TIANJIN — At the just concluded World Intelligence Expo 2026 in North China's Tianjin municipality, a smart mirror provided an instant snapshot of a person's health status, a robotic arm deftly prepared a savory Chinese crepe, and a robot played Go and told stories to children, as what once seemed like science fiction increasingly becomes part of everyday life in China.

The four-day expo, which closed on Sunday, brought together more than 700 exhibitors, showcasing cutting-edge technologies, products and application scenarios in the field of artificial intelligence.

Industry insiders at the venue said AI is accelerating its integration into education, public services, manufacturing and daily life, improving efficiency in traditional industries while creating new business models and growth opportunities.

At the booth of iFlytek Co Ltd, a leading Chinese AI company specializing in intelligent speech and AI technologies, a smart blackboard named iFlytek AI Board drew widespread attention.

Combining a traditional chalkboard with an electronic display, the device digitizes handwritten equations the moment they are written, turning abstract mathematical concepts into vivid visual representations.

"AI is transforming education in unprecedented ways," said Dong Bin, deputy general manager of the brand marketing center at iFlytek. "It frees teachers from repetitive tasks so they can focus on educational research, while helping students spend less time on excessive drills and concentrate on meaningful self-improvement."

According to the company, iFlytek has provided smart education products and solutions to more than 50,000 schools across China, benefiting over 130 million teachers and students.

In the expo's embodied intelligence zone, robots of various types demonstrated their capabilities in real-life scenarios, including cooking, massage services, vehicle refueling and musical performances. Among them was the Aimoga smart police robot, a wheeled traffic-police robot that waved its arms with the precision of a seasoned officer while demonstrating its ability to direct traffic in real-world conditions.

The robot has already been deployed in several Chinese cities, including Hefei, Wuhu in East China's Anhui province, and Changzhou in East China's Jiangsu province, serving as an intelligent assistant to traffic police officers.

Behind these increasingly rich application scenarios lies sustained policy support.

China issued a new generation AI development plan as early as 2017, and unveiled guidelines on further implementing the "AI Plus" initiative last year. The country's 15th Five-Year Plan (2026-30) calls for fully implementing the initiative to foster AI-driven development, fueling the burgeoning growth of its AI innovations.

According to the National Data Administration, China has become the world's largest holder of AI patents, accounting for about 60 percent of the global total, while the scale of its core AI industry has exceeded 1.2 trillion yuan ($177.36 billion).

"AI is accelerating its deep integration with a wide range of industries, upgrading traditional sectors, and driving breakthroughs in productivity and efficiency," said Chen Jiachang, vice-minister of the Ministry of Science and Technology.

Chen expects technologies such as embodied intelligence, brain-inspired AI and brain-computer interfaces to create new growth areas and business models, heralding China's leap toward becoming an AI powerhouse.

Xinhua - China Daily