Rashtriya Newsflash

New Era of Intelligence · Paradigm Shift

On July 10, 2026, the 2026 Forbes China Artificial Intelligence Technology Summit and the 2026 Forbes China AI Enterprise TOP 50 Awards Ceremony, themed “New Era of Intelligence Source · Paradigm Shift,” was held at the Shenzhen Qianhai International Conference Center, co-hosted by Forbes China and FIRST MOMENTUM. The summit brought together world-class scholars, industry leaders, investment institutions, and government representatives to explore the key path from AI’s technological breakthroughs to its deep integration into industries, witnessing the annual moment of glory for China’s AI power.

Strategic Foresight: Opening a New Chapter for AI

Wang Shourui, Member of the Standing Committee of the Shenzhen Municipal Committee of the CPC, Secretary of the Qianhai Cooperation Zone Party Working Committee, and Director of the Qianhai Administration Bureau, and Zou Yongbing, Chief Economist of the Guangdong Provincial Department of Industry and Information Technology, attended the summit.

Zou Yongbing, Chief Economist of the Guangdong Provincial Department of Industry and Information Technology

Graham Earnshaw, Chief Strategy Officer of Forbes China, noted in his remarks that this year’s selection covered more than 20 sub-sectors — including large models, embodied intelligence, AI chips, enterprise AI, and intelligent agents — with technology-focused companies representing over 60% of the total. “This isn’t just about identifying the forces driving industrial change,” he said. “It’s about setting real benchmarks for the industry and building bridges for investment and cooperation.”

Graham Earnshaw, Chief Strategy Officer of Forbes China

Mao Wenji, Chairman of FIRST MOMENTUM, highlighted how the Forbes China AI Enterprise TOP 50 has evolved over three years from an annual accolade into a full-fledged intelligent ecosystem spanning technology, industry, capital, and global supply chains. She described the three editions as a set of high-precision snapshots of the industry, tracing China’s AI trajectory from the “Hundred-Model War” through “Vertical Deployment” and into “Full-Stack Self-Reliance.” She then laid out three major trends for 2026:

Technology: Competition has shifted from individual breakthroughs to a battle between entire systems.

Business logic: The focus has moved from cost-cutting and efficiency to creating value with certainty — AI-related revenue now accounts for over 60% of the selected companies’ core business.

Industry dynamics: The model has moved from lone players to full-stack ecosystem collaboration, creating a constellation of interdependent innovators.

Mao emphasized that the value of the ranking goes beyond recognizing great companies — it helps align the direction of the industry and rally the ecosystem. She called on more committed practitioners and builders to join the effort as the AI industry enters its second half.

Mao Wenji, Chairman of FIRST MOMENTUM

Huo Zhenyu, Permanent Director of the Fok Ying Tung Foundation and a special guest at the event, offered a global perspective: Hong Kong, as a hub where international finance and technology converge, can serve as a unique launchpad for AI companies from Shenzhen, the Greater Bay Area, and across China looking to expand worldwide.

Huo Zhenyu, Permanent Director of the Fok Ying Tung Foundation

Feast of Ideas: Industry Leaders Share Their Insights

2007 ACM A.M. Turing Award Laureate Joseph Sifakis, speaking via video, observed that AI is still in its early stages — the real challenge lies in building trustworthy autonomous systems that integrate “fast thinking” with “slow thinking.” He emphasized that China’s strengths in data and application scenarios could make it a decisive force in what he called the “autonomy race.”

Joseph Sifakis, 2007 ACM A.M. Turing Award Laureate

Dr. Kai-Fu Lee, CEO of 01.AI and Chairman of Sinovation Ventures, said in his video message that AI is moving from technological innovation into the deep end of industrial transformation, gradually entering the core operations and decision-making processes of industries across the board — shifting business decisions from experience-based to AI-driven. “When this change extends from individual companies to entire industrial ecosystems,” he noted, “AI becomes the new infrastructure that supports the transformation of cities and even entire nations.”

