GUANGZHOU, Sept. 9 (Xinhua) -- Fiji Times managing digital editor Anish Chand was impressed by his first encounter with an AI-powered inspection robot dog during a visit to a smart substation in south China's Guangdong Province.
Located in Zhuhai City, the Qinyun substation serves as a key power hub linking Guangdong and the Macao Special Administrative Region. Equipped with intelligent terminals and AI algorithms, the facility enables round-the-clock autonomous inspections, slashing the inspection time from three hours to just 10 minutes, a significant leap in operational efficiency.
"I am very keen to learn more about this technology," he said. "Its introduction could very well contribute to the industrial development of our country."
Chand was one of about 400 representatives from over 40 countries and regions who attended the Asia-Pacific Media Forum, which opened on Sept. 5 in Shenzhen of Guangdong, where greater cooperation opportunities stemming from China's innovation-driven development were explored.
Against the backdrop of a complex and volatile global landscape, the economic resilience and innovation-driven vitality exhibited by Guangzhou, the provincial capital, and the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, have emerged as a crucial stabilizer for the regional economy of the Asia-Pacific, said Sk. Tawfique M. Haque, director of the South Asian Institute of Policy and Governance at North South University in Bangladesh.
"Guangzhou's progress in robot manufacturing and autonomous driving technology is impressive," he said. "It reflects the city's successful practice of driving industrial development through technological innovation, an experience that many countries could learn from and emulate," he added.
The city's experience shows that industry, technology, talent and investment can be organically integrated, said another attendee at the event, Fazeel Najeeb, Maldivian ambassador to China. Guangzhou also offers valuable examples of how regional connectivity can be transformed into tangible cooperative outcomes, he added.
The city has been ranked as China's top investment destination by the American Chamber of Commerce in South China for nine consecutive years. The Guangzhou Port now connects more than 400 ports in over 100 countries and regions worldwide.
In April, Singapore Changi Airport opted to deploy four delivery robots from a Chinese tech firm in Chengdu, capital of southwest China's Sichuan Province, after conducting comparative tests on products from multiple global manufacturers.
"This marks an important step for domestically developed robots to be deployed at high-end transportation hubs overseas," said Huang Shan, chairperson of the company. "We will continue to strive for greater presence in international markets in the future."
At the APEC High-Level Forum on AI, held in Chengdu on July 24, China announced plans to establish a center in Qianhai, Shenzhen, to promote APEC cooperation on cross-border data flows. The planned center will serve as an open platform for policy research, regulatory alignment and services for businesses.
For Felipe Cuadra, legal representative of the Chilean newspaper La Tercera, the Chinese experience in technological innovation offers valuable references to move toward greener and more sustainable development.
"China has vast experience in climate change. China can contribute, and is currently already contributing, a lot through the development of technologies that allow the natural energy resources available in Chile and other countries to be used more efficiently," he said.
Sulaiman Bujang, managing editor of Malaysian media Utusan Borneo, looked beyond the economic dividends of the regional cooperation.
"What matters most is the humanistic value," he said, noting that China's major projects will inspire countries across the Asia-Pacific region to strive for excellence. "We need to bring people together. If we want to achieve something, we must have the spirit to do it."
China will host the 33rd APEC Economic Leaders' Meeting in Shenzhen in November this year, which will mark the country's third hosting of the event following Shanghai in 2001 and Beijing in 2014.
This year marks the APEC "China Year," with the theme of "Building an Asia-Pacific Community to Prosper Together." Approximately 300 APEC-related meetings and events take place in multiple Chinese cities throughout the year. ■
