The China Development High-Level Forum, hosted by the Development Research Center of the State Council, took place in Beijing from March 24th to 25th. Global business leaders and Chinese policymakers gathered to engage in constructive dialogue on key and cutting-edge issues concerning China's development and global progress.
Cristiano Amon, President and CEO of Qualcomm, participated in a thematic workshop on digital empowerment for industrial transformation and delivered a speech. He emphasized that intelligent computing will accelerate digital transformation, enabling businesses to achieve sustainable growth and innovation, unleash operational efficiency, enhance productivity, empower new business models, and foster collective participation in the digital economy.
Amon pointed out several key trends shaping the next innovation cycle in the global technology landscape. Among them, Generative AI (GenAI) made revolutionary progress last year, advancing its innovation and application at an unprecedented pace. As Generative AI becomes an indispensable part of personal and commercial applications, it will have profound impacts across various industries.
Currently, much of Generative AI operates in the cloud. Amon believes that while the cloud will continue to play an indispensable role, Generative AI is rapidly evolving to run at the edge. Running Generative AI at the edge enables faster response times, higher accuracy, greater reliability, and enhanced privacy protection. Edge-based high-performance and efficient AI capabilities will facilitate the scalable expansion of Generative AI, giving rise to a range of new applications, particularly focusing on productivity, content creation, education, research and development, and industrial manufacturing.
During last year's Mobile World Congress (MWC), Qualcomm introduced the world's first Stable Diffusion edge demonstration running on Android smartphones. At this year's MWC, Qualcomm collaborated with global and Chinese partners such as Honor, Xiaomi, and OPPO to showcase edge Generative AI applications supported by the third-generation Snapdragon 8 platform. In the PC domain, Qualcomm launched the Snapdragon X Elite platform tailored for AI PCs at the end of last year, capable of running Generative AI models with over 13 billion parameters at the edge. At MWC, Qualcomm demonstrated the world's first audio inference multimodal large model running on a Windows PC, capable of understanding bird calls, music, or various sounds in the home and engaging in conversation based on this information to assist users. Optimized for outstanding performance and energy efficiency, this model runs entirely at the edge, fully leveraging the powerful capabilities of Snapdragon X Elite.
Amon stated that the launch of next-generation AI PCs will mark another industry inflection point, similar to the introduction of AI smartphones this year. These new types of PCs will fundamentally transform the user experience in communication, productivity, creativity, and entertainment by simultaneously running AI at the edge and in the cloud.
I'm delighted to have the opportunity to participate in today's event, and I extend my gratitude to the China Development High-Level Forum for inviting me to speak at this important gathering.
As many of you are aware, Qualcomm has been driving the revolution in mobile technology, and mobile will always be a cornerstone for us. However, we also recognize that the mobile technologies we develop can lead transformations in other industries, such as next-generation personal computers, virtual and augmented reality headsets, smart cars, and beyond. Currently, our industry-leading platforms are delivering exceptional experiences across a multitude of consumer and enterprise devices. Looking ahead, our mission is to make intelligent computing ubiquitous.
We continue to innovate and commercialize key technologies in wireless connectivity, high-performance, low-power computing, innovative terminal-side artificial intelligence (AI), among others, extending these into numerous industries, from smart homes to networks, from automotive to industrial domains, and beyond.
We believe that intelligent computing will accelerate digital transformation, enabling sustainable growth and innovation for businesses, unlocking operational efficiencies, enhancing productivity, empowering new business models, and fostering inclusive participation in the digital economy. The opportunity is immense. By 2027, global spending on digital transformation is projected to reach nearly $39 trillion.
Across the globe, several key trends are shaping the next innovation cycle in global technology.
Last year, Generative AI (GenAI) made revolutionary advancements, and we are witnessing its innovation and application progressing at unprecedented speeds. We believe that as Generative AI becomes an indispensable part of personal and business applications, it will have profound impacts across various industries. While most Generative AI development has been concentrated in the cloud—and the cloud will continue to play a crucial role—it is rapidly evolving to run at the edge.
Running Generative AI at the edge enables faster response times, higher accuracy, greater reliability, and enhanced privacy protection. Edge-based high-performance and efficient AI capabilities will facilitate the scalable expansion of Generative AI, giving rise to a host of new applications, particularly focusing on productivity, content creation, education, research and development, and industrial manufacturing, among others.
Connectivity remains a critical technology for the digital economy, especially in the AI era, where its importance will be even more pronounced. China's adoption of 5G Advanced, actively pursued by operators, will enhance the performance and reliability of existing networks and lay the technological foundation for the next generation of mobile communication technology—6G. 6G holds the promise of significant technological leaps beyond 2030. It is envisioned as a collaborative technological innovation platform encompassing AI, sensing, security, and more sustainable networks.
Another industry inflection point will be the introduction of next-generation AI PCs. Similar to the AI smartphones rolled out earlier this year, these novel types of PCs will fundamentally transform personal computing experiences in communication, productivity, creativity, and entertainment by running AI simultaneously at the edge and in the cloud.
Furthermore, the convergence of physical and digital spaces is accelerating, and we can anticipate that virtual reality (VR), mixed reality (MR), and augmented reality (AR) will become the next computing platforms.
The automotive industry is undergoing accelerated evolution under the impetus of digital technology proliferation. Software-defined cars are at the heart of this transformation, providing automotive manufacturers with significant opportunities to enhance connectivity, improve safety and security, progress towards higher levels of autonomous driving, and create new business models and revenue streams.
As a global leader in pioneering innovation, Qualcomm has always focused on foundational technology research to enrich lives, improve businesses, and drive societal progress, a fact of which we are immensely proud. We maintain close collaborative relationships with companies from various industries worldwide, including China, fostering strong, mutually beneficial, and trusting partnerships. Over the past three decades, we have established robust cooperation with Chinese partners. Now, as our technology expands into numerous new industries, Qualcomm is continuously forging new partnerships.
Qualcomm is privileged to be involved in the digital transformation of numerous industries, and we are deeply inspired by this. We will continue to strive to provide our partners across industries with the most comprehensive and cutting-edge solutions, facilitating global economic interconnectedness and creating significant growth opportunities for the global ecosystem. We believe that the collective innovation of many companies within the entire ecosystem will drive societal prosperity.
Thank you, everyone.