Dr. Kai-Fu Lee, CEO of 01.AI and Chairman of Sinovation Ventures

Shen Pengfei, Co-founder of 01.AI, elaborated on his company’s “Number One Project” approach to driving AI adoption: Field Deployment Engineers (FDEs) work directly within client organizations to co-build enterprise ontologies and deploy multi-agent systems that empower both company leaders and business unit heads. The goal is to embed AI into core business and decision-making processes from the top down, ultimately improving key financial metrics.

Shen Pengfei, Co-founder of 01.AI

Liu Qingfeng, Founder and Chairman of iFLYTEK, said in his video remarks that AI is evolving “from being able to converse to actually changing the world.” He noted that iFLYTEK’s Spark Cognitive Model remains the only general-purpose large model with fully domestic training and inference capabilities.

Liu Qingfeng, Founder and Chairman of iFLYTEK

Wang Wei, Vice President of iFLYTEK and General Manager of Tingjian Technology, shared details on iFLYTEK’s AI translation services: covering more than 100 languages, with voice-to-voice real-time interpretation latency compressed to under two seconds. The technology has become the official translation partner for events such as the World Artificial Intelligence Conference and the China-ASEAN Expo, has served China’s “Two Sessions” (the annual parliamentary meetings) for eight consecutive years, and supported the 17th United Nations Chinese Language Day, helping bring Chinese culture to a global audience.

Wang Wei, Vice President of iFLYTEK

Steven Hoffman, Chairman & CEO of Founders Space, analyzed the latest trends from Silicon Valley — revealing the AI computing story behind SpaceX’s record-breaking IPO, and comparing the open-source versus closed-source model strategies in China and the U.S. He noted that cost is increasingly driving global developers toward open-source ecosystems. Hoffman then held an in-depth virtual dialogue with Zhang Yuanting, Fellow of International Academy of Medical and Biomedical Engineering，IEEE Life Fellow, exchanging views on AI consciousness, the boundaries of medical decision-making, data ethics, and what Hoffman called the “sustainable path” for technological development.

Steven Hoffman, Chairman & CEO of Founders Space

Zhang Yuanting, Fellow of International Academy of Medical and Biomedical Engineering，IEEE Life Fellow

Deep Industry Applications: AI in the Real World

During the summit’s in-depth sharing sessions, leading enterprise representatives delivered keynote speeches covering their companies’ AI practices and technology roadmaps, offering a vivid picture of how AI is empowering the real economy.

Industry Foundation

Tang Jinghua, Founder and Chairman of Voicecomm Technology, argued that the key to moving large models from flashy demonstrations to real industrial use is “trustworthiness.” He proposed deeply integrating large models with knowledge graphs to mimic the way human “fast thinking” and “slow thinking” work together — allowing AI to respond quickly while still reasoning rigorously in critical scenarios, laying a foundation of trust for AI commercialization.

Tang Jinghua, Founder and Chairman of Voicecomm Technology

Xiao Xuesong, Founder and CEO of Minto Technology, looked to the future, introducing the concepts of “Business World Models” and “Swarm Intelligence” — envisioning agents evolving from single-purpose tools into self-organizing networks of industrial collaboration.

Xiao Xuesong, Founder and CEO of Minto Technology

Embodied Intelligence and Silicon Civilization

Yang Qian, Co-founder and COO of X Square Robot, walked through her company’s iterative journey from WALL-A to WALL-OSS-0.5 and on to the WALL-WM world model, emphasizing the “zero-shot generalization” capability of embodied intelligence.

Yang Qian, Co-founder and COO of X Square Robot

Sima Huapeng, Founder, Chairman, and CEO of Silicon Intelligence, moved beyond a purely tool-based view of AI, defining it instead as a “new species.” Through fully automated IP matrix experiments, he showed the remarkable potential of a silicon civilization working in concert with human intent. Together, these perspectives signal an AI future moving from “enabling” to “coexisting.”

