E-commerce livestreamers from China, Thailand, and Vietnam engage in dialogue with the AI figure “Guangxi sister“ at the Application Innovation Contest of an AI-themed competition on Saturday. [Photo by Chen Guanyan/CHINA NEWS SERVICE]

　　A competition aimed at integrating artificial intelligence with real economies and strengthening ties between China and ASEAN nations has been launched in Nanning, Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region.

　　The event, themed “AI Guangxi, AI China, AI ASEAN“, began on Saturday and is co-organized by government agencies, enterprises and universities.

　　The launch ceremony connected representatives from research institutions and leading companies via video link in seven cities: Beijing; Shanghai; Hangzhou in Zhejiang province; Shenzhen in Guangdong province; Hong Kong; Bangkok; and Kuala Lumpur.

　　Focused on Guangxi's strengths and ASEAN markets, the competition features three tracks.

　　The Application Innovation Contest aims to implement AI solutions in 17 key sectors, including automotive, tourism and education. The Industry Challenge Contest targets crucial bottleneck technologies that impede industrial progress through precise problem-solving approaches. And the “AI for All“ Mass Innovation Contest encourages broad public participation to explore the potential of AI applications across diverse fields.

　　Open to participants from China and ASEAN, including enterprises, startups, research institutions and individual developers, the competition welcomes cross-border teams with no entry barriers. It aims to foster an innovation community linking ASEAN, Guangxi and the rest of China.