On the afternoon of September 11, the latest session of the “Ningbo Business Community Dialogue” government-enterprise consultation meeting was held, gathering representatives from industry, academia, and government to focus on the timely topic of “Building an Innovative Development Hub for Artificial Intelligence and Robotics“.
Some things must be said; some matters need to be discussed. This nearly three-hour meeting reflects the ongoing commitment of insightful individuals from various fields and industries to the high-quality development of Ningbo, as well as the city’s readiness to embrace this technological revolution.
We have a foundation! We have advantages! We have confidence!
This is the strong consensus among the representatives regarding Ningbo’s development of the artificial intelligence and robotics industry.
A solid foundation and favorable conditions mean that we can take the lead in hardware trials.
Jiangsu Electronics is a typical case. Starting from automotive autonomous driving technology and automotive component technology, it has transitioned to embodied intelligent robotics, leveraging the natural advantages of manufacturing enterprises for rapid technology and product migration.
Currently, Jiangsu Group has fully entered the embodied intelligent robotics sector—Jiangsu Electronics and Xiangshan Co. focus on the research and development of robotic components and large models of embodied intelligence in industrial scenarios; Jiangsu Intelligent focuses on cutting-edge technology research, complete robot manufacturing, and secondary development of robots.
Early layout and solid foundation also mean high-quality data resources.
In the medical field, Ningbo has achieved comprehensive data collection from all public medical institutions, covering nearly 15 years of health trajectories for a population of ten million, forming a high-quality data resource that is comprehensive, complete, and continuous, providing an ideal testing ground for the development of “AI + Health”.
“Such efficiency in data collection is something even cities like Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, and Shenzhen cannot achieve,” said Ningbo Jintang Software Co., Ltd. General Manager Ying Zhen. In terms of health information construction, Ningbo is the first city in the country to pass the regional interconnectivity maturity assessment.
Do not be anxious or impulsive, nor blindly follow trends; Ningbo has its unique path to development.
Scenes, scenes, still scenes!
The true rise of an industry cannot be separated from application and implementation.
For future industries and new things, it is even more necessary to validate through scenes and test in the market.
Wanyou Gravity (Ningbo) Electronic Technology Co., Ltd. founder and CEO Wang Chaohai has an urgent need for open scenes. After several years of development, the XR devices developed by the company can meet the needs of various scenarios such as cultural tourism, education, armed police and public security, museums, science and technology museums, and industrial inspections.
“We believe that technological breakthroughs are just the starting point; technology without scene support is like a tree without roots! Clearly, our company’s solution can reduce costs by 60%, yet it is stuck in the ‘last mile’ from the laboratory to the port,” said Wang Chaohai.
AI innovation should avoid closed-door development and encourage ecological co-creation.
Chairman of Zhejiang Delta Center Data Technology Co., Ltd. Tan Xiaoguan suggested that to address the “last mile” issue of application scene implementation, it is necessary to encourage governments and enterprises at all levels to actively open and initiate application scenes, providing “practical training” opportunities for artificial intelligence development, and enhancing industry technology maturity through “use to promote research”.
The voices of Ningbo’s business community align with the national implementation of the “AI +” initiative.
Government and enterprises working together!
The competition in artificial intelligence has never been just a technical contest; it also involves the competition of institutional and ecological synergy capabilities.
High-intensity funding input, high-density talent allocation, and high-difficulty technological breakthroughs mean that government and enterprises must work together, requiring the joint efforts of universities, enterprises, research institutes, and government.
“I suggest that the government take the lead in organizing the formation of evaluation standards for high-quality data sets of embodied intelligence, as well as theoretical results and experiences, to provide replicable and promotable practical models for the market-oriented allocation reform of data elements, supporting open-source models, retail models, and membership models,” said Ningbo Boden Intelligent Technology Co., Ltd. CEO Zhao Jie.
“I suggest Ningbo learn from advanced projects such as Shanghai’s ‘Quantum City’, Google’s Alpha Earth, and DeepMind to accelerate the establishment of a safe, compliant, and efficient collaborative data element application mechanism, creating a comprehensive, multi-scale, and multi-modal AI training corpus.” Chairman of Zhejiang Shikong Zhizi Big Data Co., Ltd. Dong Heng said.
Promoting precise policy supply, strengthening the cultivation of industry professionals, creating a symbiotic and prosperous industrial chain, and forming an inclusive and prudent regulatory atmosphere… Currently, with the joint efforts of the whole society, Ningbo’s corresponding policy system is steadily advancing, and the corresponding innovation ecosystem is gradually improving.
Vice President of Ningbo Dongfang University of Science and Technology Zeng Wenjun concluded with remarks that perhaps represent the sentiments of many insightful individuals:
“Ningbo has the foundation and opportunity to build an innovative hub for the artificial intelligence and robotics industry. In the future, we will adopt an open posture, cutting-edge research, and pragmatic talent cultivation, working together with the government and enterprises to ensure Ningbo takes the initiative and leads in the new round of technological revolution and industrial transformation.”
Author: Huang HeSource: Ningbo Daily