Sima Huapeng, Founder, Chairman, and CEO of Silicon Intelligence

Industry and Urban Infrastructure

Chen Jiao, Chairman and Executive President of PCI-Tech, showed how the company has deployed AI traffic signal control at intersections in Guangzhou and multi-discipline metro operations, powered by a combination of vertical transportation large models and the open-source HarmonyOS operating system.

Chen Jiao, Chairman and Executive President of PCI-Tech

Deng Yiqi, Founder, Chairman, and General Manager of Sense Kernel, presented an integrated air-space-ground risk monitoring system that uses AI and remote sensing to provide clear millimeter-level deformation warnings for critical infrastructure such as highways and bridges.

Deng Yiqi, Founder, Chairman, and General Manager of Sense Kernel

Guo Chunxu, Co-founder and CTO of Rid Vision, focused on smart manufacturing, explaining how edge intelligence combined with generative AI is pushing high-speed industrial visual inspection to new levels of accuracy and speed — making it scalable across production lines.

Guo Chunxu, Co-founder and CTO of Rid Vision

Ma Xiao, Founder and CEO of Vision Intelligence, took a hardware perspective, arguing that AI hardware’s real purpose is to act as the “ears and eyes” through which AI understands the world. Hardware, he said, must capture real-world contextual data, giving AI — which has long lived in the “cloud brain” — actual “physical senses.”

Ma Xiao, Founder and CEO of Vision Intelligence

Life Sciences and Healthcare

Tang Wei, Vice President of UniDT and Chief Scientist of AI for Science Department, demonstrated how AI, through target discovery and virtual screening, can compress the drug development cycle from years to months — fundamentally reshaping the biomedical R&D paradigm.

Tang Wei, Vice President of UniDT and Chief Scientist of AI for Science Department

Zhao Daping, Vice President and CTO of Winning Health, proposed the idea of “letting software participate in healthcare.” By building digital twins of doctors (Me Agents) and service agents (My Agents), AI advances from a passive recorder to an active collaborator in clinical settings, enabling true human-machine collaborative diagnosis and treatment.

Zhao Daping, Vice President and CTO of Winning Health

People’s Livelihood and Society

Jia Guoqiang, Chairman and CEO of Fubao Robot, addressed the dual forces of the “silver economy” and the AI revolution, sharing how his company has deployed millions of elder care robots across more than 100 countries as a technological response to the challenges of an aging society.

Jia Guoqiang, Chairman and CEO of Fubao Robot

Fang Xu, Executive Dean of the Qiming Daren AI Research Institute, demonstrated how AI enables the “one student, one plan” model for personalized education — using cognitive engines and knowledge graphs to turn individualized learning from a slogan into a scalable reality.

Fang Xu, Executive Dean of the Qiming Daren AI Research Institute

Shi Qiming, Founder and CEO of Digital Communications Group(DCG), shared how AI is transforming the centuries-old publishing industry. Through vertical models such as “Book GPT,” every physical book evolves into an intelligent knowledge portal with its own dedicated AI service.

Shi Qiming, Founder and CEO of Digital Communications Group(DCG)

Clash of Ideas: Roundtables Tackle Industry Hot Topics

The summit featured multiple roundtable discussions covering different aspects of the AI landscape.

The first roundtable panel, on “Embodied Intelligence Industrialization,” was moderated by He Sha, COO of FIRST MOMENTUM. Panelists — including Nie Kaixuan (CEO, ORCA), Wang Tao (Co-founder, RoboScience), Li Keping (CEO, Hinton AI), Tan Feng (Executive Director and CTO, QuantGroup), and Wang Qi (CMO, Topstar Embodied Products) — discussed how embodied intelligence and traditional industrial robots are complementary and symbiotic. The core advantage of embodied AI lies in its ability to understand the physical world and handle flexible tasks. The Greater Bay Area’s strong supply chain and deep talent pool give it a unique edge for industrialization. The panel also noted that simulation training is a critical path to overcoming real-world data scarcity, and that edge-side AI chip performance is the hardware foundation for deployment. Their watchwords for the next 3-5 years: “evolution and generalization” — as the industry moves from proof of concept to real-world deployment.

