China will continue to digitalize its manufacturing sector and promote the development of the robotics sector, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) said on Tuesday.

By 2025, most of the manufacturing enterprises with an annual business turnover of at least 20 million yuan ($3.14 million) will be digitalized, and backbone enterprises in key industries will be in the initial stages of applying AI, according to the smart manufacturing development plan for China's 14th Five-Year Plan period (2021-2025) released by eight departments, including the MIIT.

It expects that by 2035, major manufacturing enterprises will be fully digitized, and backbone enterprises in key industries will be basically intelligent.

Authorities also released a plan to boost the robotics sector during the plan period.

It envisages major breakthroughs in the sector, especially in core technologies and high-end products, with the average annual sectoral revenue growth rate predicted to exceed 20 percent.

The country will also form a group of innovative enterprises with international competitiveness.