Illustration: Xia Qing/GT

At the Shanghai Museum, visitors to the Bronze Hall can now take guided tours with smart glasses powered by artificial intelligence (AI). According to media reports, the devices use intelligent sensing algorithms to track visitor movements and dwell times, providing personalized recommendations for exhibits that align with individual interests. This development offers a microcosm of how advanced technologies are shaping daily life, illustrating the broad demand and vitality of China's high-tech sector.

Official figures show that smart glasses sales surged in the first quarter, reflecting the speed at which the technology is being adopted. This surge points to wider trends in China's economy. The Xinhua News Agency reports that the State Taxation Administration released invoice data on Tuesday indicating steady growth in corporate revenue over the first four months of the year. High-tech industries, in particular, recorded double-digit sales growth, underlining the ongoing move toward higher-quality development across the economy.

However, some foreign media outlets recently misrepresented China's economic performance, claiming that the economy is unexpectedly weakening. Contrary to this narrative, China's economy is showing a different picture. At a broad level, new technologies, evolving consumer demand, and emerging industries are developing rapidly. Is China's economy really slowing? The answer, clearly, is no.

Recent data sheds light on the latest developments in China's economy. The first area is the sustained growth of high-tech industries. Products from this sector, valued for their quality and competitive cost-performance, are seeing strong demand both domestically and abroad, generating ongoing opportunities for expansion. In the first four months of the year, 3D printing equipment output surged by 50.9 percent year-on-year, while industrial robot production increased by 25.7 percent, underscoring the momentum driving China's technological advancement.

The second is the steady growth of China's services sector. As the country undergoes a new wave of technological and industrial transformation, digital and intelligent technologies have become key drivers of expansion. Advances in big data, cloud computing, and AI are fostering new services models, from healthcare innovations to cloud-based services. These developments are enhancing the quality of services, extending the sector's reach, and helping ensure that China's services sector continues to grow in a stable and sustainable manner.

The third is the evolution of consumer trends. China is undergoing a rapid upgrading of its consumption structure, with growing demand for higher-quality goods and services, including cultural and sporting experiences. New forms of consumption are gaining momentum, as online, digital, and green spending expand rapidly, injecting fresh drivers into overall consumer growth. With an ultra-large domestic market, upgraded consumption is creating increasingly diverse opportunities.

For instance, events such as the Jiangsu Football City League, also known as Suchao, are evolving from single-purpose viewing activities into integrated consumption scenarios. According to media reports, during the recent May Day holidays, driven by Suchao, total sales in East China's Jiangsu Province reached 4.78 billion yuan ($702.4 million), up 7.8 percent year-on-year.

Taken together with other broad trends, these developments underscore the rapid emergence of new growth drivers within China's economy. They offer a lens on its resilience, dynamism, and gradual transition toward higher-quality development, illustrating that China's economic momentum is not only sustained but moving at a brisk pace.

In the first quarter of this year, China's GDP grew by 5 percent year-on-year, achieving a solid start. In April, despite a complex and challenging international environment, Fu Linghui, spokesperson of the National Bureau of Statistics, said that China's economy has maintained a momentum of innovation-driven and quality-oriented development, demonstrating strong resilience and vitality.

Unlike some foreign narratives that have questioned China's economic prospects, the country's emerging growth drivers are generating a wide range of opportunities - from high-tech industries to modern services and evolving consumer trends. The economy shows a notable degree of dynamism, reflected in the rapid iteration of new technologies and the pace at which innovative solutions are being adopted. History suggests that periods of accelerated technological innovation often coincide with broader economic growth and the creation of new avenues for investment.

China remains a land of opportunity. The emergence of new growth areas, combined with the country's sustained commitment to high-level openness, is providing tangible possibilities for foreign investors. For those observing or investing in China from abroad, the task is to recognize and engage with these opportunities, while looking beyond recurrent negative narratives about China's economy, which have repeatedly failed to materialize.

The author is a reporter with the Global Times. bizopinion@globaltimes.com.cn