- After a week of meetings in Beijing, the Communist Party of China concluded its Fourth Plenum, laying the foundation for the 15th Five-Year Plan expected to be announced in early 2026.
- China announced a significant increase in technology investment, particularly in AI, high-performance computing, and space technology. There are currently 4,500 AI companies operating, with many new breakthroughs. For the first time, the space industry is included in the group of strategic priorities, aiming to become a leading space power in the next five years, along with the development of nuclear fusion.
- Minister of Science and Technology Yin Henjun emphasized the necessity of establishing a legal framework and ethical standards for AI, to control the risks of data exposure and misuse.
- Beijing called for dialogue with the US instead of economic decoupling, ahead of the anticipated meeting between Xi Jinping and Donald Trump next week, where tariffs will be a hot topic.
- China committed to building a “birth-friendly society,” expanding support for education, childcare, and elderly care, while gradually raising the retirement age to capitalize on the “silver economy.”
- The government continues to combat “involution” – excessive internal competition leading to price wars and oversupply, while promoting a unified national market, addressing local debt, and reducing deflationary pressure.
- The Plenum noted the lowest participation rate in decades from the People’s Liberation Army (PLA), amidst the ongoing anti-corruption campaign in the military. Vice Chairman of the Central Military Commission He Weidong was dismissed and replaced by Zhang Shengmin, head of the PLA’s anti-corruption agency.
📌 China’s Fourth Plenum marks a strategic turning point: prioritizing AI, space technology, and population economics, while strengthening anti-corruption efforts and macro-stability. With 4,500 AI companies, the direction for the next five years shows China’s ambition to become an AI and space technology powerhouse, but still maintaining US-China dialogue to avoid global economic exposure risks.
