A 3D-printed terra cotta warrior is displayed at the conference. (Photo by Zhu Xingxin/China Daily)
Lu Yimin, general manager of China United Network Communications Group Co Ltd, said China Unicom is experimenting with the next-generation mobile communication technology.
The country's second largest telecom carrier by mobile subscribers aims to lay down a sound information infrastructure for the application of AI.
"Connection is ultimate power for all intelligence," Lu said. "We will start offering pre-commercial 5G service in 2019."
China Unicom has set up a 10 billion yuan fund to promote the development of the internet of things, or IoT.
In the future, components at assembly lines, as well as electronic home appliances, will be connected to the internet, producing massive amounts of data to fuel the development of artificial intelligence.
"A key factor of digital economy is integration," said Lei Jun, founder and CEO of Chinese smartphone company Xiaomi Corp.
"Only by integrating AI with various sectors can we give full display of the technological advancements the world has made," Lei added.
Last month, Xiaomi had more than 85 million consumer electronic devices on its IoT platform.
Alibaba Group Holding Ltd, the largest e-commerce company in China, is also scrambling to apply AI, this time to the care of the elderly.
Chen Lijuan, head of Alibaba AI Lab, announced that the company will bring its voice-assistant smart speaker, Tmall Genie, to selected nursing homes in Beijing by the end of the month.
Senior residents will be able to activate the device through voice commands.
Among a host of applications, it will then be able to turn on, or off, lights, search for weather reports and control other smart-home devices.
"Such applications can enhance the quality of life for the older generation, and help improve work efficiency of the nursing staff," Chen said.
