Opinion   Chen Lijun: China offers world sustainable growth path with new qu...

Amid the rapid advancement of global technology, "new quality productive forces" have emerged as a key driver of future development. In an exclusive interview, Chen Lijun, Chairman of Beijing Aika Innovative Technology Co., Ltd., said that in the face of profound changes in the global industrial landscape, China's concept of new quality productive forces not only responds to the needs of the times but also offers the world a sustainable path to growth.

The booth of Beijing Aika Innovative Technology Co., Ltd. at the New Materials Exhibition Area of the 2025 Zhongguancun Forum in Beijing, on March 27, 2025. Photo by Chen Lijun.

Chen recently attended the Zhongguancun Forum Annual Conference held in Beijing for the third time. He noted that what impressed him most this year was the accelerated implementation of China's national science and technology strategy, especially the significant breakthroughs in fields such as artificial intelligence (AI) and new materials.

"Technologies like humanoid robots are gradually moving from the laboratory to industrial application, demonstrating the strong momentum of scientific and technological innovation," Chen said. He also observed that the forum had become noticeably more international, attracting more top global technology players and further highlighting China's growing influence in global innovation.

New quality productive forces are a key concept in China's current economic development, offering a "Chinese solution" to the global transformation of productivity. According to Chen, this concept represents a path of leapfrog development driven by innovation, rather than following the traditional industrialization model of the West. In the face of profound changes in the global industrial landscape, China's proposal for new quality productive forces not only responds to the demands of the times but also provides the world with a sustainable path to growth.

"New quality productive forces are not only about technological breakthroughs but also about a new model of coordinated development among technology, industry and society. And Its core lies in technology-driven industrial transformation." Chen said that technology-driven enterprises must break away from traditional production models and achieve qualitative leaps through technological innovation, resource optimization and industrial upgrades. "Technology-driven enterprises are both creators and beneficiaries of new quality productive forces. They must use technology as a spear and ecosystems as a shield, addressing key challenges such as overcoming the performance-cost dilemma to define their future competitiveness."

In a complex and volatile global economic landscape, technological innovation has become a key driver for the sustainable development of enterprises. According to Chen, technological innovation not only enhances companies' competitiveness but also optimizes production processes, expands markets, and promotes green and low-carbon transformation. "As a graphene technology company, we aim to achieve cost reductions, improve efficiency, and respond to environmental demands through technological breakthroughs in AI and new materials."

China is one of the most active countries in graphene research and application development, with the industry entering a period of rapid growth. China Industry Consulting Institute's "2025-2030 China Graphene Industry Research and Market Forecast Report" indicates that China's graphene market reached approximately 41.1 billion yuan in 2024.

Chen added that with policy support and the expansion of downstream markets, China's graphene industry is expected to solidify its global leadership and establish greater international competitiveness in new energy and electronic information sectors.

Chen introduced that this is the second time they have participated in the release of major scientific and technological achievements during this year's Zhongguancun Forum Annual Conference. During this time, their company showcased its independently developed AIHF™ EverGraphene thermal management technology. This technology enhances material flexibility, supports custom shaping, enables rapid activation at low temperatures, and has been clinically validated to reduce fatigue and pain. The technology has been applied in areas such as new energy vehicles, smart wearables and building heating solutions, including extending the range of EV batteries, developing wearable heated clothing and introducing energy-efficient graphene heating panels.

Regarding China's global competitiveness in the graphene industry chain, Chen highlighted that China is at the forefront of global development, with three key advantages. First, China ranks first in research papers and patent applications, accounting for one-third of global graphene-related papers and over 50% of patents. Second, China leads in market size, with projections indicating that the industry will exceed 100 billion yuan by 2025. Finally, China has the largest number of graphene companies in the world, with more than 78,000 related companies, accounting for about three-quarters of the global total.

In November 2024, the Beijing Municipal Bureau of Economy and Information Technology released the "Beijing Graphene Industry Development Implementation Plan (2024-2027)", which supports the application of flexible graphene heating materials, graphene resin composites, and other technologies in new energy vehicles and rail transit. Chen said, "this opens up more market opportunities for us. In the future, we will continue to promote technological breakthroughs, reduce costs, improve efficiency, and further enhance the role of graphene technology in environmental protection and sustainable development." (By Zhao Anqi/China Youth Daily)

来源：中国青年报客户端