China Academy of Information and Communications Technology (CAICT) estimates
China's AI industry will exceed 1.2 tln yuan in 2025, up 40% YoY. As of June
2026 there are over 6,600 AI firms in China, about 15% of the global total.
CAICT divides the industry into base, model/framework and application layers: in
2025 the base layer grew 59% YoY and accounted for 38% of the industry, the
model/framework layer grew 189% YoY and accounted for 7%, and the application
layer grew 22% YoY and accounted for 55%.
