5G to boost China's digital economy: expert

SHANGHAI - 5G technology is predicted to help drive a growth of 15.2 trillion yuan ($2.1 trillion) in China's digital economy from 2020 to 2025, an industry expert said Saturday.

Wang Zhiqin, deputy director of the China Academy of Information and Communications Technology (CAICT) under the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, made the remarks at the 2019 World Artificial Intelligence Conference which closed Saturday in Shanghai.

Wang said 5G technology is expected to help increase the added value of China's information industry by 3.3 trillion yuan in the five-year period. Meanwhile, it will contribute to a growth of 11.9 trillion yuan in the added value of industries including the internet of vehicles, manufacturing and healthcare.

5G technology will provide key infrastructure for the development of China's digital economy, and the combination of 5G with artificial intelligence, big data and other technologies will revolutionize the form of the digital economy, Wang added.