A staff member introduces the homework correction function of the AI learning machine at the iFlytek Artificial Intelligence Experience Hall. Photo by Xinhua News Agency reporter Zhang Cheng

The "Proposal of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China on Formulating the 15th Five Year Plan for National Economic and Social Development" (hereinafter referred to as the "Proposal"), which was reviewed and approved at the Fourth Plenary Session of the 20th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China, regards "building a modern industrial system, consolidating and strengthening the foundation of the real economy" as the first strategic task, proposes "cultivating and strengthening emerging and future industries", "forward-looking layout of future industries, exploring diverse technological routes, typical application scenarios, feasible business models, market supervision rules, and promoting quantum technology, biomanufacturing, hydrogen energy and nuclear fusion energy, brain computer interfaces, embodied intelligence, sixth generation mobile communication, etc. as new economic growth points". The future industry is driven by cutting-edge technology and is currently in the stage of incubation or early industrialization. It is a forward-looking emerging industry with significant strategic, leading, and disruptive characteristics. Whether it is actively responding to the century long changes, seizing the high ground of future economic competition among major countries, or cultivating and developing new quality productive forces and rebuilding China's high-tech industries, it is urgent to regard future industries as important strategic pivot points.

The forward-looking layout of future industries is of great significance.

The competition among major countries around the world regarding future industries is becoming increasingly fierce. The future of a country depends on its future industries, and winning the future industries means winning the future dominance. From a historical perspective, Britain nurtured and strengthened a number of future industries of the 18th century, such as engines, steel, and shipbuilding, through the disruptive innovation of the steam engine, becoming a pioneer and leader of the first industrial revolution; Through the disruptive innovation of power technology, the United States has cultivated and expanded a number of future industries in the 19th century, such as motor, chemistry, automobile, aviation, and so on. In turn, it has seized a number of future industries in the 20th century, such as the Internet, computers, integrated circuits, and software, and has become a global economic superpower. In reality, as we enter the 21st century, developed countries are actively laying out future industries that may emerge in the next 5, 10, or even 20 years in order to once again seize the leading role in the new round of technological industrial transformation. The United States has successively issued policies such as the "Strengthening America's Future Industry Leadership" and the "Future Industries Act", which have established the overall strategy for ensuring America's future industry leadership. The EU has successively released "Future Technologies for Prosperity" and "European New Industrial Strategy", aiming to systematically layout and seek global leadership in future industries.

The future industry is a key pivot to achieve the goal of "rebuilding a high-tech industry in China", and it is necessary to lay out a group of future industries with great potential, broad prospects, and the potential to grow into emerging pillar industries by 2035. The 'Proposal' deploys China's long-term goal of reaching the level of a moderately developed country in terms of per capita GDP by 2035. Referring to the experience of advanced countries, the per capita GDP of moderately developed countries is about 20000 US dollars, while in 2024, China's per capita GDP will be 13400 US dollars. To achieve "per capita GDP reaching the level of moderately developed countries", the key is to innovate and cultivate new industries, that is, to cultivate and strengthen emerging and future industries. These industries are gaining momentum and will create a new high-tech industry in China in the next 10 years. The future industry is a strategic emerging industry for "tomorrow" and an emerging pillar industry for "the day after tomorrow", with enormous development potential. One is that it has strong development potential. Once it enters the early stage of development, it can quickly form a considerable industrial scale and become an important pillar of economic development when the technology exploration matures and industrialization capabilities are formed. Secondly, it has a significant ability to drive the industrial chain. In the future, due to its cross disciplinary and long chain characteristics, the industry will not only drive the development of related supporting technologies and industries, but also generate huge demand for raw materials, components, production equipment, scientific testing instruments, industrial software, various productive services, etc., playing a strong leading and driving role in the industrial chain. Thirdly, it has a wide range of innovation diffusion effects. The technological fields of future industries, including digital technology, new energy, new materials, biological health, etc., are typical general-purpose technologies that can widely penetrate into various fields of economic industries and play a huge role in industrial empowerment.

Multiple measures taken to promote future industrial development

During the 15th Five Year Plan period, we will compete for the "industrial future" by developing "future industries" and make efforts to promote the reconstruction of China's high-tech industry. We must strengthen the overall planning and layout, combine national needs, local capabilities, and future directions, and promote the development and transformation of science and technology, products, and industries as a whole, and connect the "seven meridians and eight veins" of capital, talent, data, and other factors flowing into future industries.

Firstly, we need to strengthen the overall planning of the "national strategy", balance the relationship between "not waiting" and "not being in a hurry", and develop future industries according to local conditions. Fully respect the development differences between regions in our country and avoid engaging in 'big talk'. We will focus on supporting the Beijing Tianjin Hebei region, the Yangtze River Delta, the Guangdong Hong Kong Macao Greater Bay Area, and the Chengdu Chongqing economic circle, and take the lead in creating future industrial innovation sources and development highlands. Build a national future industry pilot zone, formulate a list of pilot tasks in innovation platform construction, enterprise incubation and cultivation, application scenario construction, and funding and talent policy support, and promote the selective, distinctive, and differentiated cultivation of future industry segments in the central and western regions based on their own resource endowments and factor conditions.

Secondly, we will strengthen technological breakthroughs to create unique skills and explore a collaborative innovation mechanism of "scientists+entrepreneurs+investors" in science and technology. We should focus on building the capacity of technological policy sources, implement industrial innovation and technological innovation projects in strategic areas, and improve the basic research investment mechanism that combines competitive and stable support; We should focus on strengthening the transfer and transformation of achievements, accelerating the construction of incubation institutions such as future industry concept verification centers and future industry science and technology parks, as well as intellectual property and technology achievement property trading institutions; We should focus on scenario driven industrial development and build a scenario application innovation system of "key technology industrialization emerging industry scale traditional industry futurization"; To build a future industrial ecosystem, promote the coordinated and integrated development of large, medium, and small enterprises, and form a development pattern where leading enterprises stand tall and small and medium-sized enterprises dominate.

Thirdly, connect the "seven meridians and eight meridians" of factor allocation, establish a mechanism for future industrial investment growth, and attract orderly flow of funds, talents, and data to future industries. We should focus on leveraging the role of patient capital and improve support policies for early, small, and hard technology investment; We should focus on leveraging the role of the talent team, stimulate the innovation and entrepreneurship potential of talents around the "guidance, education, training, and utilization" link, promote a virtuous cycle of science and technology, education, and talent, and let funds serve creative activities of people; We should focus on leveraging the role of data elements, promote the orderly open sharing of scientific data, public data, and scientific research data, strengthen the construction of high-quality data resources, scenario applications, subject cultivation, and platform docking, and provide innovative services of data+computing power+algorithms to enterprises.

(Author's affiliation: Ministry of Information Technology and Industrial Development, National Information Center)