Competition brings driving force to Ningbo's AI development

Winners of the 2017 Global AI Innovation and Entrepreneurship Competition in Ningbo are awarded prize money on Nov 1. [Photo/zjol.com.cn]

The 2017 Global AI Innovation and Entrepreneurship Competition concluded in Yinzhou district of Ningbo, Zhejiang province on Nov 1.

A total of 46 AI projects from over 300 applicants entered the final competition, most of which were from Chinese technological highlands like Beijing, Shanghai and Shenzhen.

Six projects including an interactive platform called Echo Cloud stood out from these candidates and won titles in the competition. According to the organizing committee, the winners will receive strong financial support from the government, with the total amount at most 500,000 yuan ($75,312.55) for each.

The document released by the central government in July put forward that by 2030, Chinese AI is expected to top the world in aspects of theories, technologies and application, and China will be developed into a main innovative center for AI.

Yinzhou has announced that they will provide support for AI companies, projects and professionals to settle in the region, aiming to enhance not only the district's but also the city's innovation capacity.

The AI innovation and entrepreneurship competition was a window for outside people to see Ningbo's suitable environment for the industry, talent and investment. Many attendees expressed their willingness to run their businesses here.

To better promote the matchmaking between startups and investors from Ningbo companies, the organizing team of the competition also arranged a meeting where nearly 30 final entrants presented their ideas to 10 local listed companies for seeking investments.