Photo taken on June 25, 2024 shows the venue for the World Economic Forum's Annual Meeting of the New Champions in Dalian in Liaoning Province, China. Photo: VCG

The three-day 15th Annual Meeting of the New Champions, also known as the Summer Davos, opened in Dalian on June 25, drawing global attention to China once again. The initial impression from the outside world is one of "unprecedented scale" - this year's forum has set new records in terms of number of sessions, and guest attendance, with approximately 200 events and nearly 50 meetings livestreamed online. Over 1,700 representatives from more than 100 countries and regions around the world are participating. This highlights the international community's strong desire to seek opportunities through cooperation, against the backdrop of decoupling and supply chain disruptions challenging the global economy, particularly in high-tech fields. The Summer Davos, dubbed the "flower of technology and innovation" of the summer, has once again built a bridge for mutual achievements between China and the world.

This year's forum features the theme "Next Frontiers for Growth," with key topics including exploring paths for cooperation in the current international landscape, the outlook for the Chinese economy, seeking growth amid complex risks, reconfiguring global trade routes, and addressing the fragmentation of the global financial system. From this, it is not difficult to discern the organizers' intent: to explore paths for cooperation in a world full of uncertainties. On one hand, geopolitical conflicts and regional trade frictions are placing global industrial and supply chains at a disadvantage; on the other hand, emerging economies, represented by China, are playing a crucial role in the global economic landscape. It can be said that this year's forum theme is particularly relevant to current realities.

Several guests attending this year's forum have noted the significant presence of foreign participants at the venue, showing no signs of the alleged exodus of foreign businesses from China or the world's attempt to "decouple" from China. To the outside world, China's appeal remains robust. Data shows that in the first five months of this year, China's total value of goods trade reached 17.5 trillion yuan ($2.46 trillion), an increase of 6.3 percent year-on-year; 21,764 new foreign-invested enterprises were established nationwide, a year-on-year increase of 17.4 percent. Additionally, in the World Economic Forum's 2024 Technology Pioneers cohort released in June, 11 Chinese companies were included, ranking second globally in number. At this forum, China will once again show the world its firm commitment to advancing high-level openness and continuously promoting economic globalization.

The influence of the Summer Davos on global innovation and development is becoming increasingly evident. Besides the forum's long-standing good reputation, a key reason is China's significant achievements in the high-tech field. The new technologies and industries discussed at the Summer Davos have found the best experimental grounds and development space in China. From 5G to artificial intelligence, and then to the digital economy, China's progress in these areas is redefining the global innovation map. The technological progress in China and its open attitude toward cooperation form a certain resonance and give rise to a chemical reaction in the global chain. It means that global cooperation in the field of technology requires a broader imagination than in the past.

In recent years, in Western public opinion, "high technology" is mentioned more and more, but it is often accompanied by words like "risk," "loopholes," and "containment." This situation is not normal. In Global South countries outside the Western world, people see more opportunities, fairness, and development in technological progress. On the road of human technological progress, the question of whether to choose to cooperate and share destiny or to go separate ways, even to the point of life and death, has once again been answered by the Summer Davos. China's tremendous achievements in recent years are a vivid footnote to this.

The significance of global economic leaders coming to China during the Summer Davos to seek, discover, and witness new frontiers and opportunities is unique. Among the latest batch of 153 global "Lighthouse Factories" announced by the World Economic Forum, 62 are Chinese companies, including high-tech enterprises in photovoltaics, new-energy vehicles, and more. China has the most "Lighthouse Factories" in the world. This not only means that China, with its vast size and intellectual resources, provides immeasurable driving force for global technological innovation, but also signifies that the development rights of global technology will become increasingly equal, making it more difficult for any country to transform hegemony into technological monopoly in the future.

The Summer Davos is an important window for China to understand the world, and also provides a platform for enterprises from various countries to enter the Chinese market. Chinese enterprises that are "riding the waves to go global" hope to learn more experience from well-established multinational companies, while multinational foreign enterprises see greater business opportunities in the Chinese market. This is a group that is most sensitive to the direction of development in this era, and they are actively participating in the Summer Davos. What people feel here is vitality, optimism, and resonance, which is exactly the real impression that the "unprecedented scale" of the Summer Davos brings to the world.