China’s Communist Party (CCP) has further centralized power and extended its grip on the economy in recent months. The top-down approach gained particular momentum in one key area: Artificial Intelligence (AI). The latest edition of MERICS Economic Indicators finds that national industrial policies to promote AI are implemented at top speed at local and provincial level. By mid-April, 18 provinces and municipalities had drawn up plans to promote and develop AI industries. Their accumulated targets well exceed national targets set in the Made in China 2025 agenda.
The MERICS Economic Indicators are published on a quarterly basis and trace the multiple data sets that shape China’s development in key areas, among them growth figures, investment flows, industrial output, financial markets and consumer sentiment.
