-quality dataset construction and model training.

Empower Intelligence Upgrade, Expand High-Value Scenarios: Formulate categorized transformation roadmaps for key industries, accelerating the empowerment of sectors like raw materials, equipment manufacturing, consumer goods, and electronic information with AI. Systematically integrate AI technology into the entire process—R&D design, pilot verification, production manufacturing, marketing services, and operations management—to transform and upgrade core links.

Achieve Product Breakthroughs, Build New Intelligent Business Formats: Drive the iteration of intelligent equipment, accelerate the empowerment of industrial mother machines and industrial robots with AI, and develop a new generation of AI-powered CNC systems. Speed up the upgrade of intelligent terminals, cultivating AI smartphones, computers, AR/VR devices, etc., and establish benchmark production lines for humanoid robots. Foster new industrial intelligent agent business formats, promoting their scaled and commercial application.

Cultivate Main Entities, Build the Core Development Force: Cultivate ecosystem-leading enterprises with global influence, specialized SMEs, and various innovative entities in a tiered manner. Establish national manufacturing innovation centers, key laboratories, and industry pilot verification bases in the AI field. Develop professional enabling application service providers and improve the digital-intelligent transformation service system for manufacturing.

Expand the Ecosystem, Optimize Industrial Resource Allocation: Strengthen standard leadership, accelerating the development of foundational, general, application, and security standards. Promote openness and open-source initiatives, building high-level open-source communities to establish an open ecosystem with global influence. Intensify the recruitment and cultivation of interdisciplinary talent, highly-skilled professionals, and leading experts.

Ensure Safety Escort, Fortify Application Security Barriers: Tackle key technologies such as deepfake detection and model algorithm security protection, and construct industrial security large models. Establish safety governance mechanisms including classification, grading, evaluation, and monitoring/early warning to enhance the entire industry chain’s capability for risk prevention and coordinated response.

Deepen International Cooperation, Shape New Competitive Advantages: Support enterprises in customizing their overseas expansion, carrying out overseas versions of the “In-Depth Tour” for empowering new industrialization. Actively participate in global dialogues on AI governance and build high-end international cooperation platforms such as the World Artificial Intelligence Conference.

Expert Analysis: Systematic Layout, Unblocking Key Pathways, Benefiting the Entire Industry Chain

Industry experts widely agree that the issuance of the Opinions is timely. Lu Feng, President of the Beijing Frontier Future Technology Industry Development Research Institute, pointed out that amid intense global competition in industrial intelligence and transformation challenges facing China’s manufacturing sector, the systematic deployment in the Opinions aims to break through bottlenecks in industrial software and algorithm tools. It seeks to accelerate AI adoption through deep scenario integration while focusing on building a comprehensive industrial ecosystem support system.

Zhu Minghao, Executive Director of the China High-End Manufacturing Research Center at Beijing Jiaotong University, stated that “AI + Manufacturing” can effectively break down data silos within the industrial chain, generating synergistic multiplier value. It strongly drives the technological iteration and industrial development of intelligent equipment, robotics, and industrial software, playing a particularly prominent role in promoting the intelligent transformation of key industries such as new energy vehicles, electronic information, and ship equipment.

Market analysis indicates that the comprehensive implementation of the Opinions is expected to bring comprehensive benefits to the entire industry chain: upstream demand for AI chips, industrial software, and development frameworks will significantly expand; midstream intelligent equipment manufacturers, industrial internet platforms, and AI solution providers will directly benefit; downstream, it will drive the overall upgrade of key manufacturing sectors and spur the development of producer services like data services and technical consulting. With policy refinement and implementation, China’s integrated innovation and industrial competitiveness in “AI + Manufacturing” are expected to reach new heights.