Artificial Intelligence Spreads Rapidly Across China’s Primary, Secondary and Tertiary Industries, Drawing Global Cooperation Interest

According to multiple industrial technology media outlets, artificial intelligence technologies are rolling out at an accelerated pace throughout China’s three major industrial sectors. Intelligent sensors conduct round-the-clock inspections at layer hen breeding bases in Jiangsu Province. AI systems have been embedded into more than 70 per cent of business scenarios at Zhenhai Refining & Chemical Complex in Zhejiang Province. Intelligent corporate financial agents operate autonomously inside office buildings across Beijing. Abundant application scenarios, a huge domestic market and swift iterative upgrades have won widespread recognition from overseas specialists and senior corporate executives, who are eager to deepen collaboration on AI deployment.

AI firm 01.AI has recently formed a joint venture named Wanfeng Intelligence with CP Group, selecting layer hen farming as its first practical verification scenario. The smart agricultural framework jointly developed by the two parties is projected to lift automation rates from 20 per cent to 40 per cent in the initial phase and cut livestock mortality rates by 5 per cent.

The core logic of the industrial revolution was to use machinery to augment human physical strength, while the AI revolution enables artificial intelligence to take over an increasing share of cognitive, managerial and operational labour. Agriculture is shifting away from labour-reliant human operational frameworks toward AI-driven operational systems.

AI technologies are being deployed directly on agricultural production sites, delivering not merely technical upgrades but also advances in production modes and organisational capacity. The joint initiative will first run pilot operations within China before gradual expansion to other Southeast Asian markets covered by CP Group.

Within the industrial sector, AI applications are moving past isolated trial deployments toward systematic integration into manufacturing plants nationwide.

As the sole refining enterprise among China’s first batch of 15 benchmark smart factories, Zhenhai Refining & Chemical Complex under Sinopec has applied AI tools to over 70 per cent of its business workflows. Since 2024, targeted research has delivered automated intelligent architectural design, with technological extensions rolled out to piping design, the most labour-intensive segment, in 2025. Sinopec Engineering has set a clear target of 100 per cent digital delivery for the 15th Five-Year Plan period.

AVEVA, its industrial software partner, has unveiled a string of innovative updates and rolled out cutting-edge technologies and products for major Chinese industrial operators including Sinopec. The company has established end-to-end operational data-to-corporate decision-making pipelines through partnerships with IFS and Snowflake.

Global industrial AI has yet to fully deliver its promised efficiency gains, yet China boasts exceptionally dynamic enterprises with forward-looking strategic visions. A local research and development centre has been launched in China, alongside a tailored development strategy designed to serve local market demands.

The tertiary industry, represented by software and enterprise services, also witnesses remarkable AI adoption among domestic Chinese firms. Kingdee International has released Lingji, an enterprise AI operating system embedded with more than 15 financial intelligent agents covering full-cycle financial workflows from voucher entry to data analysis and enabling autonomous financial operations. Its newly launched Executive Office function delivers dedicated decision support for senior management via built-in AI assistants.

These real-world deployments across all three industries illustrate robust progress in China’s AI development. Official statistics show the scale of China’s core AI industries exceeded 1.2 trillion yuan in 2025, with more than 6,200 domestic AI enterprises in operation. The country holds the largest volume of AI patents worldwide.

The nationwide industrial penetration of AI has captured close attention from overseas experts and multinational senior management teams. The year 2026 will mark the formal launch of enterprise multi-agent AI systems, and China’s solid industrial foundation provides ideal testing and evolution scenarios for these intelligent agents.

China stands as not only a vital market for Siemens but also a pivotal global innovation hub. The nation demonstrates strong innovative momentum in the latest wave of AI advancement, opening new avenues for deeper bilateral cooperation.

Germany accumulates profound expertise in fundamental research and high-end precision manufacturing, while China takes the lead in generative artificial intelligence and applied technologies. Such complementary strengths unlock substantial room for joint collaboration. Plans are under way to set up an AI innovation and application branch centre within the China-Germany Economic and Technological Cooperation Demonstration Zone in Beijing.

Despite bright prospects for industrial AI integration, practitioners acknowledge tangible hurdles that call for joint solutions from Chinese and foreign enterprises alike.

Fragmented data infrastructure remains a prominent obstacle. Independent machinery units and separate IT systems have long run side by side inside numerous factories with inconsistent data formats and interfaces. Poor inter-system connectivity traps most AI programmes within limited pilot zones and prevents large-scale rollout.

Large-scale commercial implementation still requires sustained efforts. Research from McKinsey & Company indicates merely 20 per cent of global industrial businesses have applied artificial intelligence to core operations on a broad scale, leaving massive untapped potential.

Talent cultivation lags behind rapid industry expansion. Cross-disciplinary professionals proficient in both AI technology and vertical industrial scenarios remain scarce. A workforce with 10 to 20 per cent of staff capable of proficient AI application is required to drive industrial transformation, yet overall talent reserves fall short. Organisational cultural upgrades are also necessary to boost employee acceptance and adaptability to new intelligent tools.

Greater alignment on technical standards and smoother cross-border collaboration are also necessary. Divergent technical specifications and data compliance rules across different economies hinder cooperation progress, making mutual recognition of standards a prerequisite for deeper joint projects.