People's Daily Online released its annual blue book on China's intelligent internet development on July 29. The book offers a detailed analysis of China's AI progress and explores practical smart solutions for emerging challenges.
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The report has been published annually for 12 years and was renamed the "Blue Book of Intelligent Internet" in 2024 to reflect the rapid rise of artificial intelligence. It has won multiple awards from the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences and is widely regarded as a key annual benchmark for tracking China's internet development.
The report offers a comprehensive review of China's intelligent internet in 2025—a year the industry sees as a turning point of rapid advancement, when AI technologies emerged as a core engine fueling industrial transformation. It examines the policy landscape, technological progress, market structure and representative applications, and looks ahead at emerging trends.
At the launch, Fan Zhengwei, president of People's Daily Online, highlighted that mainstream media must actively embrace intelligent transformation rather than passively await technological empowerment, fulfilling their mission in the digital-intelligence era.
"As the 15th Five-Year Plan begins, intelligent internet is unlocking new opportunities for mainstream media. Large models and agents are becoming the new cognitive foundation, helping authoritative content break through algorithmic cocoon to reach hundreds of millions of users with precision," Fan said.
He noted that the media's vast authoritative data is emerging as a core strategic resource for high-quality AI training. AI itself has evolved from a mere production tool into a powerful business engine, driving media to become active participants in AI governance, standard-setting, and service empowerment.
During the launch, People's Daily Online's No. 001 AI digital employee also made its debut.
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The release of the new blue book followed closely on the heels of the 2026 World AI Conference (WAIC) and High-Level Meeting on Global AI Governance, held in Shanghai from July 17–20. During the event, 29 countries signed an agreement to establish the World Artificial Intelligence Cooperation Organization. According to Xinhua, China is a global leader in AI development. In 2025, its core AI industries were worth over 1.2 trillion yuan (about $176.6 billion), while the number of AI enterprises nationwide exceeded 6,200.
Government officials, researchers, industry associations and executives from leading smart-internet companies also took part in discussions on deepening smart-internet development and shaping new forms of the intelligent economy.
Observers note that the blue book offers domestic professionals a systematic annual review while giving international readers a relatively objective and authoritative window into China's digital economy and AI policy direction.