Kathmandu— At the 2026 China International Big Data Industry Expo in Guiyang, experts and industry leaders showcased how data and artificial intelligence (AI) are revolutionizing traditional sectors and creating new employment opportunities. The event attracted over 372 companies from around the world, including Singapore, Morocco, and Canada, highlighting international interest in China's advancements in these fields.

Energizing Traditional Industries

Traditional industries are receiving a significant boost from data and AI technologies. For example, hydropower stations, wind farms, and solar plants along the Wujiang River in Guizhou Province have been integrated into a unified digital system to enhance grid stability and optimize clean energy use. Fan Sheng, deputy general manager of Guizhou Wujiang Hydropower Development Co., Ltd., explained that by cleaning, integrating, and standardizing data from various sources, they can predict renewable energy generation up to 15 days in advance with high accuracy.

Fostering New Business Forms

The interplay between data and AI is not only upgrading traditional industries but also catalyzing the emergence of new business models and employment categories. For instance, embodied intelligence, which gives AI a physical body to interact with the real world, requires massive amounts of high-quality real-world data. Wang Junbao, an embodied intelligence data collector from Guizhou Tongren Data Vocational College, records human movements for training robots, highlighting the potential of this industry.

Boosting International Cooperation

The expo has attracted international attention and cooperation opportunities in the data and AI industries. Zimbabwean entrepreneur Dubuya Thulani launched a blockchain-based platform connecting African agricultural exporters with Chinese buyers using AI to process production videos into readable descriptions for potential clients. Additionally, Punjab's agriculture minister Syed Muhammad Ashiq Hussain Shah expressed interest in learning from China’s experience in smart agriculture and building an AI-powered digital monitoring network.

(With inputs from Xinhua)

Originally published on abcnews.com.np.