AI key driver for services growth

Rapidly evolving artificial intelligence is playing an increasingly vital role in fostering new growth drivers and injecting strong momentum into China's consumer market, while reshaping the global trade landscape in the digital economy era, said experts and company executives.

Speaking during the 2025 e-commerce convention sub-forum of the ongoing 2025 China International Fair for Trade in Services in Beijing, Liu Yanfang, executive director of the research institute of the China International Electronic Commerce Center, emphasized the importance of AI in driving the expansion and upgrading of online services consumption.

Liu said the recently unveiled guideline by the State Council, China's Cabinet, on deeply implementing the "AI Plus" initiative, stressed efforts to promote the application of AI in consumption and expand new consumption scenarios, which provide guidance and create an enabling environment for e-commerce enterprises.

"The digitalization of services consumption is accelerating and becoming a new driving force for expanding domestic demand. Digital consumption — especially online services consumption — has demonstrated strong dynamism and immense growth potential," Liu said, adding that the use of new technologies represented by AI and big data has enriched consumption scenarios and injected new vitality into services consumption.

She said AI not only gives rise to new service formats such as digital humans, virtual hosts and intelligent guidance, but also bolsters the transformation and upgrading of the traditional services industry and optimizes consumption structure.

"Looking ahead, the integration of AI with online services consumption will be deeper."

China's e-commerce sector witnessed steady growth in the first seven months, with online sales showing significant growth. The National Bureau of Statistics said the country's online retail sales climbed 9.2 percent year-on-year during the period.

Alibaba Group's business-to-business online wholesale trading platform 1688 has launched AI-powered tools to help consumers search and select products more efficiently, and improve overall operational efficiency for merchants. Currently, the platform has integrated Alibaba's Qwen AI models and Chinese AI startup DeepSeek's models into its systems.

It has updated AI digital employees, who take charge of releasing product information, formulating marketing activities, helping analyze market trends and providing intelligent and customized solutions.

Han Xi, vice-president of the public affairs department at Alibaba, underscored that AI is crucial for providing strong support for innovation and entrepreneurship, and dramatically boosting labor efficiency. "This technology is penetrating into all parts of e-commerce at a faster pace, including research and development, supply chain optimization, marketing and operations."

Meanwhile, Alibaba's Taobao and Tmall platforms, released the "China Online Consumption Brand Index" during the 2025 CIFTIS, highlighting that Chinese consumers attach great importance to product quality and brand reputation when purchasing items.

The China Federation of Logistics and Purchasing said its index tracking the e-commerce logistics market reached 112.3 in August, the highest level so far this year, indicating Chinese consumers' rising willingness to open their wallets.

Ji Yang, an associate professor of Sun Yat-sen University in Guangzhou, Guangdong province, said the expansion of China's middle-income group has laid a solid foundation for consumption upgrades, and consumers from the biggest cities have exhibited robust purchasing potential for high-quality products.

Qiu Sheng, vice-president of Amazon China, said AI is becoming an accelerator for product innovation as sellers can use AI to capture consumption trends in a timely manner and better understand user needs, adding that his company is helping Chinese cross-border sellers expand their overseas presence through leveraging AI digital tools.

Qiu said the cutting-edge digital technology can help merchants make business decisions more scientifically based on data analysis and trend predictions, and lower operational costs, while significantly improving resource allocation efficiency in fields like intelligent inventory management, logistics and delivery.

Hong Yong, an associate research fellow at the Chinese Academy of International Trade and Economic Cooperation, said the new type of consumption is mainly driven by technological advancements in AI, with a focus on consumers' personalized and diversified needs.

Nurturing an AI-driven new consumption model is pivotal to expanding domestic demand, driving industrial upgrades and promoting high-quality economic growth, Hong said.