AI drives transformation in Jiangxi's traditional Chinese medicine industry

The signs of intelligent manufacturing are everywhere inside the tablet manufacturing workshop at China Resources (CR) Jiangzhong Pharmaceutical Valley in Nanchang, capital of east China's Jiangxi Province.

Intelligent equipment operates in the tablet manufacturing workshop at China Resources (CR) Jiangzhong Pharmaceutical Valley in Nanchang, capital of east China's Jiangxi Province. (People's Daily Online/Mao Siyuan)

"Inspections used to rely entirely on experienced workers checking tablets with the naked eye. Examining tens of thousands of tablets a day was both time-consuming and labor-intensive," said Xiao Jinfa, head of the workshop.

Over the years, CR Jiangzhong has upgraded from analog cameras to digital inspection systems and now AI-powered vision technology. The system can accurately identify more than a dozen types of defects, greatly improving both inspection efficiency and reliability.

Today, more than 95 percent of CR Jiangzhong's production processes are digitally controlled.

Experimental data on medicinal materials and classical prescriptions are consolidated into a digital platform for researchers to access at any time at the smart workshop of CR Jiangzhong in Nanchang, capital of east China's Jiangxi Province. (People's Daily Online/Mao Siyuan)

Inside the company's R&D building, a large AI model for traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) operates around the clock. On screen, the model analyzes content from classical medical texts and matches it with pharmacological data from more than 9,000 medicinal materials.

"In the past, analyzing a classical formula required manually combing through vast amounts of literature and compiling information on every ingredient," researcher Shen Xue said while reviewing prescription simulations. "The process often took months. Now, the model can complete a preliminary analysis in minutes, leaving us to focus on screening and validation. The efficiency gains are significant."

An intelligent research initiative is launched during a 2026 event promoting collaboration across the traditional Chinese medicine industry in Nanchang, capital of east China's Jiangxi Province, May 2026. (Photo courtesy of CR Jiangzhong)

AI is driving innovation across Jiangxi's TCM industry, accelerating the sector's transformation.

In May, an intelligent research initiative was launched during a 2026 event promoting collaboration across the TCM industry, with the goal of developing a dedicated AI large model for the sector.

The model focuses on prescription optimization, mechanism-of-action analysis, and new indication discovery. It draws on data from more than 9,000 medicinal materials, over 80,000 classical prescriptions, and millions of clinical records to build a comprehensive TCM knowledge graph and collaborative multi-model system.

"AI is helping transform traditional knowledge in the TCM industry into data models that can be analyzed and reused," said Yang Ming, former vice president of Jiangxi University of Chinese Medicine. He noted that prescription screening, which previously took more than a year, could be completed within months with AI support.