2025 Frontier Progress of China's Future Industries: Quantum Technology Booming, Brain-Computer Interface Becoming a Reality, and Embodied Intelligence Flourishing
When industries thrive, the economy prospers.
Future industries refer to forward - looking emerging industries driven by cutting - edge technologies. Currently in the embryonic or early industrialization stage, they are characterized by significant strategic, leading, disruptive, and uncertain features.
To promote the development of future industries, the state has successively issued several important guiding documents.
In January 2024, the "Implementation Opinions on Promoting the Innovative Development of Future Industries" jointly issued by seven departments including the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology proposed to "comprehensively layout future industries" and "focus on promoting the development of six major directions of future industries, namely future manufacturing, future information, future materials, future energy, future space, and future health."
The "2024 Government Work Report of the State Council" pointed out that "actively cultivate emerging industries and future industries." It clearly required to "formulate a development plan for future industries, open up new tracks such as quantum technology and life science, and establish a number of future industry pilot zones."
The "2025 Government Work Report of the State Council" proposed again to "cultivate and expand emerging industries and future industries." It further pointed out that "establish a growth mechanism for investment in future industries and cultivate future industries such as biological manufacturing, quantum technology, embodied intelligence, and 6G."
In October this year, the "Proposal of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China for Formulating the 15th Five - Year Plan for National Economic and Social Development" emphasized that "prospectively layout future industries, explore diverse technological routes, typical application scenarios, feasible business models, and market supervision rules, and promote quantum technology, biological manufacturing, hydrogen energy and nuclear fusion energy, brain - computer interface, embodied intelligence, sixth - generation mobile communication, etc. to become new economic growth points."
It can be seen that the state has been continuously making efforts in future industries, and the guidance on industrial directions has been continuously refined.
According to the latest "Proposal for the 15th Five - Year Plan", Yiou focused on the " quantum technology, biological manufacturing, hydrogen energy and nuclear fusion energy, brain - computer interface, embodied intelligence, sixth - generation mobile communication " that were prominently mentioned and sorted out the progress of each industry in the past year.
Near the end of 2025, Yiou released the cutting - edge implementation results of key future industries for readers.
Quantum Technology
Quantum technology is a new scientific and technological system that mainly integrates the principles of quantum mechanics with disciplines such as information science, computational science, and materials science. It is committed to realizing the acquisition, processing, and transmission of information through quantum effects.
Quantum technology breaks through the limitations of traditional classical physics and provides new ideas and methods for solving complex problems. It is mainly applied in fields such as quantum computing, quantum communication, quantum encryption, and quantum sensing.
In January 2025, "quantum technology" was selected as one of the top ten scientific and technological terms of 2024.
In China, in February 2025, the research results of Peking University and Zhejiang University were published in the journal "Nature Photonics". They successfully realized a vortex - light quantum entanglement source based on an integrated optical quantum chip and developed the world's first quantum - entangled vortex - light emission chip.
In March 2025, the superconducting quantum computing prototype "Zu Chongzhi III" independently developed by China was unveiled, setting a new world record for quantum computing superiority in the superconducting system. This marks that China has shifted from "following" to "leading" in the field of quantum computing.
In June 2025, the "ez - QEngine 2.0" kilobit measurement and control system jointly developed by Guodun Quantum and other units was delivered. It can support parallel measurement and control of more than 5,000 bits, marking that China's quantum computing hardware has leaped from "single - chip" to "scaled - up".
In July 2025, China built a "nanoscale two - photon factory" and prepared a new type of quantum - entangled light source with a fidelity of 99.4%, laying a key foundation for more advanced quantum applications.
In September 2025, the release of the first domestic coherent optical quantum computing cloud service supporting 1,000 dedicated quantum bits marked that China's dedicated quantum computing has officially entered a new stage of kilobit - scale practical application, and a key progress has been made in the commercial implementation of the quantum computing field.
In November 2025, the superconducting quantum computer "Tianyan - 287" equipped with the same chip as "Zu Chongzhi III" was completed. This quantum computing system has the ability of "quantum computing superiority" and will become China's first quantum computing cloud platform with "quantum computing superiority" in the future.
Globally, 2025 has been designated as the "Year of Quantum Science and Technology" by the United Nations. Quantum computing has entered the "industrial verification" stage from the "concept verification" stage.
In the competitive landscape, the global quantum information industry has formed a pattern of "China and the United States leading, Europe catching up."
Biological Manufacturing
Biological manufacturing is a production technology system centered on industrial biotechnology. It uses the physiological metabolism or catalytic functions of organisms such as strains, cells, and enzymes to realize material processing and transformation.
In a broad sense, biological manufacturing covers technologies such as bionic manufacturing and biomass conversion; in a narrow sense, it only refers to the technology of producing products by controlling cells or biological processes, involving fields such as biomedicine, new materials, and new energy.
In 2025, biological manufacturing was selected as one of the "Top Ten Scientific and Technological Terms of 2024".
This year, Tsinghua University used the "cell factory" of Halomonas to build the world's most comprehensive kiloton - scale PHA open production line in Beijing, reducing the cost from 50,000 yuan per ton to 30,000 yuan per ton.
After the first - phase 10,000 - ton and second - phase 30,000 - ton projects in Yichang, Hubei are put into operation, they will account for 50% of the global PHA production capacity and become the world's largest production base.
Anhui Huaheng Biotechnology achieved mass production of L - alanine by biological methods. Compared with the chemical route, the energy consumption was reduced by 50%, and its product has a 60% global market share, becoming a typical case of "biological manufacturing subverting the chemical paradigm".