The first roundtable panel , on “Embodied Intelligence Industrialization,”

The second roundtable panel, on “Large Model Verticalization and Industry Agents,” was moderated by Dr. Yang Xuefei. Panelists Li Fan (CTO, AInnovation), Liu Siping (Founder, TeleAI), Yao Yao (Chairman, totodi.com), Zhang Liwei (Founder, MikaTeachVFX), Lu Pinyin (Chief Architect, Donson Times), and Shi Bo (Chairman, Shanghai Elegant Investment) debated the boundaries of vertical models. Their conclusion: the value of vertical models lies in their depth and specificity. By going deep into a single industry, they can offer out-of-the-box usability and cost control. In finance, marketing, and other sectors, AI agents are evolving from toys into real tools — but compliance, auditability, and data security remain prerequisites for commercialization. In public markets, they see investment opportunities in computing infrastructure.

The second roundtable panel, on “Large Model Verticalization and Industry Agents,”

The third roundtable panel, on “AI Healthcare Innovation and Industry Development,” was moderated by Yu Changhai, Chairman of HKBIO. Panelists Wang Jun (Co-founder/VP, Weimei Health), Lyu Zhe (VP of Strategy and Ecosystem Development, Xellar Biosystems), Wang Peijun (Partner, Oriental Fortune Medical Fund), and Zhang Lange (CFO, Quantum Life) discussed how AI is reshaping healthcare from gene editing and drug discovery to primary care. In the anti-aging field, AI can already identify personalized causal targets. Within five years, AI-driven drug development will become a must, and embodied intelligent robots will play a major role in daily health management.

The third roundtable panel, on “AI Healthcare Innovation and Industry Development,”

The fourth roundtable panel, on “AI Empowering ESG Innovation,” was moderated by Weng Jialiang, President of the AIII Artificial Intelligence International Research Institute. Panelists Zhao Lei (CTO, LINKTEL), Pi Bo (CTO, Goodix Technology), Gong Weibin (Chairman, Huabin Holdings), Zheng Yangjie (Founder, Good to Nature), Chen Shan (CEO, Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao GBA Innovation and Entrepreneurship Incubation Base), and Liao Fangli (Head of Strategic Communications, Tencent Group) explored the balance between computing power, energy consumption, and green development. They stressed that security chips serve as the “steering wheel” for AI agents, warned that AI may widen the digital divide — requiring proactive outreach to underserved markets — and concluded that ESG and AI are inseparable. “AI should be part of ESG,” they said. “Technology must create not only business value, but also drive social and environmental sustainability.”

The fourth roundtable panel, on “AI Empowering ESG Innovation,”

Moment of Glory: TOP 50 Awards Ceremony

The summit’s grand finale was the 2026 Forbes China AI Enterprise TOP 50 Awards Ceremony. To warm applause, Graham Earnshaw (Forbes China), Mao Wenji (FIRST MOMENTUM), and Wang Xiaolin (CEO, FIRST MOMENTUM) presented awards to the winning enterprises and industry figures, recognizing their exceptional contributions to the development of AI technology and enterprise.

Major Signings: Building a Global AI Ecosystem

The summit also witnessed the signing of several major strategic partnerships, marking another step forward in the internationalization and deepening of China’s AI ecosystem.

Shaping a Sustainable Future — Strategic Partnership Signing Ceremony

FIRST MOMENTUM and the Nobel Sustainability Trust (NST) signed a strategic cooperation agreement. The two organizations will collaborate on AI + ESG initiatives, including sustainable development programs, enterprise nominations, global summits, and academic exchanges — promoting responsible AI and green transformation.

