In today's podcast:

Global attention has been turned to Beijing as the "two sessions" commence. This gathering serves as a critical platform where the people's voices will be heard by policymakers, while the country's development priorities will be discussed. "The people's well-being should be steadily improved in the course of pursuing development, so as to guide and encourage the broad masses to create a happy life with their own hands," President Xi once said. 

China on Wednesday set a growth target of around 5 percent for its economy in 2025, which remains the same as last year's goal, indicating top policymakers' solid confidence in the stable growth of the world's second-largest economy, despite rising global risks and challenges.  

DeepSeek, once a little-known Chinese startup, has made headlines with the release of its powerful AI model, showcasing China's growing capabilities in frontier technology. Karman Lucero, an associate research scholar at Yale Law School, talked to the Global Times about what DeepSeek reveals about China's AI innovation and what it means for the evolving technological dynamic between China and the US.

Is there anything foreigners can do to participate in China's two sessions, other than just reporting and observing? Are there channels for foreigners to offer their suggestions and share their opinions with Chinese lawmakers and affect the policy-making process? The Global Times has the story of expats.

As the annual two sessions convene in Beijing, a number of NPC deputies and CPPCC members shared with the Global Times their proposals and suggestions on achieving the creative transformation and innovative development of literary and artistic creation and cultural heritage protection in the new era.