AI Spring Festival Gala highlights Wenzhou's Longwan

Longwan elements in the AI Spring Festival Gala. [Photo/Tide News]

The online 2026 AI Spring Festival Gala went live on Feb 17, the first day of Chinese New Year, bringing a futuristic celebration to Wenzhou's Longwan district. The two-hour event featured more than 30 programs and attracted over 11.94 million online views.

Blending technology with culture, the gala showcased virtual hosts sharing the stage with human presenters, 60 AI-generated digital performers singing together, and immersive AIGC visual effects accompanying music from an Yi ethnic choir in Sichuan's Liangshan region. At the climax, overseas Chinese from 12 time zones sent new year greetings to China.

A defining feature of the gala was its open co-creation model, demonstrating how AI tools are making creative production accessible to everyone. Contributors ranged widely in age and background: the youngest participant was a four-year-old child from Zhangjiakou, while the oldest was 93-year-old lyricist Wu Dawei. Their works appeared alongside pieces by programmers, designers, and entrepreneurs collaborating online.

The event was jointly produced by CCTV.com and the Longwan district government. Known traditionally as an industrial hub, Longwan has been actively building an AI ecosystem. The Wenzhou International Cloud Tech and Software Valley, established in 2022, now hosts thousands of tech companies and key facilities, including an AI computing center.

For Longwan, hosting the AI gala meant more than a night of online buzz. It signaled the district's transformation from a manufacturing base to a hub of smart manufacturing and digital culture, while fostering collaboration among local tech firms and creators.