China's Internet of Things (IoT) industry has seen its output value exceed 900 billion yuan (140 billion U.S. dollars), with a compound annual growth rate of over 25 percent, a senior official said Sunday.
With a huge market, a complete industrial chain and the world's biggest mobile telecommunications network, China will soon take the lead in some frontier IoT sub-sectors, Vice Minister of Industry and Information Technology Luo Wen said during an IoT expo in Wuxi, Jiangsu Province.
IoT connects traditional devices, including home appliances, to the Internet.
A number of technological centers and laboratories will be established to support development in this field, while the manufacturers will be overhauled to be more reliant on the IoT, Luo said.
Jack Ma, Alibaba Group's founder and chairman, has predicted that manufacturing will become flexible in the future and with expert programmers working in factory workshops instead of in Internet companies.
Luo said the IoT will be expanded in agriculture, logistics, energy, environmental protection, medical care and other areas.
Cooperation between domestic and overseas IoT research institutions and companies will increase, and actively engage in establishing international standards, said Wang Zhigang, vice minister of science and technology.
Jack Ma, founder and chairman of China's e-commerce giant Alibaba, speaks at the World Internet of Things Exposition (WIOT) in Wuxi, east China's Jiangsu Province, Sept. 10, 2017. (Xinhua/Chen Wei)
People visit the World Internet of Things Exposition (WIOT) in Wuxi, east China's Jiangsu Province, Sept. 10, 2017. More than 500 companies from 20 countries and regions exhibited their fruits at the exposition. (Xinhua/Ji Chunpeng)
People try sensitivity of a robot at the World Internet of Things Exposition (WIOT) in Wuxi, east China's Jiangsu Province, Sept. 10, 2017. More than 500 companies from 20 countries and regions exhibited their fruits at the exposition. (Xinhua/Han Yuqing)
Staff member demonstrates scanning QR code for taking bus at the World Internet of Things Exposition (WIOT) in Wuxi, east China's Jiangsu Province, Sept. 10, 2017. More than 500 companies from 20 countries and regions exhibited their fruits at the exposition. (Xinhua/Ji Chunpeng)
A staff member introduces an early education product at the World Internet of Things Exposition (WIOT) in Wuxi, east China's Jiangsu Province, Sept. 10, 2017. More than 500 companies from 20 countries and regions exhibited their fruits at the exposition. (Xinhua/Ji Chunpeng)
People watch a factory model at the World Internet of Things Exposition (WIOT) in Wuxi, east China's Jiangsu Province, Sept. 10, 2017. More than 500 companies from 20 countries and regions exhibited their fruits at the exposition. (Xinhua/Han Yuqing)
People watch a robot for rehabilitation of human's lower limbs at the World Internet of Things Exposition (WIOT) in Wuxi, east China's Jiangsu Province, Sept. 10, 2017. More than 500 companies from 20 countries and regions exhibited their fruits at the exposition. (Xinhua/Han Yuqing)
