Summit to foster deep ties in digital tech

The 2025 World Internet Conference Wuzhen Summit is expected to create an open platform for international exchanges and cooperation in digital technologies, while helping the global community to seize opportunities brought on by a new round of scientific and technological revolution to benefit humanity, the event's organizer said on Friday.

The summit is scheduled to take place from Nov 6 to 9 in Wuzhen, Zhejiang province, with the theme "Forging an Open, Cooperative, Secure and Inclusive Digital Future — Building a Community with a Shared Future in Cyberspace."

It will focus on new trends in cutting-edge internet technologies and new developments in cyberspace governance, and discuss technology-driven industrial innovation and practices, as well as approaches concerning the governance of cyberspace and frontier technologies, said Ren Xianliang, secretary-general of the WIC.

Ren made the remarks at a news conference in Beijing.

He noted that as this year marks the 10th anniversary of a proposal to build a community with a shared future in cyberspace, the summit will comprehensively summarize the great achievements and vivid practices made over the past decade.

This year's summit will invite business leaders from the "Six Little Dragons" — a group of Chinese tech startups based in Hangzhou, such as DeepSeek and Unitree Robotics, to participate in a dialogue regarding global trends in artificial intelligence innovation and development, and to explore how cross-sector collaboration can help address global challenges, Ren said.

The event will set up 24 sub-forums, while heads and senior representatives from major international organizations, renowned experts and scholars, and executives from leading internet enterprises, including Alibaba, Sohu and 360, have confirmed their attendance.

At present, AI has made breakthroughs with new business models rapidly emerging and innovative applications expanding at an accelerated pace, bringing huge opportunities for the economic and social development of all countries, but AI technologies also bring about risks and challenges, Ren said.

Moreover, a theoretical symposium marking the 10th anniversary of the concept of building a community with a shared future in cyberspace will be held during the event, while specialized committees on e-commerce and cultural heritage digitalization will be established.

AI technologies and industrial development will be under the spotlight during the summit, with five AI-themed sub-forums to be held, said Zhao Cheng, head of the publicity department of the Zhejiang Provincial Committee of the Communist Party of China.

This year's Light of Internet Expo will showcase the remarkable achievements of AI in production and people's daily lives, while themed exhibitions featuring the debut of products in embodied intelligence and quantum technology will be held, Zhao added.

Meanwhile, as new problems are emerging along with the rapid development of AI, the forum on AI technology innovation and governance will bring together experts, scholars, and entrepreneurs from around the world to engage in in-depth discussions on improving AI ethical standards and enhancing collaborative governance.

China's AI sector will make big strides in the next 10 to 15 years, with its market size reaching 1.73 trillion yuan ($242.8 billion) by 2035, accounting for 30.6 percent of the global total, according to market research company CCID Consulting.

The nation has solidified its position as a global leader in AI innovation, and released 1,509 AI models to date, ranking first among the 3,755 models launched globally until now, according to the China Academy of Information and Communications Technology.