Atlas record: https://www.aitimeline.dev/en/events/evt-0265/
Milestone · July 20, 2017
China's New Generation AI Development Plan
The State Council published a plan for the country to become the world's major centre of AI innovation by 2030, with interim targets for 2020 and 2025.
Why it matters
The second state in history to declare AI a national priority, and the first with a budget comparable to the private sector's.
The plan covers theory, infrastructure, industry, talent, standards, ethics and security, and gives a section of its own to military-civil fusion in AI. Its scale differs fundamentally from Canada’s: building an industry rather than keeping schools. The earlier historical example is Japan’s Fifth Generation programme of 1981, which failed through betting on one specific technology; this plan is more technology-neutral.
Event record
- Event date
- July 20, 2017
- Timeline date
- Event date
- Verification
- Sources gathered automatically · September 27, 2026
- Lines
- ID
- evt-0265
The document is dated 8 July and was published on 20 July 2017.
Related events
Earlier
Later
- Contrasts The draft European AI Act 2021links to this record
A state intervenes not to build an industry but to limit applications.
- Builds on China puts recommendation algorithms on a register 2022links to this record
The 2017 plan declared an intention to govern this technology; this is the first rule to come out of it that actually binds.
- Related DeepSeek-V3 2024links to this record
A Chinese laboratory reached the frontier despite restrictions on chip supply.