The Hangzhou Artificial Intelligence Research Institute is unveiled in Hangzhou, Zhejiang on July 2. [Photo/Chinanews.com]

The Hangzhou Artificial Intelligence Research Institute, jointly developed by the Hangzhou Science and Technology Bureau and Zhejiang University, was officially unveiled in Hangzhou, capital of East China's Zhejiang province, on July 2.

The institute will mainly make efforts to promote technological innovation, cultivation of AI-related industries, and application of AI technology, according to the official plan.

As a core innovation platform for the AI industry, it will focus on research into basic theories, breakthroughs in core technology, integrated applications, the innovative development of industries, the introduction of high-caliber professionals, and the creation of a better climate for AI research, all of which are considered essential for Hangzhou to develop a national pilot zone for the innovative development of new-generation AI technology.

Since Oct 17, 2019, when the Ministry of Science and Technology expressed support for Hangzhou in its efforts to develop a national new-generation AI innovation and development pilot zone in a letter, the city in East China has established a system for collecting data about the AI industry and mapped AI enterprises citywide.

By 2019, there were 212 AI companies above a certain designated scale operating in Hangzhou. Last year, they earned a total of 115.76 billion yuan ($16.5 billion) in revenue, a year-on-year increase of 16.96 percent.

In the future, Hangzhou will further enhance its capacity to develop AI industry and strive to improve core technology in a bid to achieve industrial transformation and apply AI technology in social governance.