For the past couple of days, there were no doubts to what the most searched and popular word about Guizhou should be, it would definitely have to be "big data".

During the renowned China International Big Data Industry Expo held annually in the provincial capital of Guiyang from May 26 to May 29 this year, 199 projects were signed, attracting total investment volume of 35.28 billion yuan ($5.5 billion), according to the organizing committee.

Chen Yan, mayor of Guiyang city, met with guests every day of the week from different places beyond the province leading up to the kick-off of the big data expo. These guests including renowned entrepreneurs, scholars, researchers and officials came to share thoughts and discuss various issues concerning big data development in and beyond Guizhou.

As China's first big data pilot zone, the mountainous province is a top choice for big data facilities due to its moderate climate, sufficient power supply and good network infrastructure. It has attracted heavyweight players such as Apple, Qualcomm, Huawei, Tencent, Alibaba and Foxconn, to establish cloud computing and big data centers as well as regional headquarters.

After several years of rapid development, big data has become a bigger and broader brand influence for Guizhou. Along with the beauty of natural ecology and the charm of cultural tourism, big data now is another upper-hand in competition for the province, said Chen Yan with confidence.

As the city to hold the big event annually, the big data expo has brought Guiyang lots of benefits and opportunities, which helped Guiyang, in terms of economic growth, rank as the top one provincial capital city in China for five years in a row.

In 2017, there were 1,200 big data companies doing business in Guiyang, producing a huge revenue of 81.7 billion yuan. The contribution percentage that the big data industry had made to the local economy accounted for 33 percent in the city's economic growth.

Xi He contributed to this story.