Grasp the key to innovation and unlock a new horizon for “Made in China.”

　　Xinhua News Agency, Beijing, April 13 (Reporters Zhang Xinxin and He Yuxin) — Faced with intense competition and the pressure of climbing uphill and undergoing structural transformation, "Made in China" has seized the key to innovation and embarked on a new round of supply-side structural reforms, opening up new horizons for its development and gaining fresh impetus for transformation and upgrading.

　　New technologies and new achievements are accelerating their transformation, new models and new business formats are constantly emerging, and both added value and influence are steadily rising. Innovation is powerfully steering the "Made in China" ship forward, enabling it to brave the waves and forge ahead.

　　Innovation: Crafting a New Brand for “Made in China”

　　On April 3, local time, at Boston’s City Hall Plaza in the United States, a Boston Orange Line subway train manufactured by China Railway Rolling Stock Corporation (CRRC) drew large crowds of onlookers. This marked the first time that “Made by CRRC” had met its future passengers.

　　From leveling the bogie and assembling and meshing the gear screws to breakthroughs in cold- and high-temperature resistance technologies and system-integrated control, the innovation behind a single train is truly countless. Liu Hualong, Chairman of CRRC, said that China’s rail transit industry has now achieved comprehensive export of industrial chains—including traction and ventilation—establishing itself as a highly respected player in the international market thanks to its outstanding quality and advanced technology. In the past half year alone, CRRC has secured orders for 184 metro trains in Boston and Los Angeles.

　　Represented by rail transit, “Made in China” in the new era is gradually shifting from low-value-added processing and manufacturing toward “Created in China”—a focus on high technology, high quality, and premium products. Shenzhou spacecraft, Tianhe supercomputer, Beidou navigation system... each of these prominent Chinese brands stands as a testament to China’s independent innovation in manufacturing, and also serves as a shining “Chinese calling card” in the global market.

　　It is worth noting that in recent years, “Made in China” has continued to accelerate innovation in cutting-edge fields. A number of breakthrough achievements have filled domestic gaps, secured a foothold on the international stage, and may even lead to the emergence of new industries and the development of emerging markets.

　　Huawei has taken the global lead in launching high-temperature, long-life graphene-based lithium-ion batteries, which can raise the upper operating temperature limit of lithium-ion batteries by 10°C and double their service life. The “Sunway TaihuLight,” powered by domestically produced CPUs, has become the world’s first supercomputer capable of achieving an operational speed exceeding 100 quadrillion calculations per second. New technology products such as quantum-dot TVs and OLED TVs are rapidly emerging...

　　According to data from the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, China has made significant progress in cutting-edge research in several fields, including transparent display technology, lithium-ion batteries, and superconducting materials, placing it at the forefront internationally.

　　“Relying on technology-driven innovation, China’s manufacturing sector is striving to seize opportunities, explore broader and more extensive development paths, and bring about tremendous changes,” said Miao Wei, Minister of Industry and Information Technology.

　　Innovation injects new momentum into transformation and upgrading.

　　Through innovations in product design, technical solutions, and material applications, Goertek Inc. and its partners have successfully developed a virtual reality head-mounted display device with an enhanced wearing experience. The product is expected to be launched by the end of this year.

　　As a manufacturing enterprise that has grown up in China, over the past decade or so, Goertek has leveraged its manufacturing strengths in areas such as miniature acoustic modules and sensors to become a key supplier for internationally renowned companies like Samsung and Sony.

　　“Although life as a supplier is not bad, our development has always been beyond our full control,” said Ji Yong, Vice President of Goertek. Goertek will deepen its focus on fields such as virtual reality and artificial intelligence, accelerating its transformation and innovation.

　　As the dividends of “late-mover advantages” and “comparative advantages” gradually dwindle, how can we find new sources of momentum? With overcapacity and soaring costs, how can we enhance efficiency and create greater value? And given the uneven development across regions and industries, how can we achieve coordinated growth? The challenges facing “Made in China” all call for solutions through innovation.

　　“To achieve a transition through climbing uphill, the key lies in leveraging existing assets. We must introduce innovative thinking into every link and every sector, effectively driving improvements in quality and efficiency,” said Li Beiguang, Deputy Director of the Planning Department of the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology.

