Advanced AI technologies, including humanoid robots and large language models, are taking center stage at the 2025 ZGC Forum Annual Conference in Beijing, revolutionizing the attendee experience with seamless, intelligent solutions.
The 2025 ZGC Forum Annual Conference opened in the Chinese capital on Thursday and will run till Monday. Themed "New Productive Forces and Global Science and Technology Cooperation", this year's forum features five major sections: meetings, technology trade fairs, achievement releases, frontier competitions, and supporting events, comprising a total of 128 sessions.
The event brings together over a thousand speakers from more than 100 countries and regions across the globe.
A team of nearly a hundred robotic assistants has been deployed to guide attendees, answer inquiries, and assist with item retrieval. Powered by advanced large-model technology, these AI-driven robots can work together as a coordinated team.
At an automated coffee shop, robotic baristas prepare fresh coffee, while humanoid robots deliver drinks directly to guests, ensuring smooth and efficient service.
Beyond their functional roles, these robots also showcase their versatility, demonstrating abilities such as running, dancing, composing poetry, and painting.
"There's a lot of progress. You see, there are a lot of robots, for instance, in the hall. They can do all kinds of things," said Arnout Jacobs, managing director of Springer Nature businesses in Greater China.
In addition to the futuristic robotic services, the conference has implemented a state-of-the-art AI-powered simultaneous translation system. This advanced model instantly translates speeches into various languages, displays them on screens, and can even replicate the speaker's voice, enhancing accessibility for international attendees.
Unlike traditional interpretation software, which converts speech to text before translating and generating audio output, this AI model employs an end-to-end framework, significantly improving real-time accuracy and translation quality.
"With its ability to process vast amounts of data, the large model can better understand context, ensuring precise and complete translations," said Jiang Ruidan, a product manager at a leading search engine platform.
AI-powered smart technologies shine at 2025 ZGC Forum
The 2025 China Science Fiction Convention, themed "Science Dreams, Creating the Future," opened this week at Beijing's Shijingshan District Shougang Park, featuring over 30 exhibitions and events aimed at merging science fiction with technological and industrial development.
Co-organized by the China Association for Science and Technology and the Beijing Municipal Government, the ongoing event runs parallel to the 2025 Zhongguancun Forum Annual Conference. It emphasizes commercialization and cross-sector collaboration, spotlighting innovations ranging from aerospace prototypes to AI-driven digital human technology.
The convention features over 30 activities across five key segments, including an opening ceremony, professional forums, competitions, and industrial promotion events, with an emphasis on the full-chain cooperation and the commercialization of new sci-fi products and projects.
Visitors encountered futuristic displays upon entering the venue, including the debut of a life-sized model of the Baidi Type B -- a fictional 6th generation stealth fighter spaceplane reflecting China's ambitions in advanced aerospace engineering.
At an AI holography exhibit, participants generated their 1:1 digital avatars in minutes using real-time motion and voice replication.
Nearby, a screen displayed an interactive "Wukong" digital figure that mirrored users' movements without wearable devices, powered by markerless motion capture cameras. "We bring our in-house markerless motion capture technology here. Our existing marked motion capture system has already achieved sub-millimeter precision, which has been successfully applied in AAA games like the highly popular Black Myth: Wukong, as well as in film-grade special effects production," said an exhibitor.
"I experienced a lot of futuristic technologies and scenarios, and I think what's been presented is a very modern society," said a visitor.
Parents and children crowded exhibits featuring popular sci-fi themes.
"My son likes the science and fiction stuff, and he has read novels in this topic like the Three Body. Usually it is rare to see such science fiction exhibitions with so many exhibits altogether, so I want him to get more personal feel here," said another visitor.
On the other hand, the Zhongguancun Science Fiction Industry Innovation Center launched an immersive exhibition spanning 2,000 square meters.
The convention runs through Monday, with organizers aiming to position it as a global hub for sci-fi innovation.
Futuristic space fighter, AI-powered holographic technique highlighted at 2025 CSFC
