A focus of Summer Davos was China’s plan to become a ‘standards maker’ that increasingly writes the rules in key technology fields.

In a recent advertisement for a three-ton luxury SUV, British motoring expert, Richard Hammond, drives Xiaomi’s NIO ES9 at speed across rough cobblestones as smoothly as if he was on a paved freeway.

Innovative suspension solutions, hydraulically operated and coordinated with software, smooths out the ride faster than any comparable mechanical system. The cars are loaded with advanced features, all of which make them a smart car.

But more than smart. They are an intelligent car. The intelligence comes from the way the car applies its memory and communicates with others of its kind. It knows what’s coming on the road before you feel it. In addition, every bump, every pothole, every road hazard is recorded and uploaded in real time so that every other Xiaomi vehicle gets the same information at the same time.

It’s a type of gestalt, or group communication and learned reaction, so that other vehicles will know in advance what to expect of any section of road. And when the pot hole is repaired, then every other car will also know.

Smart products are the result of smart manufacturing, which rests on relentless innovation. The relationship between these forces is what drives innovation at scale. This is China’s advanced technology applied in the real economy. Investigate further and these vehicles provide another insight into China’s next chapter of economic development, which builds on innovation at scale, and looks to technical standardisation.

The move beyond smart re-sets the economic landscape in what China’s 15^th five-year plan calls ’new quality productive forces’. The focus on these policy initiatives goes beyond advanced industries like clean-energy manufacturing, semiconductors and biotechnology. An intelligent digital and technological society feeds into every level of economic activity, changing the nature of work in ways not yet fully understood. Exploring these experiences was on the agenda of Summer Davos.

The change in the nature of work starts with a quiet revolution on the factory floor, seen in the speed at which Chinese factories are upgrading. China is becoming the ‘Smart Factory of the Future’ with a full-scale industrial transformation. Fixed asset investment in manufacturing has a strong focus on digital transformation, AI integration and green technologies.

Robot density in Chinese manufacturing has surged to 322 robots per 10,000 workers and domestic robot production now covers 57 per cent of demand. Under the Manufacturing Upgrade Plan 2026 over 70 per cent of large manufacturers will operate smart, digitally networked factories.

China leads in the development of electric vehicles, high-speed rail, solar, 5G, quantum computing and automation. These unleash the application of new productive forces that change the economic and social landscape in the same way that the widespread application of electricity did in the late 19th century.

The industrial revolution introduced a new social paradigm of capital and labour, outstandingly analysed by Marx in his seminal work, Das Kapital.  These relationships still prevail in today’s economy where unchecked capitalism generates the extreme wealth inequality highlighted by Thomas Piketty and personified by the world’s first trillionaire, Elon Musk.

The new productive forces prioritise high-tech, high-efficiency and high-quality development, driven by disruptive scientific and technological innovation rather than traditional labour and capital. This is different from the American philosophy of ‘move fast and break things’ because the policy objectives include social outcomes rather than just profit. Summer Davos examined the way these forces will change the social relationship between labour and capital.

The AI, quantum and digital economy is a new paradigm that includes innovating at scale and speed. A key facilitator of technology in the real economy is the development and adoption of universal technical standards in every aspect from the design of physical connector plugs to the distribution of advanced AI tools and setting behaviour parameters for android robots. These technical standards have become a strategic lever in economic and tech competition, international politics and national security considerations. Over the past decade, Beijing has linked its standardisation strategy closely to industrial policy and long‑term innovation goals.

The Davos debate around innovation at scale is about the way the digital economy will grow. Or more precisely, it’s a fight to decide which standards will be adopted in AI, advanced computing, digital payment platforms, safety features on EVs and other aspects of the digital universe. The rapidly developing digital eco-system, of which China’s DeepSeek is a part, drives an AI and big data hyper-personalised consumer experience stretching from robotics to green energy and smart cities. This is changing the ‘canvas’ of economic growth and the way the world engages with China in both business and investment. Furthermore, China has become a ‘standards maker’ that increasingly writes the rules in key technology fields.

Lack of agreement on standards is not just about software and AI. Simple things such as differently shaped and incompatible charging ports for EVs or phones, drag down productivity and hinder digital advances. The adoption of different standards can also be used as tools of economic coercion to whittle down market share.

The outlines of China’s next chapter of economic development are included in the 15^th five-year plan. The China Standards 2035 initiative places technical standardisation as an essential component of technological leadership.

How China responds to these challenges will ripple well beyond its borders and shape supply chains, business strategy and cooperation between the world’s biggest economies.

The Summer Davos provided an opportunity for global business and political leaders to exchange ideas about the impact of the seismic shift in economic and industrial relationships triggered by global innovation at scale.

The views expressed in this article may or may not reflect those of Pearls and Irritations.