What happened
On August 31, the General Office of the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology issued a notice on carrying out a special action to cultivate AI application service providers. The initiative aims to build a national resource pool of providers and enhance their capabilities in technological innovation, integrated delivery, and security compliance.
According to the notice, the resource pool should exceed 2,000 providers by the end of 2026 and at least 3,000 by the end of 2027, forming a multi-tiered echelon with reasonable structure and collaborative innovation. The notice also defines AI application service providers as enterprises or institutions offering consulting, delivery, operation, and security governance services for AI solutions.
Four key tasks are outlined: establishing the resource pool, improving service supply, promoting large-scale application, and strengthening support. Notably, the notice encourages 'first purchase first use' and 'risk compensation' models to boost procurement of large models, intelligent agents, and tokens, as well as measures to reduce computing costs and cultivate talent.
Why it matters
Experts say the 'first purchase first use' policy, which allows government agencies and public institutions to prioritize buying innovative products, gives AI service providers market opportunities and validation cases. Risk compensation mechanisms, via fiscal subsidies or insurance, help share the risks of trying new technologies, lowering buyers' trial-and-error costs and encouraging adoption.
The initiative reflects a push to turn AI applications into a full ecosystem, spanning all factors, chains, and scenarios. By building a structured provider tier and promoting field deployment engineers, it aims to bridge the gap between AI technology and real industry needs, making AI applications more practical and scalable.
Key facts
The notice was issued on August 31 by the General Office of the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology.
By end of 2026, the national service provider resource pool should exceed 2,000 providers; by end of 2027, at least 3,000.
The special action includes four key tasks: building the resource pool, improving service supply, promoting large-scale application, and strengthening support.
What to watch next
How the resource pool is published and whether provinces with national AI pilot zones meet the target of at least 100 local providers each by end of 2027.
Whether the 'first purchase first use' and risk compensation policies are actually implemented in various regions, and how they affect the proliferation of AI applications in different industries.
The progress of FDE teams and training bases, as well as the international expansion of Chinese AI application projects through Belt and Road, BRICS, and China-ASEAN mechanisms.