Tencent honors IT innovators in Beijing

World
Europe

One of China’s biggest IT companies, Tencent, held a grand ceremony and exhibition for its 2017 Next Idea Innovation Competition on Friday in Beijing. The event aimed to showcase the innovative ideas that outshone the competition, and honor the awarded contestants for their creativity.

The CEO of Tencent Pictures delivers a speech at the ceremony of the 2017 Next Idea Innovation Competition. /CGTN Photo

Last year's competition took place under the theme of "Future Imagination," and received over 90,000 innovative designs.

Its grand ceremony and exhibition gathered over 50 of the entries that eclipsed the competition. The main focus of the competition was human touch. In other words, the designs were evaluated in accordance with whether they help solve social problems and improve people’s lives.

Aside from cutting-edge technologies, the innovation competition also touched upon the revitalization of traditional Chinese culture, and encouraged young people to creatively excavate the traditional culture from a different angle.

The Forbidden City Cartoon Competition was one example.

Contestants re-imagined some of the ancient calligraphy and paintings stored by the Palace Museum as cartoons, allowing traditional Chinese culture be presented to young people in a new and more vivid way.

Yu Zhuang, deputy director of the Palace Museum’s information department said their cooperation with Tencent is based on the responsibility of cultural inheritance, rather than commercial interests. They focus on how they can spread traditional culture extensively, quickly and effectively, and make it acceptable to young people.

Cosplay actors and actresses at the grand ceremony for 2017 Next Idea Innovation Competition /CGTN Photo

The innovation competition was first held in 2012 by Tencent. The scheme integrates the company’s resources and partners with inspiring and cultivating young people’s innovation and creativity.

Hong Yuan, project leader of 2017 Next Idea Innovation Competition, said many contestants worked very hard to identify the hardships in people’s lives, and try to change them with the assistance of innovative designs.

According to the competition organizer, the next step will be taking full advantage of Tencent's scientific and technological capabilities to help young talents explore China’s own incubation system for creative designs in the digital age.