Driven by the dual momentum of the global digital wave and breakthroughs in artificial intelligence technology, the ancient Silk Road is exudingnew vitality. This transportation corridor, which once connected Eastern and Western civilizations and carried goods and personnel, has now evolved into a “Digital-Intelligence Silk Road” that bridges the physical world and digital space, conveying information, services, and intelligence.

I. From Physical Pathway to Digital-Intelligence Fusion: The Epochal Evolution of the Silk Road 

The essence of the Silk Road lies inconnection and exchange. Historically, it facilitated the exchange of physical goods such as silk, porcelain, and spices, while also disseminating culture, technology, and ideas. Entering the 21st century, with the explosive development of new-generation information technologies—specifically 5G, the Internet of Things (IoT), big data, and especially artificial intelligence—the connotation of this channel has undergone a fundamental expansion. AI technology constitutes the “body” through sensors and processors, and fuses multiple intelligence forms such as motion intelligence and embodied intelligence to form a “central nervous system,” catalyzing the creation of “silicon-based lifeforms” like pan-intelligent terminals and intelligent connected vehicles. This has transformed the Silk Road from a traditional physical spatial pathway into a new type of infrastructure characterized by digital-real fusion—the Digital-Intelligence Silk Road. It not only continues to efficiently transmit physical materials but is also capable of circulating information, knowledge, intelligence, and services at the speed of light, injecting unprecedented digital vitality into the economic and social development of countries along the route. 

This transformation aligns with global development trends and the cooperative concepts advocated by China. In September 2023, at the High-Level Meeting on Global Development Initiative, China proposed the “AI+ International Cooperation Initiative,” emphasizing adherence to the concept of a human community with a shared future, deepening the integration of AI with economic and social development, and enabling it to better improve people’s livelihood and drive scientific and technological progress. The Digital-Intelligence Silk Road is a vivid practice of this initiative within the Belt and Road Initiative framework, aiming to bridge the digital divide and co-create an intelligent future through technology sharing and cooperation. 

II. Empowering All Sides: The Practical Landscape of AI Deepening the Belt and Road 

AI technology in the construction of the Digital-Intelligence Silk Road is not an abstract concept; it has been deeply integrated into key fields such as people's livelihood, technology, industry, and culture in countries along the route, yielding fruitful results. 

1. Benefiting People’s Livelihood: AI directly addresses two major pain points: education and healthcare.In the field of education, by building high-level smart inclusive education platforms, AI not only aggregates global high-quality curriculum resources but also uses technologies like digital humans and virtual teachers to make teaching images more vivid. AI’s multi-language translation and interaction capabilities effectively break down language barriers, allowing students in remote areas to enjoy high-quality, personalized teaching resources, significantly improving local inclusive education quality. Similarly, within the healthcare sector, AI applications go beyond traditional surgical assistance, playing a prominent role in improving doctor-patient communication and enhancing diagnostic accessibility. For example, hospitals in Guangxi, China, use large AI models technology to provide real-time, accurate language translation services for Vietnamese residents coming for medical treatment, greatly facilitating cross-border healthcare and allowing more people to access advanced medical services. 

2. Driving Technology: As the core engine of the new round of technological revolution, AI is changing the innovation paradigm. Through international cooperation, AI helps countries along the route enhance their local scientific research capabilities. For example, Chinese universities and research institutions cooperated with South Africa to provide key AI technical support for processing massive astronomical data for the “Square Kilometre Array” (SKA) radio telescope project, solving long-standing data processing difficulties.Simultaneously, the industrial sector is deepening synergy; for instance, China Mobile and Indonesia’s Sinar Mas Group established a joint AI laboratory to jointly promote algorithm R&D, talent cultivation, and industrial transformation, cultivating core competitiveness for the digital age locally. 

3. Upgrading Industry: The integration of AI with the real economy has spawned new development models. In the foundational industry of agriculture, Drones equipped with intelligent visual AI help farmers in countries along the route perform precise field monitoring, pest and disease warningand prevention, effectively increasing crop yields and agricultural resilience. Meanwhile, regarding the process of urbanization, China exports smart city solutions to countries like Pakistan, including smart streetlights and intelligent video analysis systems, helping them improve urban management efficiency and public service levels, exploring new pathways for leapfrog development.

4. Promoting Cultural Exchange: AI has become an innovative tool for cultural preservation and dissemination. Saudi Arabia utilizes advanced large model technology exported by China to efficiently recognize and digitally process complex Arabic text, providing technical support for protecting the inheritance of this ancient script. Chinese research institutions also cooperate with Greece, using virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) technologies to develop applications for the digital preservation and virtual exhibition of cultural heritage, presenting ancient Greek civilization to the world in a more vivid and accessible way. 

