According to its local government, Guiyang, capital of Southwest China's Guizhou province, plans to become "China's data valley" by 2020 to better serve the real economy and optimize its regulation and services.

The big data industry is expected to gain total revenue of 100 billion yuan ($15.7 billion) by that time, according to an official document released by the local government last year.

As one of the pilot zones for the country's development of big data, Guiyang has established 16 industrial clusters and experimental bases since 2014.

After four years' exploration, the application of the technology has been promoted in different fields such as transportation, education, finance and security, according to the city's big data development committee.

Zhuminsheng, an online search and consultation platform for civil affairs, for example, uses big data collected from Guiyang government departments to allow people to process social security, medical care, education and employment issues.

Guiyang locals are able to access 180 services via a single online account, providing greater flexibility of access.

Such online platforms include a "Tax Credit Cloud" promoted in Guian New Area to share data between government departments, banks and enterprises to cut red tape and improve efficiency.

Staff members debug the system of "Tax Credit Cloud", an online platform for civil affairs used in Guian New Area. [Photo by Du Pengcheng/news.gog.cn]

Further opening-up of government data was approved in Guiyang in March 2017, aiming to boost healthy development of the digital economy and improve its regulation and services.

As the first city in China to share government data, Guiyang made a technical breakthrough in exploring a new way of unifying storage and management of more than 5.3 million pieces of information from 54 official departments and institutes.

The operation mode is expected to influence the application of big data in other Chinese cities.

Guiyang is also the first pilot city nationwide to apply big data to internet safety, as approved by the Ministry of Public Security in April 2017.

An internet attack defense exercise was conducted in November 2017 to examine the city's ability to protect important information systems and provide emergency solutions.

The resources, platforms, technologies, achievements and markets were further linked to improve the city's internet security.

Another area of big data expansion has been blockchain, which was first introduced in Guiyang back to 2016. Investment of up to 750 million yuan was poured into innovation, testing and application of the technology last year.

Major information companies, including Intel and iFlytek, have settled in the city to develop the artificial intelligence industry, including intelligent robots, advanced voice call systems and face recognition.

The big data industry expo, held once a year in Guiyang, has transformed from a regional event to a national one. The annual event promotes the exchanges of ideas among experts, companies and entrepreneurs worldwide.

Last year's event attracted business leaders including Jack Ma, founder of Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba, Pony Ma, CEO of Tencent, and Li Yanhong, founder of Baidu, who shared their insights into the digital economy.

More than 20,000 attendees from some 30 countries and regions took part in the expo, discussing major issues of the industry and exploring opportunities for cooperation.

Guiyang Big Data Application Exhibition Center showcases the latest application of big data in different fields. [Photo by Du Pengcheng/news.gog.cn]