(Yicai) March 7 -- China's private companies should embrace artificial intelligence to achieve high-quality growth, according to several deputies to the National People's Congress and a national committee member of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference.

Private businesses should proactively adopt AI and drive innovation, Xu Guanjv, NPC deputy and chairman of leading chemicals manufacturer Transfar Group, said at a meeting of the Zhejiang provincial delegation yesterday. 

With general-purpose AI already taking the lead, private companies with strong industrial foundations should seize the opportunity to empower themselves with modern technologies, Xu noted, adding that firms should fully apply AI in their daily operations and step up technological innovation.

Xu called on the government to promote the integration of industrial development and AI, encouraging the creation of large vertical industry platforms to maximize the value of science  and technology as the main productive forces.

The government work report, released at the start of the annual NPC on March 5, included terms such as “opening the internet in an orderly manner,” “sixth-generation mobile network," and “embodied AI” for the first time. It also pledged to advance the ‘AI plus’ initiative to better integrate digital technologies with the country's manufacturing and market strengths.

Intelligent technologies accelerate the transformation and upgrading of traditional industries, said Shao Chi, a CPPCC national committee member and vice chair of the Shanghai Municipal Committee of the Communist Party of China. The new technological revolution and industrial transformation wave are reshaping the global economic landscape, Shao added.

AI, big data, green energy, and other emerging technologies are having an unprecedented impact on traditional industries, according to Shao. To remain globally competitive, these industries must achieve qualitative leaps through transformation and upgrades, Shao noted, advising businesses to proactively adapt to technological shifts.

China should implement targeted policies to transition AI from general-purpose to industry-specific applications, said Yao Jinbo, NPC deputy and chairman of online classifieds marketplace 58.com. He proposed using interest-subsidized loans and subsidies to help lower the bar for Ai adoption in traditional industries, with a focus on the public service sectors.

Intelligent transformation should be incorporated into government bond support frameworks and fiscal policies should be leveraged to encourage digital platforms to empower small and medium-sized enterprises, according to Yao, who is also chief executive of 58.com.

Editor: Martin Kadiev