These cases are just the tip of the iceberg, but they clearly indicate that artificial intelligence is deeply embedded in the fabric of economic and social development in Belt and Road countries, playing an increasingly important role in cultural inheritance, economic growth, industrial upgrading, and social progress. 

III.Facing Challenges: Realistic Considerations for the Steady and Long-term Development of the Digital-Intelligence Silk Road 

Despite the broad prospects, the in-depth development of the Digital-Intelligence Silk Road still faces a series of realistic challenges that require joint examination and response by all parties. 

First, the infrastructure foundation needs to be strengthened. Some countries along the route have obvious shortcomings in power supply, network coverage, and especially computing power infrastructure (such as data centers and intelligent computing centers), which restricts the localization deployment and deep application of AI technology. 

Second, the technology application and innovation ecosystem need deepening. At the AI model R&D level, while general large models are powerful, the development of specialized models for specific regions, languages, and scenarios still needs strengthening. Digital resource development also faces challenges; for example, many Southern Hemisphere countries are rich in linguistic and cultural resources, but lack sufficient accumulation of high-quality, multi-modal corpus data, limiting the training and optimization of localized AI applications. 

Third, the security and governance system needs urgent enhancement. The healthy development of AI requires a sound governance framework. Currently, global AI governance rules are still being explored, and some countries along the route lag relatively behind in the construction of relevant laws, regulations, ethical norms, and safety standard systems. Meanwhile, in the global AI governance dialogue, the representation and voice of vast developing countries, especially Global South countries, need further elevation. Therefore, governance mechanisms should ensure fairness, inclusivity, and development needs are balanced. 

IV.Building the Future Together: Suggestions for Deepening Cooperation on the Digital-Intelligence Silk Road 

To address the aforementioned challenges and promote the Digital-Intelligence Silk Road toward higher quality and more sustainable development, four systematic suggestions are proposed: 

First, digital and intelligent foundationand promote joint construction and sharing of facilities. Support for investment and construction of digital infrastructure along the Belt and Road, especially computing networks, should be increased. Advocate for the joint construction, interconnection and shared of computing infrastructure through models like multilateral cooperation and Public-Private Partnerships (PPP). Create a widely accessible, inclusive, and efficient regional computing service system to provide a solid foundation for various AI applications. 

Second, deepen scientific and technological innovation cooperation. Encourage universities, research institutions, and enterprises in countries along the route to establish closer innovation consortia and laboratories. Focus on areas of common concern and strengthen technical exchange and collaborative tackling of key problems in AI algorithms, chips, and open-source frameworks. Simultaneously, deepen innovation application cooperation in scenarios such as smart agriculture, smart healthcare, and smart cities to promote the implementation and conversion of technological achievements. 

Third, strengthen data supply and promote compliant circulation. Advocate for the joint construction of high-quality, multi-lingual, and cross-domain datasets, paying special attention to the collection and labeling of “small but beautiful” language and cultural data. Under the premise of strictly abiding by national data security and privacy protection laws and regulations, explore the establishment of secure and trusted data compliance sharing mechanisms and exchange platforms to release the value of data elements. 

Fourth, construct a co-governance system and improve global governance levels. Actively play the core coordinating role of the United Nations and other relevant international organizations in global AI governance. Deepen inter-regional AI governance dialogue and cooperation mechanisms, and support countries along the route, especially developing countries, in participating in international rule-making. Additionally, promote the establishment of AI governance principles and standards that conform to the interests of the majority of countries, respect cultural differences, and promote inclusive growth, jointly addressing cross-border challenges such as security and ethics. 

“Even mountains and seas cannot distance people with common aspirations.” Ancient wisdom still shines today. Although the Digital Silk Road connects nations geographically separated by thousands of mountains and rivers, empowered by emerging technologies like artificial intelligence, the distance between the hearts of people in various countries and the depth of their collaboration are being drawn closer than ever before. The Digital-Intelligence Silk Road is not only a road of technological cooperation but also a road of mutual benefit for joining hands to address common challenges and share the development dividends of the digital age. Facing the future, only by continuing to uphold the spirit of openness, inclusiveness, and mutual benefit, continuously deepening pragmatic cooperation, and jointly overcoming difficulties in the journey forward, can we make this bond of ancient civilizations bloom with even more brilliant radiance in the era of digital intelligence, truly building an intelligent community with a shared future for the benefit of people of all nations.

Author：Wei Chenguang, Deputy Director of China Mobile Research Institute

               Wu Shuyan, Deputy Director of User and Market Research Institute, China Mobile Research Institute

              The opinions expressed in this article are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views or positions of the website.