Digital innovators gather for 'Straight to Wuzhen' Global Internet Competition

The final round of the "Straight to Wuzhen" Global Internet Competition, a signature event of the World Internet Conference (WIC) Wuzhen Summit, is scheduled to kick off on Nov 7-8 in Wuzhen.

Now in its seventh year, the competition continues to serve as a global platform for digital innovation and cooperation, attracting 1,082 projects from 29 countries this year, with 71 qualifying for the upcoming final in Wuzhen after rounds of battle and strict selection.

The event features six key tracks including artificial intelligence, intelligent connected mobility, intelligent digital healthcare, intelligent manufacturing, smart terminal and open source projects, covering vital fields with the most growth potential, drawing participation from innovative companies such as AgiBot, WeRide and Lancet Robotics, as well as industrial giants such as China First Automobile Group, Xiaomi and Haier Group.

Open source projects, the newly-added track, includes an open source model application contest and open source competitive challenge. The open source model application contest focuses on innovative development on global open source model application in multiple fields, while the open source competitive challenge aims to build a competitive platform for developers with the final award selected based on cumulative code contributions. The two sectors are expected to speed up the iteration and realization of open source technology.

Wu Jianping, an academician at the Chinese Academy of Engineering, Steve Hoffman, an angel investor, and Andy Palmer, an academician at the Royal Academy of Engineering will jointly serve as president of the event.

Furthermore, the competition will bring together enterprises and organizations from academia, industries and investment sectors, including authorities such as the Young entrepreneurs organization of the European Union and China Electronics Standardization Association, industrial giants such as Ant Group and China Association for Medical Devices Industry, as well as various investment firms such as China Internet Investment Fund, Vertex Ventures, Capital Link, Zheshang Venture Capital, Fosun Capital and Hike Capital.

The "Digital Wings" Global Ecosystem Community serves as a hub for innovative collaboration, promoting comprehensive integration across policy, market access, technology, investment, talent and industrial chains, building a comprehensive global service system across the six key sectors.

By bringing together past participating teams, the community hosts symposiums and networking events to connect entrepreneurs with industrial resources, investors and local governments. It provides a full-chain support for innovative projects from technology development to market production, aiming to cultivate global partnerships throughout the innovation cycle and development progress.

In addition, the community will roll out a series of events alongside the "Straight to Wuzhen" competition, providing all-round services and engagement opportunities for participants and stakeholders alike.