The 2018 China International Big Data Industry Expo opens in Guiyang, capital city of Guizhou province, on May 26. [Photo/www.gog.cn]

Over the past five years, the big data industry in Southwest China's Guizhou province has developed rapidly. So far, the province is home to more than 8,900 big data enterprises, with a total output of 110 billion yuan ($15.98 billion). It has also attracted world-famous enterprises including Oracle, Google, Intel, Microsoft, IBM, HP, Dell, Foxconn, Tencent, Apple, Alibaba and Huawei.

Guizhou has long been one of China's poorest provinces but is today turning its geological disadvantages into advantages through the big data industry. Currently big data has become a new calling card for Guizhou, along with its cool weather, ecotourism, Moutai and Lao Gan Ma, promoting economic growth in the province.

The province started to put forward policies and measures to accelerate the development of big data industry as early as 2013. As the first national big data pilot zone, Guizhou has accumulated abundant advantages for the development of big data industry in resources, environment, policy, location and other aspects.

From 2013 to 2016, the volume of big data communication services, the income of software and information technology services and the value added of the electronic information industry saw an annual growth rate of 39.5 percent, 25.7 percent and 63 percent, respectively. In the first half of 2017, the big data electronic information manufacturing industry contributed 10 percent to Guizhou's industrial economy, becoming its third major growth point.

In recent years, the electronic information manufacturing industry in Guizhou has developed rapidly. [Photo/www.gog.cn]

Three telecom carriers, China Mobile, China Telecom and China Unicom, set up their cloud computing data centers in Guizhou. The province established 28 data research institutions and 36 incubators of scientific and technological enterprises.

Huochebang, a Guizhou-based technology company, has been selected as one of the world's leading unicorn companies for two consecutive years. The services of Baishan Cloud, a cloud service provider, has covered more than 300 cities and 70 percent of internet users in China.

Traditional industries in Guizhou have also developed rapidly with the help of big data. Guizhou Tyre Co Ltd transformed its structure and improved production efficiency through Big Data Plus. Kiwi fruit plantations in Xifeng county have accurate planting due to big data technology. Digital factories and workshops have helped enterprises such as Guiyang Haixin Electronics Co Ltd and Guizhou Space Appliance Co Ltd realize intelligent manufacturing.

The coal industry in Guizhou is undergoing intelligent transformation. [Photo/www.gog.cn]

Over the past three years, the integration index of industrialization and informatization in Guizhou moved up six places in the national ranking. Moreover, the popularization rate of digital R&D tools in key industries and the numerical control rate of critical processes increased by 4.8 percent and 3.4 percent, respectively.

At the same time, service industries, including smart tourism, logistics, agriculture and e-commerce, have emerged. In 2016, the volume of e-commerce transactions in the province increased by 34.7 percent year-on-year.

Relying on major events such as the China International Big Data Industry Expo and the Eco Forum Global Guiyang Annual Conference, Guizhou provides favorable policies and services to attract talents related to the big data industry. In 2017, the net population inflow in Guiyang, capital city of Guizhou province, surpassed Beijing and Shanghai and ranked 17th in China, a feat which would have been inconceivable in the past.

Zhao Yandi contributed to this story