Huang Kunming, a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and head of the Publicity Department of the CPC Central Committee, attends the opening ceremony of the sixth World Internet Conference in Wuzhen, east China's Zhejiang Province, Oct. 20, 2019. Before delivering his speech, Huang read Chinese President Xi Jinping's congratulatory letter to the conference. (Xinhua/Liu Bin)

“It is the common responsibility of the international community to develop, use and govern the internet well so that it can better benefit mankind,” Chinese President Xi Jinping said in his congratulatory letter to the 6th World Internet Conference (WIC), which kicked off Sunday in Wuzhen Town of east China’s Zhejiang Province.

Countries should follow the trend of the times, shoulder the responsibility of development, meet the challenges and risks, jointly promote global governance in cyberspace and strive to build a community with a shared future in cyberspace, Xi said.

Xi’s letter was met with a warm response from conference participants, with many thinking Xi’s ideas showed his profound understanding of the future trend in the development of the internet, concern for collective well-being of humanity, as well as his sincere aspiration for the joint efforts of China and various countries around the world to build a community with a shared future in cyberspace.

Xi spoke highly of the world’s achievements in the development of the internet during the past five decades since the birth of the internet, and expressed steadfast resolution to create more benefits for the country and Chinese people with the use of the internet, said Li Yanhong, CEO of China’s popular search engine Baidu.

Xi’s letter was inspiring for internet practitioners, said Li, adding “we will further promote the development of such technologies as artificial intelligence (AI) and Internet of Things (IoT) to boost industrial transformation and the high-quality development of the economy.”

“Xi’s congratulatory letter revealed the profound significance of the development of the internet, which has become an important driving force for economic development,” said Yang Yuanqing, Chairman and CEO of China’s leading computer enterprise Lenovo Group.

An “AI plus” mode should be adopted to empower traditional industries, accelerate technological innovation and contribute to intelligentization-oriented transformation in various fields as well as economic transformation and upgrading, Yang noted.

“Nowadays, new technologies, new applications, and new business forms such as AI, big data, and IoT are causing profound changes in every aspect of social and economic development,” said Ren Yuxin, also known as Mark Ren, Chief Operating Officer of Tencent.

In his letter, Xi pointed out that the new round of technological revolution and industrial transformation is evolving at an ever-growing pace, while new technologies, new applications, and new business forms such as AI, big data, and IoT are becoming more important, which has fully demonstrated Xi’s profound understanding of the future trend in the development of the internet, according to Ren.

Günther Marten, Minister-Counselor at the European Union Embassy to China and also Principal Administer of the European Intellectual Property Office, said Xi’s congratulatory letter to the 6th WIC showed Chinese leaders’ great attention to the development of the internet.

One of the most important reasons for the rapid development of the Chinese economy since the founding of the People’s Republic of China, especially during its period of reform and opening up, is that Chinese leaders could conform to the trend of the times and accurately grasp the general direction, said Marten.

“Xi’s letter took the pulse, assessed the situation, and indicated the direction for the development of the internet,” said Zhou Yuan, founder and CEO of Zhihu, the Chinese version of Quora.

The internet industry has entered a new development period featuring AI, said Zhou, adding that when multiplying the internet by AI, a stronger driving force and broader space for development will be produced.

Zhou noted that at this historical starting point, internet enterprises should pursue higher-level openness and higher-quality development.

Muriuki Mureithi, Kenyan scholar and CEO of Summit Strategies Ltd., said that Xi’s idea about the joint responsibility of the international community to develop, use and govern the internet well so that it can better benefit humanity is significant on a global level.

“Xi’s letter further consolidated the confidence and resolve of the internet industry to shoulder the responsibilities in the development of the internet and work together to deal with risks and challenges,” said Su Hua, founder and CEO of Kuaishou, one of the major video-sharing and live-streaming platforms in China.

As the world becomes more interconnected, the idea of jointly building a community with a shared future in cyberspace is a sincere invitation conforming to the trend of the times, said a scholar at the conference, adding that the international community should actively take part in the endeavor and make the internet better benefit humanity.

“Xi called on all countries to jointly promote global governance in cyberspace and strive to build a community of shared future in cyberspace, which conveyed the courage and sense of responsibility of such a major country,” said Du Qian, Chief Justice of Hangzhou Internet Court.

Xi’s idea that “It is the common responsibility of the international community to develop, use and govern the internet so that it can better benefit mankind” was impressive, said Ali Salih, Minister of State for Ministry of Communication, Science and Technology of Maldives.

As a responsible major country in the internet field, China has been actively participating in the global governance of the cyberspace, said Salih, noting that China’s efforts to open its door wider to the rest of the world have not only brought opportunities for the economic development of various countries, but enabled countries including the Maldives to enjoy the dividends of the development of China’s digital economy.