5th Global Digital Trade Expo to Be Held in Hangzhou

The 5th Global Digital Trade Expo will run from September 23 to 27 in Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province, according to a press conference held by the State Council Information Office on September 7. This edition is themed "Meet the AI Future at the Digital Trade Expo." Speaking at the briefing, Vice Minister of Commerce Yan Dong said the event is China's only national-level, international and specialized trade show dedicated to digital trade, and that it has cumulatively drawn more than 5,000 Chinese and foreign companies, 87,000 professional buyers and 627,000 visitors, with over 1,200 product premieres, first showings and debut exhibits. According to the briefing, AI companies account for more than one-third of this edition's exhibitors; the expo is taking the lead in setting up a dedicated Token zone, and AI application pilot-test bases will appear collectively, comprehensively presenting a full-chain innovation ecosystem spanning general-purpose models, industry applications and smart terminals. Concurrent events include a world AI open-source competition, an embodied-intelligence application challenge and a global brain-computer interface innovation contest. As of now, the exhibition area totals 170,000 square meters, international exhibitors account for more than 20%, Malaysia and Hungary serve as guest countries of honor, and the number of overseas delegations already exceeds the combined total of previous editions. Representatives from 121 countries and regions and 29 international organizations have confirmed attendance and will hold exchanges on topics including Silk Road e-commerce, cross-border data flows and green trade.