　　What can you do in just two seconds? At Qingdao Hongling Group, thanks to the world’s most advanced 3D body-scanning technology, it takes only “the blink of an eye” to collect 22 data points from 19 different body parts, automatically completing the garment-sizing process. By leveraging internet-based thinking to reshape industrial production processes, Hongling has not only addressed the time constraints of body measurement but has also enabled personalized production on assembly lines, opening up entirely new possibilities.

　　“We initially started experimenting with internet-based industry to address inventory issues. But after a few years, we realized that this approach is actually a methodology that has fundamentally disrupted the traditional logic of the industry,” said Zhang Daili, Chairman of Hongling Group.

　　It’s not just the red-collar workers who are being transformed. Since the launch of “Made in China 2025,” the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology has identified a total of 109 pilot demonstration projects for intelligent manufacturing. These projects have seen an average increase in production efficiency of over 30% and an average reduction in operating costs of more than 20%.

　　In addition to structural adjustments within industries, the transfer of industries among regions has become more balanced and targeted.

　　Drones from Shenzhen, the “Power Valley” in Zhuzhou, the “Optics Valley” in Wuhan, robots from Shenyang... In recent years, several regions across China have leveraged their existing industrial strengths, actively attracting and adopting high-end production factors and cutting-edge shared technologies, thereby achieving differentiated regional development and outlining a “new map” for manufacturing.

　　“Innovation also requires allocating the right resources to the right places, enabling targeted and precise efforts. This is precisely the essence of supply-side structural reform,” said Miao Wei. The emergence of a new manufacturing landscape not only drives the transformation and upgrading of local industries but also bolsters confidence in achieving “overtaking on a curve.”

　　Innovation—renewing vitality through reform.

　　Standing at the cusp of a new round of scientific and technological revolution and industrial transformation, “Made in China” needs more than ever to seize the initiative through major innovations. This is not only an opportunity that must not be missed—it’s also a challenge that we simply cannot afford to lose. It is now imperative that we ignite the engine of innovation through reform, remove institutional and systemic barriers that hinder innovation, and unlock greater room for development.

　　On the one hand, we must continue to advance the transformation of government functions, remove obstacles, and clear a smooth path for innovation and entrepreneurship.

　　From our firm commitment to promoting administrative streamlining and decentralization, to vigorously fostering mass entrepreneurship and innovation by all, and to accelerating and reducing fees in the telecommunications sector, government departments have further addressed longstanding systemic and institutional shortcomings, thereby unleashing market vitality and tapping into development potential. Last year, the nation saw an average of 15,100 newly registered enterprises per day—a peak since the launch of commercial system reform.

　　However, “As we move forward, others are also making progress.” Reform cannot come to a halt—it must continue to deepen and advance further, unleashing the vitality of every enterprise and every individual, and creating more time and space for development.

　　On the other hand, we must also create a more conducive and tolerant institutional environment, build “fast lanes,” break down the “glass walls” that hinder cost conversion, remove institutional barriers to talent mobility, and allow innovation factors to fully come alive.

　　Miao Wei said that the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology is promoting the construction of manufacturing innovation centers to establish innovation platforms in key areas, pool collaborative efforts to tackle critical challenges, and facilitate the conversion of more scientific research findings into productive forces. Currently, an innovation center for power batteries has been established, and by 2020, around 15 national-level innovation centers will be set up.

　　Once innovative achievements are made, their industrialization also faces challenges. This underscores the need to establish a sound fault-tolerance mechanism for innovation. In areas such as major equipment and new materials, China has launched pilot insurance and compensation mechanisms aimed at market applications, encouraging users to boldly and willingly adopt new technologies and equipment. The next step will be to continuously refine these policies and further expand their practical effectiveness.

　　As we can see, initiatives centered on innovation-driven development are becoming increasingly refined, and a positive environment in which innovation is both admired and eagerly pursued by the entire society is taking shape. “In the future, we will further strengthen the integration of science and technology with the economy and, through continued reform, help ‘Made in China’ reach a new level,” said Miao Wei.