Wuzhen Brings Global Minds Together to Shape a Smarter Digital Future

The second session of the 2026 World Internet Conference Global Elite Training—Future Digital Leadership Development Workshop (Wuzhen) opened on November 2 in Wuzhen, Zhejiang Province. Participants from nearly 30 countries and regions, including Ethiopia, Egypt, Zimbabwe and Myanmar, attended the program. Senior representatives of international organizations and experts from China and abroad delivered lectures, sharing their insights and practical experience on topics such as open-source artificial intelligence and national AI strategies.

Francis Gurry, Vice-Chair of the WIC and Chairman of the Executive Committee of the Global SDGs and Leadership Development Center, delivers a lecture.

Francis Gurry delivered a lecture titled "Innovation and Intellectual Property in the Digital and Intelligent Age". He noted that innovation is both a major driver of economic growth and a key means of addressing social challenges, while intellectual property protection safeguards the competitive advantages that innovation creates. He examined the multiple challenges that the AI boom poses to the intellectual property system, including the boundaries of copyright protection for AI training data, ownership of works created through human-AI collaboration, and intellectual property protection for personal attributes such as facial images and voices. He stressed the need for a unified international policy framework on intellectual property issues related to AI, in order to prevent regulatory disparities among countries from creating an uneven playing field for businesses.

John Hoffman, Chair of GSMA Ltd., delivers a lecture.

John Hoffman shared his insights in a lecture titled "From 2G to 6G for an Intelligent Digital Future". He said that each generation of mobile technology has expanded the boundaries of human capabilities, and that mobile internet and AI are now becoming deeply integrated. He noted that the robust development of the global mobile communications industry is rooted in open standards, interoperability and a collaborative ecosystem. As mobile networks become increasingly integrated with AI, they are evolving beyond their traditional role of transmitting data to become platforms for delivering intelligent capabilities. Hoffman emphasized that 6G development should address pressing social challenges, including energy efficiency, climate resilience and bridging the digital access gap, with technological applications helping to advance practical solutions.

Zeng Yi, Co-chair of the Artificial Intelligence Special Committee of the WIC, Wu Yuzhang chair professor of the Gaoling School of Artificial Intelligence at Renmin University of China.

Zeng Yi delivered a lecture titled "Capacity Building on Sustainable Development and Governance of AI". He pointed out that AI governance is an essential capability that all countries and industries need to develop. At present, AI-related research remains unevenly distributed, while investment in research that supports the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) is insufficient. Governments need to take the initiative in setting priorities and addressing these gaps. He noted that existing large language models do not possess autonomous cognition and can exhibit problems such as alignment failures and harmful outputs, posing potential safety risks in areas including education, mental health and embodied intelligence. He advocated establishing a governance framework covering the entire AI life cycle and encouraging coordinated participation by multiple stakeholders. Even with limited computing resources, developing countries should establish risk assessment mechanisms and actively participate in global governance networks, while making use of international cooperation to cultivate local talent.

Fu Hongyu, Director of the AI Governance Center, Alibaba Research Institute; Member of the Data Governance Working Group (DGWG) of the United Nations Commission on Science and Technology for Development (UNCSTD).

Fu Hongyu delivered a lecture titled "Make Open-source AI a Global Open Resource for the Intelligent Era". He proposed that AI is evolving from "open-source code" towards "open resources." What is being opened up goes beyond model weights to include computing power, tools, data, knowledge, communities and talent. He stressed that safety must take priority over capability. It cannot rely solely on voluntary commitments by companies, but must be tested and verified by multiple stakeholders and government agencies. He also called for multilateral efforts to establish common benchmarks and baseline requirements for AI applications, making AI safety capabilities a global public good.

Zhao Quan, Senior Programme Manager, Trade and Investment Policy, International Trade Centre

Zhao Quan moderated a panel discussion titled "National AI Strategy Development". He divided the participants into four groups, each representing a different type of economy: a large economy, a small economy, a landlocked economy and an island economy. Within a limited time, participants were asked to weigh resource allocation across infrastructure, talent, regulation and international cooperation. In his concluding remarks, Zhao noted that countries should not simply copy other nations' AI strategy models, but should tailor their approaches to their own national conditions. The formulation of a national AI strategy requires a balance between production and consumption, while taking into account constraints involving electricity supply, skills, regulatory frameworks and data sovereignty. Policymakers should also anticipate future skills and education needs and plan ahead for workforce reskilling and upskilling.

Participants responded enthusiastically to the lectures and raised questions throughout the Q&A sessions. In the coming days, the WIC Digital & AI Academy will organize visits for participants to major events, including the opening ceremony and main forum of the Wuzhen Summit. They will also take part in study visits to companies such as Alibaba Cloud and Unitree Robotics.

The WIC Digital & AI Academy (WICDA) is an international platform established by the World Internet Conference for capacity building, cooperation and exchange. It works to strengthen digital and AI capabilities worldwide, particularly in developing countries, cultivate talent in digital and intelligent technologies, bridge the digital and intelligent divide, and ensure that the benefits of inclusive development are shared more widely.

(Photos by Zhangkai)

(Source: CRI Online)