China's Zhongguancun Forum to highlight intelligence, health and carbon neutrality

BEIJING, Sept. 15 (Xinhua) -- The 2021 Zhongguancun Forum, scheduled for later this month in Beijing, will be themed on "intelligence, health and carbon neutrality," Li Meng, vice minister of science and technology, said at a press conference Wednesday.

"It represents the new trend of science and technology development, a high degree of global consensus and the country's major strategy," said Li, adding that the forum provides broad space for international exchanges and cooperation.

The annual forum, which seeks to highlight issues of innovation and development, is jointly organized by Beijing Municipality, the Ministry of Science and Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Chinese Academy of Engineering and China Association for Science and Technology.

More than 500 Chinese and foreign enterprises will showcase their new achievements at this year's forum, which will be held from Sept. 24 to 28.

Nearly 400 foreign guests from more than 40 countries and regions will attend the forum and deliver speeches, with over 60 separate events planned.

During the forum, a guideline on the ethics of new-generation artificial intelligence (AI) will be launched, while a series of major innovative research achievements will also be released.

The forum will focus on the hot topics such as AI, quantum information and the prevention and control of major infectious diseases.

The Zhongguancun Forum was founded in 2007 and has grown into a national-level open innovation platform and an international forum.