Foreign tourists interact with a humanoid robot at the 2026 Global Digital Economy Conference in Beijing on July 2. Chen Xiaogen/FOR CHINA DAILY
China’s digital economy is becoming more visible as a driver of high-quality growth, moving beyond headline numbers to play a deeper role in industrial upgrading, urban governance, public services, and international exchanges.
“Developing the digital economy is a strategic choice to seize the opportunities brought by a new round of technological revolution and industrial transformation,” Wang Jingtao, deputy director of the Cyberspace Administration of China, said at the opening ceremony of the 2026 World Digital Economy Conference in Beijing on July 2.
According to data from the National Data Bureau, the added value of China’s digital economy will reach 49 trillion yuan ($7.22 trillion) in 2025, accounting for about 35% of GDP. In particular, the added value of the core industries of the digital economy is expected to exceed 14.7 trillion yuan, accounting for more than 10.5% of GDP.
According to the classification by the National Bureau of Statistics, China’s digital economy covers five major categories: digital product manufacturing, digital product services, digital technology application, data factor-driven industries, and industries supported by digital efficiency improvements.
China’s 15th Five-Year Plan (2026-30) makes it clear that the country will comprehensively promote the empowerment of the real economy through digital technology, Wang added.
The official called for deepening international cooperation, including strengthening efforts on key technologies and digital infrastructure, broadly applying the “AI Plus” initiative across sectors, improving governance of generative AI and data security, and improving digital services for foreigners living in China, to deepen the integration of the digital and real economies.
test case
The key message of this year’s conference was that digital developments are increasingly being tested in the daily operations of cities that have become the most intensive, tangible and observable agents of the digital economy.
According to the 2026 Global Digital Economy Cities report released during the conference, five cities around the world, including Beijing, Tokyo, Singapore, New York and London, are listed as leading cities in the digital element, citing their achievements in digital infrastructure, digital industry leadership, innovation capacity, digital governance, low-carbon development and urban resilience, global connectivity, resident experience and inclusion.
Beijing provides an example of how digital tools are permeating public life. By the end of last year, the city had built 119 internet hospitals, supporting services such as online appointment registration, prescription issuance, and online medical insurance payments. In the transportation sector, with connected signal control, the average non-stop passing rate within Beijing’s Fifth Ring Road reached 76.7 percent. In addition, the construction of a sensing system for underground power, gas and heating pipelines is almost complete, allowing for digital operation and management.
“Digital technologies should not only support industrial development and urban governance, but also be tangible for residents, usable for businesses, and accessible for society,” the report stressed.
In the healthcare field, Beijing has built an integrated cloud platform for medical images, breaking the barrier of image sharing between medical institutions at the secondary level and above. The platform has changed the traditional practice of patients carrying printed films between hospitals. Last year alone, we saved more than 150 million yuan in film printing costs.
“Through high-level efforts to build a comprehensive pilot zone of data elements and active initial testing, Beijing has formed a batch of replicable and scalable ‘Beijing Experiences’ for its global counterparts,” said Liu Liehong, head of the National Data Bureau.
