5 Technology Trends in China This 2021

China goes beyond QR codes as a symbol of payment methods, opt-ins, and its use in the digital economy. This is one of the many unique digital technology trends that shaped consumers’ lifestyles. Undoubtedly, China is one of the fastest-growing economies, aiming to be a world leader in the internet, eCommerce, digital payments, and more.

Below, you will find the top 5 technology trends that global entrepreneurs should watch for and understand – a way to know how to position your company to woo the hearts of Chinese consumers.

Use of Blockchain Technology

A blockchain is a community-based technology that consists of a list of transactions that anyone can access and verify. It uses sophisticated cryptography and mathematics to create an open and decentralized database for any transaction, whether it’s money, property, tangible goods, services, and more. In 2019, president Xi Jinping expressed his support for blockchain to transform the nation’s technology and industrial sector.

Recently, Tianjin released its first blockchain-based carbon offset certificate with AntChain. In this way, the issuance, trading, and auditing of carbon offsets will be transparent and traceable. The city is an industrial hub, particularly producing petrochemicals, and it’s the home to the eco-city—an environmentally friendly program towards a green economy.

Virtual Singers or Vocaloids in China

China is one of the early adopters of vocaloids, a mashup or mix of technology and music featuring singers. Vocaloids were developed and became popular in Japan, casting K-Pop artists and influencers. In China, an estimated 390 million people are watching virtual idols as they sing and dance. One of the rising Vocaloid superstars is Luo Tianyi, with some 150 million people live-streaming her performance using mobile devices and TVs.

Luo is the first Mandarin-speaker, computer-generated voice-synthetized pop star. Most of her fans are born after 2000, residing in megacities, and her tickets often sell in minutes. Virtual singers are still under the animation industry, which hit $35 billion last year, according to iQiyi.

Adoption of Digital Yuan

As China embraces blockchain technology, one of its goals is to have its own digital currency. This is not happening in the future, but it’s already here right now as the central bank published its first white paper on the digital yuan. It runs in blockchain technology but ironically, it’s only the People’s Bank of China, the nation’s central bank, that’s the sole issuer and has full control. Only selected commercial banks can “exchange” and circulate these digital yuans.

One of the nation’s initiatives is to eliminate money laundering through this technology and shift to cashless payments. As of June 30, the participants who were involved in the trials already spent $5.3 billion. The digital yuan will be the nation’s digital currency.

5G Users in China Will Be Half a Billion by 2023

The adoption of 5G is expected to grow in the coming years. Recently, China’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology issued a guideline on the use of 5G applications for 2021 to 2023. This will support the development and use of 5G applications among consumers.

The nation aims to integrate 5G technology in the three-fold ecosystem: information technology, communication technology, and communication technology. As of this writing, the 5G network users exceeded 160 million, according to CGTN. Furthermore, the nation expects that by 2023, they expect that the users will be more than 560 million.

China’s New Environmental Goals Shape Electric Vehicles Demand

China has new environmental goals that are shaping the demands on electric vehicles. Aside from the digital economy and development of artificial intelligence integrated into smart cities, businesses, and industrial companies, the country is poised to lower carbon emissions. There’s also an ambitious goal to reach net-zero carbon emissions by 2050.

Of course, Tesla remains the pioneer in electric cars, but local manufacturers are also ramping their efforts to produce green cars. These domestic players, according to JP Morgan, are innovating through intelligent cars and EV battery solutions. With intelligent cars, they will feature autonomous driving, memorized parking spots, and track real-time traffic. Meanwhile, the electric vehicles battery solutions will include better battery performance, fast charging time, and mobile charging services.