A view of the conference site for the 2026 World AI Conference and High-Level Meeting on Global AI Governance in Shanghai Photo: VCG

China's foreign trade has kept on gaining steam. Following the "new three" (NEVs, lithium batteries, and PV), a "next new three"—artificial intelligence (AI), robotics and innovative medicine —is emerging as the new growth driver. 

AI-related products export stood out in the first half of 2026, accounting for 22.7 percent of total exports and contributing 8.6 percentage points to overall trade growth. This surge boosts China's high-quality development and carries global significance for sustainable development.

Reshaping development landscape 

If traditional manufacturing reflects "Made in China," and the "new three" showcase green transformation, the "next new three" - including AI - signal the rise of "Intelligent Manufacturing" of China. The country's unique AI large-language models are helping reshape the global AI landscape.

Chinese AI models are penetrating international markets relying on cost-effectiveness and open-source strategy. 

OpenRouter data showed that in the third week of July 2026, Chinese large-language models (LLMs) recorded 36 trillion weekly tokens - ranking first for 12 straight weeks and capturing two-thirds of the global market, with the top five most-called models all from China. On hardware, exports of AI-related products hit $480 billion in the first half of 2026, up 47.3 percent year-on-year, forming a full chain from computing power to terminals. Exports of optical equipment, smart sensors, and terminals grew at double-digit rates, while ICs and 3D printers more than doubled year-on-year in June.

And, China's AI exports go beyond products—they represent a systemic expansion in the world, covering computing power, algorithms, standards, and solutions. Serving over 140 countries and regions, China provides many tailored digital solutions: Peruvian ports use Chinese algorithms to boost efficiency; Russian e-commerce relies on Chinese AI as its "intelligent core"; and Southeast Asian small- and medium-sized enterprises are empowered by Chinese AI solutions in the process of digital transformation.

Strong strategic support

China's AI surge stems from its unique model—notably its open-source approach. Unlike the US closed-source strategy in pursuit of tech monopoly, China shares core models with others so as to engage global developers and users. This fosters tech inclusivity and ecosystem co-building, while leveraging global intelligence to narrow hardware gap through algorithmic and ecological innovation.

Second, China leverages industry integration synergy. Its strong industrial ecosystem—spanning energy, chips, communications, and applications—creates full-chain coordination. The country's massive manufacturing base, digital platforms, logistics, and public infrastructure facilitate AI testing and deployment, sharply cutting the development-to-application cycle.

Third is independent innovation. Despite external "bottlenecks," China ranks first globally in AI-related papers, citations, and patents. The World Intellectual Property Organization cites China as the top source of generative AI patents, and China leads or co-leads a quarter of international AI standards.

After years of accumulation, China's comprehensive AI strength now ranks among the global first-tier. The 2026 global AI Innovation Index places China second (60.49 points), far ahead of others - just behind the US, which leads in R&D and computing power, while China excels in industrial applications, lightweight models, and low-cost deployment. Stanford's 2026 AI Index shows China's AI models performance gap with American top models narrowed to 2.7 percent by March 2026. Incrementally, China has secured a position as a global AI innovation leader.

Focusing on tech inclusivity 

Since the Industrial Revolution, global development has been marked by persistent imbalance - from the industrial divide to the information divide to today's digital divide. The AI era now brings the "AI divide" into sharp focus, and evidence shows this gap is widening.

International Monetary Fund (IMF) data showed stark "digital divide" -- 94 percent internet access in high-income countries vs. 23 percent in low-income ones, with 2.2 billion people still offline - mostly in low- and middle-income nations. High-income countries hold 77 percent of global data center capacity, while low-income countries hold less than 0.1 percent. 

The majority of the Global South languages and knowledge remain underrepresented in AI training datasets, hindering their AI development. And, digital skill penetration rate stands at 66 percent in high-income countries vs. less than 5 percent in low-income countries, with brain drain worsening the gap.

Also, developing countries' weak infrastructure hinders their AI development and may further slow their economic growth. As some rely on foreign AI, much of their future economic output could flow back to developed countries and large corporations through cloud use fees, licensing, royalties, equipment imports, and data extraction.

China's AI development and its unique model help break this dependency and bridge the global technology divide. First, it lowers costs - Chinese models are about 30 percent more compute-efficient and cost just one-quarter of US peers per token. Second, it aligns with developing economies' needs, as China's deep integration with the Global South industries creates a win-win development ecosystem. Finally, its open-source approach serves as a catalyst for intelligent transformation - the core logic to build an inclusive AI ecosystem in the world.

China's AI products and governance concepts are global public goods. At the 2026 World Artificial Intelligence Conference and High-Level Meeting on Global AI Governance in July, China proposed a framework balancing innovation, security, civilization, and governance to guide AI for good. China joined hands with 29 countries to establish the "World Artificial Intelligence Cooperation Organization" to benefit the whole world. From Kimi K3 and DeepSeek to the MAZU early-warning weather system now deployed in multiple countries, China - as a producer, service provider, builder, and leader - is driving an open and inclusive AI development ecosystem to advance sustainable growth of the world.


Xu Feibiao is director of the BRICS and G20 Research Center, research fellow at the China Institutes of Contemporary International Relations. bizopinion@globaltimes.com.cn