A national-level culture forum on how China can enhance cultural development was held in Shenzhen, Guangdong, an economic powerhouse in China, on May 26, gathering senior government officials and top scholars.
Participants called for the integration of technology and culture, along with cross-cultural dialogue, to deepen reform in China's cultural sector and unleash new creative momentum.
Tech and culture: a deepening fusion
As high-tech fields, including AI and robotics, explore tremendous application scenarios, integrating technology with culture has become a new trend in China. Top scholars agreed that China should spare no effort to support this and stimulate further impetus for cultural development.
In a speech, Gong Zhengwen, Chairman of Hunan Broadcasting System, highlighted that the integration of culture and technology has reached a pivotal moment, emphasizing the necessity of building a double-helix innovation capability that combines "cultural insight and technological sensitivity."
Gao Wen, Director of Peng Cheng Laboratory and academician at the Chinese Academy of Engineering, echoed this view, noting that integrating culture into AI can help it advance positively and become a valuable partner in the progress of human society.
"This new phase of AI will drive both cultural preservation and innovation and could even reshape the entire cultural industry," Gao said.
Professor Shen Zhuanghai of Wuhan University stressed the need to keep human creativity at the heart of culture, especially in an increasingly digital world.
Global cultural dialogue for a shared future
Alongside domestic reform, participants also called for greater global cultural exchange. Scholars emphasized the importance of mutual learning among civilizations to address shared challenges.
Jiang Shigong, President of Minzu University of China, indicated that only the Chinese nation has created a continuous civilization spanning thousands of years, and the vision of a shared future for humanity sets a path for a new form of civilization.
"It offers Chinese wisdom for resolving ethnic issues, elevated into a global solution." Jiang stated that the Chinese example could provide a path and an exemplary model for building a community of shared future with neighboring countries and, ultimately, all humanity.
Professor Xie Youshun of Sun Yat-sen University noted that physical urban space and the spiritual world should engender and reinforce each other, constituting a core approach to building a modern humanistic metropolis. During the process, China is willing to contribute a new urban paradigm that embraces civilizational coherence, spiritual abundance, and symbiotic coexistence.