Peter Nobel, Chairman of NST

Peter Nobel, Chairman of NST, addressed the ceremony via video.He noted that NST has established “AI for Sustainable Development” as a flagship award category, designed to recognize innovators who use technology to serve humanity and the planet. He emphasized that the AI companies gathered at this summit are proof that technology and sustainability represent each other’s greatest opportunity, and expressed his hope for lasting collaboration with China’s AI community.

Tracy Wang, CEO of NST, said that AI is evolving from a technical concept into a real force for social progress, offering new solutions for the UN’s 2030 Sustainable Development Goals. She expressed her hope that this partnership marks the beginning of broader collaboration with Chinese enterprises and research institutions, building an open and inclusive global innovation ecosystem together.

Tracy Wang, CEO of NST

Go Global — Strategic Partnership for Chinese Companies Expanding Overseas

Ivan Lew, Chairman, International Family Office Committee, Monetary Authority of Singapore Chairman of the Board, Shaw Holdings President, shared practical insights from multiple real-world cases, analyzing the key factors behind success and failure for Chinese companies going global. He stressed that localization and compliance are the lifelines of international expansion.

Ivan Lew, Chairman, International Family Office Committee, Monetary Authority of Singapore & Chairman of the Board, Shaw Holdings

The strategic cooperation between Shaw Holdings (Singapore) and First Momentum Capital aims to provide high-potential Chinese AI and hard-tech companies with end-to-end support — from top-level structural design and cross-border financing to dual listing — allowing Chinese innovators to reach the global stage more steadily and efficiently through Singapore’s international hub.

Tripartite MOU: Building a China-Singapore AI Corridor

The China-Singapore Chamber of Commerce, FIRST MOMENTUM, and the Singapore-China Going Overseas Accelerator signed a tripartite memorandum of cooperation.

The three parties will collaborate on high-quality AI enterprise matchmaking, co-hosted industry summits, cross-border investment enablement, and co-branded communications — working to build a long-term China-Singapore AI industry ecosystem network. The initiative aims to help Chinese AI companies access the Singaporean and Southeast Asian markets, while attracting Singapore’s high-quality AI technology and capital to jointly develop internationally influential digital economy projects.

Chua Zong Lun, Economics Counsellor of the Singapore Embassy in China, noted in his remarks that Singapore and China share one of Asia’s closest and most pragmatic economic and trade partnerships. He expressed his hope that the tripartite cooperation would precisely connect technology with markets, entrepreneurs with capital, and ambition with opportunity.

AI MOMENTUM — China AI Investment Ecosystem Alliance

The “AI MOMENTUM — China Artificial Intelligence Investment Ecosystem Alliance” was officially launched, jointly initiated by First Momentum Capital together with Zongton Investment, Shenzhen High-Tech Investment, Eagles Fund, Huihong Capital, Seine Ventures, Oriental Fortune Capital, MW Asia Investment, Jim Rogers China Guangyao Fund, and other institutions.

Representatives of the founding institutions said they aim to provide a long-term, systematic, and action-oriented capital collaboration platform for China’s outstanding AI enterprises, serving as a reliable backstop for the growth of hard-tech companies with a pragmatic approach.

A Gala of Minds, A Glimpse of Tomorrow

The evening began with an elegant musical performance, followed by dinner. During the gala, the new members of the 2026 AI Industry Think Tank were announced. The think tank brings together leading AI scholars, entrepreneurs, investment institutions, global ecosystem partners, and other top industry professionals, with a focus on resource integration and project collaboration to build an open AI ecosystem platform.

Special thanks to ARCFOX, the official designated vehicle of the summit, for its generous support of this event.

Paradigm Shift: The Future Is Here

The summit concluded on Friday. The event comes at a pivotal moment for China: 2026 is both the first year of the country’s 15th Five-Year Plan and the APEC host year. Against a global backdrop of mounting scrutiny over AI’s energy consumption, ethical boundaries, regulatory frameworks, and distribution of economic value, the gathering in Qianhai offered an unusually self-reflective assessment from within the industry itself. Organizers acknowledged the sector’s progress while taking on persistent challenges — energy costs, safety standards, and regulatory oversight. The discussions also balanced the global race toward ever-larger language models with a pragmatic focus on how Chinese AI companies can build commercially viable businesses and compete effectively overseas. Underpinning the proceedings was a dual message: a call for responsible innovation, paired with a recognition that long-term success hinges on sustainable business models, deep technological capability, and cross-industry collaboration.

