A fruitful year: China's major tech breakthroughs of 2023

Chinese President Xi Jinping listed examples of China's innovative power in his New Year address on Sunday, including major tech projects and products.

"Thanks to years of dedicated efforts, China's innovation-driven development is full of energy," Xi said in the speech broadcast by China Media Group.

The major projects include the domestically branded C919 jetliner, the country's first homegrown large cruise ship, "Adora Magic City," the rotations of Shenzhou astronaut crews at China Space Station and the Fendouzhe deep-sea manned submersible.

Major projects

After more than a decade of construction, the C919 jetliner, built by the Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China (COMAC), made commercial debut in May. The plane will likely compete with other medium-range passenger jets like the Airbus A320 series and the Boeing 737 series. COMAC said they will deliver more than 1,000 planes in the coming years.

The Adora Magic City is the world's first cruise ship with 5G capabilities. It can host up to 5,246 passengers with a total of 2,125 guest rooms. The ship commenced its trial voyage in late December and will begin its commercial journey on the first day of the year 2024.

The China Space Station is running as planned, with Chinese astronauts performing a new round of extravehicular activity in December. The trio, also the crew carrying out the Shenzhou-17 mission, is China's youngest lineup by average age.

The Fendouzhe deep-sea manned submersible can dive into the deepest known point in Earth's seabed – the Challenger Deep. It participated in the world's first live-streamed Mariana Trench deep dive in 2020. In March 2023, it returned from its first international scientific mission in Oceania, reaching the deepest point of the Diamantina Trench.

Major products

"Products designed and made in China, especially trendy brands, are highly popular with consumers," Xi said. "[They] are a new testimony to China's manufacturing prowess."

Withstanding the pressure of the West's unfair export control, Chinese phonemaker Huawei managed to ship the Mate 60 smartphone series that can download at 5G speed and make satellite calls. The phone comes with apparently self-designed logic cores and graphic cores that work as fast as other seven-nanometer competitors.

China's electric vehicle (EV) industry is becoming a global power. In the first three quarters of 2023, global sales of new energy vehicles reached 9.75 million units, with China contributing 6.28 million units, or more than 64 percent, according to data released at the 2023 World New Energy Vehicle Congress. The country is now the world's largest EV market and EV exporter.

Partly thanks to the blooming EV industry, China's lithium battery industry is also reporting positive results. After years of development, China's battery companies have ranked first in terms of global market share. Complete industrial chains and clusters centered around the leading companies have also been established.

In the global solar photovoltaic market, China remains the global leader in 2023, with a share exceeding 80 percent in all manufacturing phases of global solar panels. On Saturday, China connected the world's highest-altitude photovoltaic power station to the grid in Xizang Autonomous Region.

"Everywhere across the country, new heights are being scaled with dogged determination," Xi said. "New creations and innovations are emerging every day."

(Cover via CFP)