AI-big data era set to bring many benefits for firms

Artificial intelligence and big data, two technologies China is avidly embracing, will drive a renaissance in hardware development and investment, according to a senior industry executive.

China is working on new ways to improve chip performance, power and costs for AI applications, which will present huge opportunities for companies laying the foundations for such technological breakthroughs, said Gary Dickerson, president and chief executive officer of Applied Materials Inc, a leading semiconductor and display equipment company.

The US-based company's sales hit $5.1 billion last year in China, tripling from 2015 to 2018. And that figure represented 30 percent, or the largest proportion, of revenue worldwide.