Visitors attend the World Economic Forum annual meeting in Davos on January 20, 2026. The World Economic Forum takes place in Davos from January 19 to 23. Photo: AFP

China's rapid artificial intelligence (AI) development drew growing attention at the ongoing World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, with foreign media and international tech leaders highlighting China's rising role in the global AI landscape.

According to a Bloomberg report on Wednesday, former Google CEO and technology investor Eric Schmidt said at the Davos forum that Europe should significantly ramp up investment in open-source AI, or it could be "left with few options but to rely on Chinese AI" technology, underscoring China's rising influence in open-source and application-oriented models.

And, Google DeepMind CEO Demis Hassabis was quoted by Economic Times as saying that China has made "significant progress in narrowing the gap with the US" in several AI-related technologies.

"The Chinese have extremely capable teams, and also have a lot of resources. I think that they've caught up a lot. A few years ago, I would have said they were one or two years behind. Maybe now, they're only 6-12 months behind," Hassabis said.

Also, US tech company Palantir CEO Alex Karp suggested on Tuesday that usage of AI "bolsters civil liberties," while warning Europe its adoption of technology is falling behind the US and China, according to the New York Post.

On Tuesday, the WEF and Accenture released their "AI Solutions Stars" list at Davos, showing that Chinese organizations accounted for nearly half of the high-impact AI solutions recognized globally, highlighting China's capability in translating AI technologies into real-world applications.

Chinese analysts said the discussions at Davos reflected growing recognition of China's AI development path, which differs markedly from that of the US. China's AI development —characterized by large-scale deployment, open models and scenario-based innovation—is emerging as a key force shaping the global AI landscape, they said.

Tian Feng, president of the Fast Think Institute and former dean of SenseTime's Intelligence Industry Research Institute, told the Global Times that the US AI strategy is largely driven by closed-source frontier models backed by Big Tech and the capital market, forming a cycle centered on computing power expansion and valuation growth. By contrast, China is focused on converting AI capabilities into real economic productivity through open-source foundation models and large-scale application scenarios.

Tian noted that China's advantage lies in its vast real-world application environment and data-rich industrial scenarios. He added that China's relatively abundant energy supply offers structural support for large-scale AI models deployment.

Wang Peng, an associate research fellow at the Beijing Academy of Social Sciences, told the Global Times that China's AI competitiveness is rooted in its integrated supply chain, cost-efficiency and scenario-driven innovation. He noted that Chinese companies excel at rapidly commercializing AI solutions by leveraging coordinated hardware-software ecosystems.

Looking ahead, Wang said that Chinese AI firms' global expansion will hinge on agile iteration, open ecosystem strategy, and deeper participation in international standards-setting, while continuing to narrow gaps in manufacturing advanced chips and core components.

China aims to achieve secure and reliable supply of core AI innovations by 2027, with its industrial scale and empowerment level remaining among the world's forefront, according to a recent government action plan, Xinhua News Agency reported.

By 2027, the plan targets the deep application of three to five general-purpose AI models in manufacturing, the development of specialized, full-coverage industry-specific large models, the creation of 100 high-quality industrial datasets, and the promotion of 500 typical application scenarios, Xinhua reported.

According to estimations by industry institutions, the number of AI enterprises in China has exceeded 6,000 in 2025, with the core AI industry's scale estimated to have surpassed 1.2 trillion ($170 billion) yuan, Zhang Yunming, Vice Minister of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT), said at a press conference on Wednesday. The AI ecosystem is constantly improved. China has launched a national-level AI industry investment fund and put it into operation, sized at 60 billion yuan, Zhang said.