CGTN: New engine, new vitality: China's Wuxi makes headway in economic growth, cultural inheritance
BEIJING, July 25, 2024 /PRNewswire/ — Strolling down the streets of Wuxi City in east China's Jiangsu Province, one can find self-driving minibuses that can accommodate six to eight people and have no steering wheel or accelerator in sight.
With LiDAR (light detection and ranging) sensors and cameras installed, the minibus can observe the flow of people and traffic around it in a 360-degree panorama, automatically make a stop at red lights, and identify road conditions ahead in advance.
Behind the minibus is Wuxi's complete industrial chain of Internet of Things (IoT), covering chips, sensors, connectivity, platforms, applications and security.
Nestled on the shores of Taihu Lake, Wuxi shines as an economic jewel of the Yangtze River Delta. With a per capita GDP that ranks among the highest in China, the city is a thriving manufacturing base, empowered by tech innovation.
'New engine'
AdvertisementIn recent years, Wuxi has continuously opened up new areas for development by focusing on cultivating new quality productive forces.
The city has made significant breakthroughs in fields such as smart sensors, the Internet of Vehicles and the Industrial IoT. In terms of market scale, Wuxi is home to over 3,000 IoT enterprises, including 82 listed companies.
On April 1, Wuxi's Liangxi, Xinwu and Binhu districts launched two-way «low-altitude logistics» routes for drones, helping the city become the first driverless delivery demonstration city in the Yangtze River Delta.
In addition, Wuxi has launched 55 low-altitude economic application scenarios in seven categories. Besides driverless delivery, four travel routes, including cherry blossom viewing in the air, have been announced.
AdvertisementMeanwhile, the city has more than 500 drones for public service, which are used for scenarios such as traffic inspections, emergency rescues and power inspections.
According to the local government, Wuxi is making an effort to systematically build a «5+X» development system for future industries, with general artificial intelligence, quantum technology, third-generation semiconductors, hydrogen energy and energy storage, as well as deep-sea equipment as the five main fields for