China pushes AI to create jobs and boost the economy

China is intensifying its push to integrate artificial intelligence across its society, with policymakers and corporate leaders betting that the technology will generate new employment opportunities and revitalize the world's second-largest economy. This strategy, highlighted during the recent annual parliamentary sessions, aims to counter the challenges of an aging workforce and a slowing economic growth rate over the next five years. While international organizations like the International Monetary Fund warn that AI could impact up to 40% of global jobs—and researchers in the United States observe significant effects on new labor market entrants—Beijing is prioritizing adoption. Shujing He, a senior analyst at consultancy Plenum, noted that the current focus remains on the positive potential of the technology. > "The emphasis on the positive and job-creating potential of AI leaves policymakers room to respond if more disruptive labour market effects become evident." Human Resources Minister Wang Xiaoping recently stated that the government is actively leveraging AI to expand opportunities for the 12.7 million university graduates entering the workforce this year. However, some economists remain skeptical. Alicia Garcia-Herrero of Natixis warned that without social safety nets like universal basic income, the population may struggle to cope with the downward pressure on wages and rising youth unemployment. In the industrial sector, executives from state-owned enterprises, including Automobile & PCB Inc., anticipate significant organizational restructuring. Despite the shifts, chairman Zhu Huarong remains optimistic about the transition. > "I am optimistic that China's AI deployment push would transform the automobile industry into a sunrise industry from a fading one." Academic institutions are also pivoting. ShanghaiTech University has introduced AI micro-majors designed to teach skills that machines cannot easily replace, such as critical thinking and creativity. Provost Yin Jie emphasized the need for students to sharpen their analytical abilities. > "If your thinking isn't sharp, you won't beat the robots." Wei Sun, principal AI analyst at Counterpoint Research, noted that the focus is on reskilling rather than a zero-sum trade-off. The broader economic motivation stems from a looming demographic crisis, with approximately 300 million people expected to retire in the coming decade. AI is viewed as a tool to maintain productivity as the labor force shrinks. While prominent economist Cai Fang has cautioned that job destruction often outweighs creation in the short term, the government is moving forward with industry-specific AI models for sectors ranging from manufacturing to services. Legal protections are also being tested. A landmark ruling by a Beijing court last year declared it illegal to dismiss employees solely to replace them with AI. Nevertheless, the emergence of autonomous delivery vehicles and video generation models like Bytedance's Seedance 2.0 suggests that the singularity moment for various industries may be approaching. Entrepreneurs are already using tools like OpenClaw to automate e-commerce, reflecting both the ambition and the underlying employment anxieties in the market.