Emerging fields

As China embraces a new era of growth driven by sustainability and innovation, State-owned enterprises from other industries have deployed more resources and manpower in strategic emerging industries, including artificial intelligence, high-end manufacturing, new energy, new materials, "new infrastructure" and biotechnology to pursue transformative changes.

SOEs, including train manufacturer CRRC Corp, energy giant China National Offshore Oil Corp and telecommunications operator China Telecom Corp, are quickening efforts to develop new growth engines in the areas of strategic emerging industries.

For example, CRRC has developed 46 support policies to speed up the strategic layout of new industries, completed 118 new industrial research projects, and joined 11 innovation consortia established by multiple centrally administrated SOEs.

With China creating more favorable conditions to cultivate new quality productive forces, Sun Yongcai, board chairman of Beijing-headquartered CRRC, said that high-end manufactured products are crucial to the national economy and strategic security, serving as a key support for industrial upgrading and technological advancement.

New quality productive forces are productivity advances freed from traditional economic growth modes and development paths, featuring high-tech, high efficiency and high quality, and in line with the new development philosophy.

China's first high-power hydrogen energy-powered shunting locomotive, jointly developed by CRRC Zhuzhou Locomotive Co and CHN Energy Investment Group, completed a 10,000-metric ton loading test for the first time at the Sidaoliu station of the Xinshuo Railway in the Inner Mongolia autonomous region, in late April.

The train used hydrogen as energy for towing 105 rail vehicles for 2 kilometers at a constant speed. This marks a key breakthrough in the market-oriented application of high-power hydrogen energy power equipment for China's heavy-haul railways, CRRC said in a statement.

Apart from extracting crude oil and natural gas, detailed plans have also been formulated by CNOOC to advance the development of strategic new industries such as high-end manufacturing of marine oil and gas equipment, new energy and new materials in the coming years.

Pan Helin, a researcher specializing in digital economy at Zhejiang University's International Business School in Haining, Zhejiang province, said that the growth of SOEs in the field of AI can enhance national competitiveness, and sharpen technological discourse and initiative. Their abundant resources can inject vitality into the industry.

"At the same time, with the development of AI technology, SOEs can also achieve transformation and upgrading, as well as reinforce their earnings strength," said Pan.

Eager to maintain a key role for China in the global AI industry, the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission of the State Council earlier this year urged central SOEs to enhance demand-driven strategies, expedite support for key industries, establish high-quality multimodal data sets and foster a comprehensive industrial ecosystem. This approach would encompass infrastructure, algorithm tools, intelligent platforms and solutions.

Central SOEs have already accelerated their footprint in the field of AI.

For instance, China United Network Communications Group Co, a telecommunications operator, established an AI innovation center in Beijing in January.

The group views AI as a crucial strategic direction and is hastening its efforts to develop AI technologies.

The combined profits of SOEs grew by 2.8 percent year-on-year to 1.08 trillion yuan in the first quarter of this year, data from the Ministry of Finance showed.

These SOEs generated 19.81 trillion yuan in operating revenue during the three-month period, up 3.2 percent from a year earlier, according to the data.