Beijing calls for more Internet 3.0 research in areas including generative artificial intelligence and virtual reality
- The Beijing municipal government is soliciting subsidised projects researching artificial intelligence, 3D content, and AR and VR applications
- The city is seeking to bolster its efforts in areas it has classified as Internet 3.0 amid national calls for technological self-reliance
Beijing has earmarked 60 million yuan (US$8.6 million) to support up to 12 projects over two years, the notice said.
The move is also part of the Chinese capital’s three-year plan to bolster research and development of the so-called Internet 3.0 industry through 2025.
The plan, announced in March, aims to make Beijing a “highland for Internet 3.0 technology” with international cachet. It also pushes for breakthroughs in six core technologies to “accelerate technological localisation”, replacing foreign tech with home-grown alternatives.
Beijing expects to apply these technologies to a range of scenarios that include powering smart cities and industrial manufacturing.
Beijing is already home to the largest concentration of AI enterprises and talent in China, according to a February white paper published by the Beijing Municipal Bureau of Economy and Information Technology.
Beijing has also been boosting its support of local AI research this year. At the Beijing Artificial Intelligence Industry Innovation and Development Conference in February, local officials pledged to help companies develop large-language models like those powering ChatGPT. The government also committed to helping build an ecosystem of open-source frameworks and applications for these models.