From AI Kung Fu to Economic Resilience: Boosting Global Confidence with Innovation and Policies

In a video that has mesmerized audiences worldwide, a humanoid robot displays a magical move of self-defense, executing a flawless 720-degree spinning kick to knock out a baton held in a human hand. This is Chinese company Unitree Robotics’ G1 robot, embodying the innovation that has propelled China forward as the world’s second-largest economy. It mirrors the broader dynamism of the Chinese economy, which continues to defy Western skepticism through strategic reforms, technological leaps, and a consumer market that is redefining modern spending.

As global institutions like the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development upgrade their projections of China’s growth and foreign capital floods into the country’s tech stocks, China’s economic growth is not just stable but accelerating, increasingly driven by mastery of emerging technologies. 

China’s robotics sector, for instance, is projected to balloon into a U.S. $827.13 billion market by 2050, according to media reports. Morgan Stanley forecasts that the humanoid robot population will surge to 63 million worldwide by that year, with China holding about 63 percent of the related global supply chain. 

Chinese robot companies like Unitree and Hengbot Innovation are redefining innovation and creating a new consumption trend. From garbage collectors to family companions, elderly care assistants and interactive pets, the exponentially growing AI-powered robots are changing China’s consumption and labor landscape. “This transformation goes beyond technological advancement as it strikes at the very core of human needs,” said Kang Xiaohu, co-founder of Hengbot.

China’s “AI Plus” initiative, highlighted in the 2025 government work report, prioritizes embedding artificial intelligence across manufacturing, healthcare, and consumer markets. This aligns with the surging R&D spending, which stood at RMB 3.6 trillion in 2024, and the increasing number of hi-tech enterprises (400,000 in 2024), positioning China as a global innovation hub. Goldman Sachs estimates AI adoption could boost Chinese stock earnings by 2.5 percent annually, reflecting investors’ confidence in tech-driven growth. 

China is also ratcheting up its policy support and structural reforms to fuel economic growth. Amid global headwinds, China’s 2025 growth target is set at around five percent. A 30-point plan to boost domestic demand was released recently, covering various aspects like wage growth, childcare subsidies, and “AI+ consumption.” New official data shows consumer confidence is recovering, with retail sales climbing four percent in the first two months of 2025, which is 0.5 percentage point higher than that in the same period in 2024.

China’s consumer market is also seeing a trend of experiential engagement. The success of Pangdonglai – a grocery chain in central China’s Henan Province – epitomizes this trend. It notched up RMB 100 million on a single day during the Chinese New Year holiday with service offers like valet parking and pet daycare, showing consumers’ desire for quality services and products. This “feel-good spending” also extends to niche markets. According to the China Tourism Academy, for the past winter, the ice-and-snow tourism sector reported over 500 million visitors, about 20 percent more than last year’s number.

China’s industrial upgrading is also accelerating. Data from the National Bureau of Statistics shows that the value-added output of industrial enterprises above designated size rose by 5.9 percent in the first two months of 2025, 0.1 percentage point more than the full-year growth in 2024. The value-added output of hi-tech manufacturing rose by 9.1 percent, and industrial robot production increased by 27 percent. Cementing the green transition, new-energy vehicle output also swelled by 47.7 percent in this period.

This economic vitality and commitment to opening up has enhanced global investors’ confidence. Multinationals like German car maker BMW and chemical giant BASF are deepening ties with China. In March, BMW announced a partnership with Chinese telecom giant Huawei to develop an in-car digital ecosystem in China. The coatings division of BASF and Chinese electric carmaker NIO recently signed a letter of intent to establish a strategic partnership for cooperation in automotive coatings.

“China has the confidence to continue to achieve its stable economic growth goal,” Chinese Commerce Minister Wang Wentao said after meeting Airbus CEO Guillaume Faury in Beijing on March 17. He stressed that high-standard opening up will be advanced along with institutional opening up, the business environment will be improved and foreign investment wooed. Faury said Airbus will continue to expand investment in China.

Catalyzed by technological innovations and buttressed by supportive policies, China’s economy is not merely growing but evolving. The blend of innovation, consumer-centricity, and global integration forms a virtuous cycle that benefits both domestic stability and worldwide recovery. As the IMF has said, a one percentage point rise in China’s GDP lifts global growth by 0.3 percentage point – a testament to its irreplaceable role in the post-pandemic era.