The event was held at the Shenzhen Qianhai International Conference Center. Shenzhen, designated as both a national pilot zone for next-generation AI innovation and development and a national AI innovation application demonstration area, is home to more than 2,600 AI enterprises above the designated size, with a core industry output exceeding 220 billion yuan ($30.3 billion), placing it firmly in the country’s top tier. The city also benefits from a distinctive advantage in cross-industry supply chain collaboration, with AI technologies being deployed across a broad range of sectors. Its ecosystem for technological innovation and entrepreneurial talent is notably vibrant. Beyond serving as an honors ceremony for selected enterprises, the summit positioned itself as a platform for China’s AI industry to showcase its technological capabilities and commercial ambitions to a global audience.

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About Forbes China

Forbes was founded in New York in 1917 with the slogan “The Capitalist Tool” — and has since become a global benchmark for entrepreneurial spirit and innovation. Forbes’ lists are widely regarded as an economic barometer and a compass of wealth. Forbes entered the Chinese market in 2003.

As an innovation-driven business media brand, Forbes China embodies the DNA of “Entrepreneurship, Innovation, and Wealth Creation.” Through long-term observation and research into high-net-worth individuals, entrepreneurs, technology, investment, health, lifestyle, and more, it produces rankings and content that shape economic and social discourse. The fairness and transparency of Forbes China’s rankings have made them authoritative benchmarks across industries, while its incisive content offers readers multi-dimensional insights — inspiring entrepreneurs and business leaders to create greater wealth and value. Forbes China is also dedicated to building a dynamic, forward-looking community for high-end clients, fostering an ecosystem of entrepreneurship and innovation.

About FIRST MOMENTUM

FIRST MOMENTUM is an AI-driven information technology company focused on scientific research and innovation, advancing multi-scenario AI applications and global industry investment. It is committed to building an open, collaborative, and win-win AI industry ecosystem.

As the co-initiator and strategic partner of the Forbes China AI Tech Enterprise TOP 50 Selection, FIRST MOMENTUM draws on Forbes China’s century of brand equity and global media network to connect AI technology companies, industry funds, leading think tanks, and investment banks — providing tailored solutions for regional development, industrial upgrading, investment and financing, and high-tech incubation.

The company’s core driving force is its “Media + Strategy + Capital + Resources + Scenarios” five-in-one, full value-chain ecosystem:

Media Empowerment: Leveraging Forbes’ global media influence for brand communications, founder and corporate IP development, and customized content services to help enterprises establish themselves as industry benchmarks.

Strategy Empowerment: Strategic consulting covering business model optimization, brand positioning, management and organizational structure, marketing, and channel design — helping companies build sustainable competitive advantages.

Capital Empowerment: Comprehensive capital services including top-level capital structure design, M&A advisory, equity structuring and incentives, IPO advisory, and financial PR, along with direct investment through its own industrial and angel funds to support companies from early to growth stages.

Resource Empowerment: Connecting companies with overseas market channels, technology patents, specialized talent, business partnerships, supply chain resources, government agencies, and global capital market intermediaries.

Scenario Empowerment: Bridging AI technology companies with traditional industry needs, accelerating the deployment of AI across sectors, and driving intelligent transformation.

To date, FIRST MOMENTUM has assembled more than 70 top think tank experts spanning the full AI industry chain, and is deeply involved in organizing the Forbes China AI Tech Enterprise TOP 50 Selection and its associated summit series. With the vision of “From Discovering Stars to Cultivating Forests,” the company is committed to becoming the core platform for driving high-quality development in China’s AI industry.

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