Xi Jinping Chairs the 24th Collective Study Session of the Political Bureau of the 20th CPC Central Committee and Delivers an Important Speech

On the afternoon of January 30, the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee conducted its 24th collective study session on proactively planning and developing future industries. While presiding over the session, General Secretary Xi Jinping emphasized that a new round of technological revolution and industrial transformation is accelerating, with cutting-edge technologies emerging continuously and leading and underpinning the rapid rise of future industries. It is imperative to adopt a strategic perspective that advances the great cause of building a modern socialist country and realizing national rejuvenation, to ground our efforts in objective conditions, leverage our comparative advantages, and adhere to the principle of seeking progress while maintaining stability and fostering development in a phased and orderly manner, so as to continuously achieve new breakthroughs in the development of China’s future industries.
Comrade Yu Xiaohui from the China Academy of Information and Communications Technology provided an explanation on this issue and put forward relevant recommendations for work. Members of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee listened carefully to the briefing and engaged in discussion.
After listening to briefings and engaging in discussions, Xi Jinping delivered an important speech. He pointed out that fostering and developing future industries is of great significance for seizing the commanding heights in science, technology, and industry and taking the initiative in development; for cultivating new drivers of productivity and building a modern industrial system; and for improving the quality of life of the people, promoting well-rounded human development, and advancing overall social progress. In recent years, the Party Central Committee has attached great importance to this task, strengthened policy support, and propelled the development of future industries to gain strong momentum.
Xi Jinping emphasized that future industries are characterized by foresight, strategic importance, and disruptive potential, and thus require careful planning and holistic coordination. It is essential to focus on the key priorities for the development of China’s future industries during the 15th Five-Year Plan period, conduct rigorous scientific assessments of technological pathways, and enhance our capacity for strategic foresight into cutting-edge technologies. In doing so, we must comprehensively take into account national strategic needs, the level of technological maturity, and the availability of supporting factors, while tailoring approaches to local conditions and pursuing differentiated, complementary development. Furthermore, we must strengthen industrial synergy to ensure that future industries reinforce and complement emerging and traditional industries.
Xi Jinping pointed out that the extent of technological breakthroughs will to a large extent determine the pace, scope, and depth of future industrial development. It is essential to fully leverage the advantages of the new whole-nation system, adhere to the principle of “industry sets the agenda and science and technology provide the solutions,” intensify efforts to tackle key core technologies in priority areas, strengthen the strategic, forward-looking, and systematic planning of basic research, and accelerate the translation of scientific and technological advances into practical applications.
Xi Jinping emphasized that the emergence of many future industries is driven by enterprises’ incremental breakthroughs. It is essential to give full play to the principal role of enterprises, channel various innovation resources toward them, and vigorously cultivate technology-leading enterprises and high-tech firms that possess cutting-edge core technologies and strong innovation capabilities, so as to spearhead and propel industries toward frontier and high-end sectors.
Xi Jinping pointed out that the cultivation of emerging industries is a long-term endeavor fraught with significant market risks, and therefore requires robust policy support and high-quality government services. It is essential to refine fiscal and tax policies, vigorously develop science-and-tech finance, comprehensively strengthen talent development, recruitment, and deployment, and foster a vibrant societal culture that encourages innovation.
Xi Jinping emphasized that the development of future industries is broad in scope and requires a robust governance system. It is essential to strike a balance between development and security, explore scientific and effective regulatory approaches, guard against associated risks, and ensure that policies are both sufficiently flexible and effectively managed. Furthermore, international cooperation must be deepened, with active efforts made to promote joint standard-setting, collaborative rule-making, and coordinated industrial development among all parties. Leading officials at all levels should strengthen their learning of cutting-edge scientific and technological knowledge, striving to possess a solid understanding of science and technology, a thorough grasp of industry trends, and strong decision-making capabilities.