China’s manufacturing sector is rapidly adopting agentic AI and exporting the AI-enabled factory model to global supply chains, as described by Zhou Yuxiang, CEO of Black Lake, a cloud-based AI tools provider for factories.

This development signals a transformative boost to China’s manufacturing competitiveness, prioritizing speed, adaptability, and the global diffusion of AI-powered factory practices.

The trend aligns with Beijing’s AI plus initiative, which aims to weave AI into about 90% of the economy by 2030.

The shift aims to enhance agility in manufacturing by enabling design-to-production AI tools that can efficiently handle small-batch and customized demand.

Factories are skipping traditional digitalisation steps and moving directly to AI agents, echoing China’s historical leap from cards to mobile payments.