Illustration: Liu Xidan/GT

Data is often described as the fuel of artificial intelligence (AI). As AI applications continue to expand, demand for high-quality datasets has risen alongside them, drawing attention to a relatively new occupation: the data annotator. The rise of this profession offers a concrete, ground-level perspective on one of the most closely watched questions surrounding AI: its implications for employment.

In the mountainous areas of Southwest China's Guizhou Province, the effects of the AI economy are increasingly visible. According to a report by CCTV News earlier this year, data annotators there process information from a wide range of companies, including some based in China's more developed eastern regions. The datasets they help prepare underpin intelligent applications used across the country, including systems that enable autonomous vehicles to recognize obstacles and perform precision parking.

This is just one example of a broader trend. In Guizhou's mountainous regions, data annotation centers have begun to appear in counties and townships, the Xinhua News Agency reported. For many local graduates, data annotation is emerging as one of the more accessible occupations linked to the AI industry.

This is not a phenomenon confined to Guizhou, as the industry continues to develop across the country. The data annotation industry is an emerging sector that involves the processing of data through filtering, cleaning, classification, annotation, annotation, and quality inspection, according to the implementation opinions of the National Development and Reform Commission on the high-quality development of the data annotation industry.

For example, intelligent driving systems can accurately identify obstacles, which is the result of training on large-scale, high-quality datasets. Data annotators act like "teachers" for AI, converting raw data that machines cannot understand into structured information that AI systems can recognize.

According to the Digital China Development Report (2025) released by the National Data Administration in May, seven data annotation bases have been established in the country, with a total workforce of 95,000 data annotation professionals as of the end of 2025.

Data annotation is only one of a wider set of new employment opportunities associated with AI-related industries. The development of new quality productive forces is supporting job creation across industries such as the digital economy, new energy, and new materials.

The recently issued action plan by the State Council's leading group on employment promotion states that developing new quality productive forces will create jobs. It calls for expanding demand for emerging occupations and job categories such as data annotators and AI trainers.

The People's Daily reported last July that China's Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security had designated 17 new occupations and 42 new job types. Since 2019, a total of seven batches have been issued, covering 110 new occupations.

As economic and social development, technological progress, and industrial restructuring and upgrading continue, new industries, new business forms, and new models are constantly emerging, with new occupations ranging from drone swarm flight planners to generative AI system testers. A large number of new occupations have been created and are developing rapidly, providing high-quality employment opportunities.

Recently, some foreign media outlets have taken note of the impact of AI adoption on employment in China. Within the country, the issue is being observed and discussed, and the labor market has so far remained broadly stable. In considering the relationship between AI and employment, data annotation may provide a useful lens for understanding how technological change is affecting work. Job creation, in turn, remains closely tied to industrial development: as industries expand and new sectors emerge, new employment opportunities tend to follow.

Industry remains the foundation of employment. As traditional sectors accelerate their upgrade and emerging industries take root, a range of new roles and occupations has been created. In parts of China, demand for positions in the AI sector is growing rapidly, illustrating that the expansion of employment opportunities is closely tied to the direction of industrial development.

The rollout of new technologies, business models and applications continues to influence existing jobs while generating fresh opportunities. Data annotation is one example of an emerging occupation, but it is by no means the end point. As technology advances, further new forms of employment are likely to arise.

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