The Chinese Academy of Science (CAS) has put artificial intelligence (AI) and other frontier technologies at the heart of its new five-year plan, as global competition in science and technology heats up. The country’s highest academic institution laid out a detailed blueprint for research and technology development aligned with the national 15th Five Year Plan covering 2026 to 2030.
The plan focuses on innovation in areas including AI and semiconductors while underscoring efforts to develop the next generation of scientific talent. It identified integrated circuits, AI, quantum technology, life sciences and biotechnology, brain-computer interfaces and controlled nuclear fusion as priority areas, alongside basic and interdisciplinary research. Under the blueprint, AI will also be used to reshape how scientific research is conducted, with the academy planning to apply the technology to basic science, strategic technologies and sustainable development.
“The plan makes AI-driven transformation of scientific research a key focus in accelerating breakthroughs in scientific and technological innovation, with efforts to promote AI-enabled innovation in key fields,” according to the China Science Daily, the Academy’s official newspaper. The plan also outlines measures to strengthen the country’s scientific talent pool, including training strategic scientists, top engineers, young researchers and innovation teams.
It proposes attracting high-level talent – both domestic and overseas – and strengthening international scientific cooperation. The plan comes as Beijing continues to place greater emphasis on basic research. The central government’s science and technology budget has grown steadily since 2020, according to the Ministry of Finance. China’s 15th Five Year Plan has also set a target for total research and development (R&D) spending to grow by more than 7% annually. “To become a global science and technology power, we must strengthen basic research,” President Xi Jinping said at a symposium in Shanghai on April 30.
Several of the technologies underscored by the academy have also become areas of strategic focus in the United States, including biotechnology, quantum information science and semiconductors, according to Washington’s Genesis Mission, an AI and science initiative launched last November. Washington and Beijing continue to compete over advanced technologies, with the U.S. restricting China’s access to advanced semiconductors and related technologies, while China has imposed export controls on rare earths and other critical minerals, the South China Morning Post reports.
China is also offering the world’s brightest young scientists generous 15-year research grants for free exploration, as the country accelerates its drive to become a global science powerhouse. Once this group of exceptionally brilliant young people was identified, their sole performance metric over a 15-year period would be “whether they are in the laboratory” and there would be no short-term performance reviews. Of the 44 scientists chosen this year, nine are foreigners.
