The rapid development of artificial intelligence will accelerate digital transformation for all industries in the era of the new economy, business insiders said at the 19th World Business Leaders Roundtable. The talks were held on Monday in Xiamen, Fujian province, during the ongoing China International Fair for Investment and Trade.

"In today's world, we have seen a new form of digital globalization," said Robin van Puyenbroeck, executive director of the business department at the World Trade Centers Association.

AI will affect international trade in many sectors, he added.

Themed on A New Era of Artificial Intelligence, the roundtable talks brought together business insiders, officials and experts to share their insights on topics including the integrated innovation of traditional industry and AI, transformation of intelligent manufacturing and AI development in the post-pandemic era.

Xiao Lihua, vice-president of Alibaba Group, said the future business world will be driven by data and algorithms.

Alibaba is dedicated to establishing the digital economic infrastructure to accelerate transformation in all industries, Xiao said.

He noted that the process of digital transformation requires elements including cloud infrastructure, online business and digital operation.

"China sees digital and intelligent transformation in all walks of life," Xiao said.

There are crises and opportunities in the COVID-19 pandemic, he said. The pandemic has sped up the digital transformation of society, he added.

Xiao cited the digital transformation of some new retail businesses that cooperated with Alicloud. They include Mengniu Dairy, shoe manufacturer Red Dragonfly and snack startup Bestore.

Chinese enterprises that excel in online business maintained better resilience in the wake of the COVID-19 outbreak, Xiao said.

"In the future, enterprises will be driven by digital technology," he added.

Yuan Jing, vice-president of AI at Huawei Cloud, said the pandemic has boosted the digital economy and some digital manufacturers have taken a leading role in the transformation.

He said Huawei has deployed an AI layout covering scenarios from consumers to internet users, providing services in different aspects.

"At present, AI is not only driven by data, it also requires knowledge from all walks of life in its computing," he said.

It is essential to provide enterprises with a development platform to help them in intelligent transformation, Yuan said.

The platform should be capable of processing data and assisting industry developers, he added.

"AI is regarded as a general-purpose technology, which will penetrate every aspect of life and production," he said.

Zhang Shenfeng, vice-chairman of the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade, said: "AI is a crucial driving force in leading a new round of scientific and technological revolution and industrial transformation, and is playing a role in economic development, social progress and global governance."

The rapid development of the AI industry is becoming key to economic growth in China, Zhang said.

The AI market in China has seen constant expansion since 2015 and has now entered an explosive growth period. This is due to national policy support, the development of 5G communication technology and new infrastructure, according to a report on China's AI industry in the first half of 2020 by market consultancy iiMedia Research.

By 2020, the core industries of AI in China are expected to reach a market value of more than 150 billion yuan ($22 billion), which is estimated to surpass 1 trillion yuan by 2030, according to the report.