China-ASEAN Expo to strengthen international ties
The upcoming 22nd China-ASEAN Expo, set to highlight artificial intelligence, is aimed at strengthening the China-Association of Southeast Asian Nations community with a shared future, the expo's secretariat said.
The event will run from Sept 17 to 21 in Nanning, the capital of the Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region, featuring a main exhibition area in Nanning and a tourism exhibition area in Guilin, with a combined total exhibition area of 160,000 square meters.
This year has special significance as it marks the expected signing of the protocol on upgrading the Version 3.0 China-ASEAN Free Trade Area (CAFTA), the China-ASEAN Year of People-to-People Exchanges and the anniversary of diplomatic ties between China and six ASEAN nations of Indonesia, Myanmar, Vietnam, the Philippines, Thailand and Singapore.
Since its launch in 2004, the expo has played a role in advancing CAFTA from Version 1.0 to 3.0, while elevating China-ASEAN relations from a strategic partnership to a comprehensive strategic partnership.
It has become a vital platform for opening-up, fostering strategic consensus, enhancing political mutual trust and deepening bilateral ties.
Over the years, 201 Chinese and foreign leaders, more than 4,100 minister-level officials and heads of international organizations have attended the expo.
In opening speeches, leadership meetings, and ministerial consultations, they have strengthened collective will, coordinated actions and turned cooperation agreements into practice.
These efforts have also pushed economic globalization toward greater openness, inclusiveness, balance and win-win outcomes, contributing to a more open global economy.
This year, the expo will maintain high-level political and diplomatic participation, with foreign and Chinese dignitaries invited to deliver keynote speeches.
Representatives from international organizations and the business community will also speak, focusing on advancing CAFTA 3.0, boosting AI cooperation, building a regional economic growth center and forging a closer China-ASEAN community with a shared future. The efforts are to set a new example of solidarity among Global South nations.
AI will be the central theme of this year's expo. For the first time, a dedicated AI pavilion will showcase the latest trends, technologies and products in the sector.
A series of AI-themed events will be held, including industry matchmaking, academic exchanges, research releases, and project signings. These aim to explore AI application scenarios in China-ASEAN cooperation, foster new collaborations in emerging fields and drive the development of regional advanced industry clusters as new engines for growth.
Beyond the AI pavilion, exhibition areas will emphasize intelligent organization. A new quality productive forces pavilion will feature specialized zones for the digital economy, low-altitude economy, commercial aerospace, and space-intelligence applications, promoting China-ASEAN cooperation in new arenas.
The digital economy zone will display cutting-edge technologies like cloud computing, big data, internet of things, blockchain, virtual reality and augmented reality, along with their applications in education, entertainment, digital infrastructure, and software platforms — aimed at driving digital innovation and industrial development.
The low-altitude economy zone will highlight technologies for manned and unmanned aerial vehicles. The commercial aerospace and space intelligence zone will showcase satellite manufacturing, rocket launches and recovery technologies, satellite internet, Beidou navigation applications, remote sensing, and space AI, pushing China's commercial aerospace industry into ASEAN markets.
Key AI events include the "China AI Unicorn Night", which will release a "Top 100 Future Unicorn Enterprises in China's AI Export" list, along with AI industry leader dialogues, an "AI Empowers Thousands of Industries" week, and a "China-ASEAN AI Innovation Application" week. The "unicorn" designation refers to privately held startups valued at over $1 billion.
A China-ASEAN expo AI large model is being developed to cover 24 application scenarios, enhancing trade matchmaking.
Jiang Ming, director of the metaverse research institute at Guilin University of Electronic Technology and the expo's senior adviser, said the model will create "precise profiles" of exhibitors and buyers. It will do this by analyzing needs, product features, past cooperation preferences, and emerging demands amid industry trends, greatly improving matchmaking efficiency.
The model will also support translation in multiple ASEAN languages, helping Chinese and ASEAN enterprises bridge information and language gaps. For exhibition setups, design tools based on AI-generated content will be provided to simplify and streamline the process.
"The expo is the best window to showcase China-ASEAN AI cooperation," Jiang said. "It lets ASEAN nations see China's advanced AI technologies and solutions firsthand, while helping Chinese enterprises grasp ASEAN market needs." He added the expo will help build smoother mechanisms for AI technical standard alignment and cross-border data cooperation, fostering a better ecosystem for cross-border AI innovation.