In 2025, China became the largest exporter of key enzyme preparations and genetic elements, with a global share of 29%.
Domestically, all provinces in China are actively deploying the biological manufacturing industry.
In 2025, the industry showed many new features: first, AI is accelerating its integration into the R & D and production links of biological manufacturing; second, the exploration of intelligent production has accelerated; third, the industry's innovation support system has been continuously improved; fourth, all parties' understanding of the industry has gradually become clear, and the innovation ability has been steadily improved.
Hydrogen Energy and Nuclear Fusion Energy
Hydrogen energy is a secondary energy with rich sources, low - carbon environmental friendliness, and wide applications. It is gradually becoming one of the important carriers for global energy transformation and development. China is the world's largest hydrogen - producing country and has great potential in the supply of clean and low - carbon hydrogen energy. The domestic hydrogen energy industry shows a positive development trend.
Nuclear fusion refers to a form of nuclear reaction in which light - mass atoms, mainly deuterium or tritium, under certain conditions, undergo nuclear fusion to form a new and heavier nucleus, accompanied by the release of huge energy.
Nuclear energy is divided into nuclear fission energy and nuclear fusion energy. Nuclear fusion has extremely low radiation and is a very promising new energy source.
In 2025, the world's longest "hydrogen - oxygen" low - temperature liquid hydrogen storage tank was delivered in Zhangjiagang, Jiangsu;
The 400 MW green hydrogen project of Ningdong, Ningxia, under the National Energy Group was put into operation in June 2025, becoming one of the world's largest single - body green hydrogen bases;
Guofu Hydrogen Energy jointly with a South Korean enterprise launched a liquid - hydrogen - powered drone with a flight endurance of more than 120 minutes, and the cross - border liquid hydrogen supply chain in East Asia was opened for the first time;
The "Nanhai - Gaoming" hydrogen energy pipeline in Foshan, Guangdong was completed. With a total length of 48 km and a design pressure of 6.3 MPa, it is the first urban - level hydrogen pipeline dedicated to hydrogen - fuel - cell vehicles in China.
In terms of nuclear fusion energy, global development is also relatively rapid.
In 2025, EAST (Hefei) set a new world record for the steady - state high - confinement plasma operation at 100 million °C for 1,066 seconds in 2025, marking that China leads the world in the field of long - pulse burning plasma control;
China's HL - 2M Tokamak (Chengdu) achieved the milestone of an ion temperature of 117 million °C and an electron temperature of 160 million °C, ranking among the top three in the world in comprehensive parameters;
The main body Dewar base of the compact fusion energy experimental device BEST was installed. Core components such as high - temperature superconducting magnets and tungsten - copper divertors have entered the final assembly stage. It is planned to be completed in 2027 and achieve the first plasma discharge in 2028;
ENN's "Xuanlong - 50U" spherical device achieved megampere - level discharge of hydrogen - boron fusion, opening up a new route for neutron - free and low - radioactivity fusion.
In 2025, a fusion industry cluster worth tens of billions of yuan was formed in Hefei, Anhui, Chengdu, Sichuan and other places in China, covering the entire industrial chain of superconducting materials, magnets, vacuum, power supplies, diagnostics, etc. More than 100 upstream and downstream fusion enterprises were added in 2025.
Brain - Computer Interface
A brain - computer interface is a direct connection created between the brain of a human or an animal and an external device to enable information exchange between the brain and the device. Brain - computer interfaces appeared early, but it was not until after the 1990s that phased results began to emerge.
As a transformative human - machine interaction technology, the brain - computer interface has broad development prospects. In 2025, China successfully carried out experiments on brain - computer interfaces.
In February 2025, relevant units of Tianjin University and Tsinghua University jointly developed a "dual - loop" non - invasive evolutionary brain - computer interface system based on memristive neuromorphic devices.
In June 2025, relevant units of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, in cooperation with relevant units of Fudan University and related enterprises, successfully carried out the first prospective clinical trial of an invasive brain - computer interface in China.
In September 2025, the first clinical research ward for brain - computer interfaces in Southwest China was officially established at the Southwest Hospital of the Army Medical University.
It is worth mentioning that magnetoencephalography (MEG) and functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) have successfully realized non - invasive brain - computer interfaces.
In September 2025, the first implantable closed - loop self - responsive neurostimulator surgery in South China was successfully performed.
In September 2025, China completed the first trial of using an interventional brain - computer interface to assist in the restoration of the motor function of the affected limb of the human body.
Domestically, the development of invasive and non - invasive brain - computer interface technologies is rapid. Among them, invasive brain - computer interface technology is being applied in multiple scenarios, and there have been successful cases in external device control, medical rehabilitation, language decoding, etc. It is expected to bring more breakthroughs in fields such as medical treatment and scientific research.
Embodied Intelligence
Embodied intelligence is a cutting - edge field at the intersection of artificial intelligence and robotics. With the maturity of technology and the expansion of applications, embodied intelligence products will play an important role in multiple fields such as intelligent manufacturing, smart home, smart medical care, and intelligent services.
In 2025, China's embodied intelligence industry developed rapidly, mainly reflected in the continuous launch of new products by major enterprises, especially the rapid development of robots.
At the technical level, it focuses on the coordination between the "brain" and the "cerebellum". For example, the "brain - cerebellum cooperation" model architecture designed by Shanghai Jiao Tong University enables robots to complete ultra - long - range and complex tasks involving dozens of steps; the "Wuneng" embodied intelligence platform released by SenseTime demonstrated its environmental understanding and autonomous planning capabilities.
In terms of hardware, Fudan University developed an adaptive visual - tactile AI sensor, enabling robots to have a sense of touch similar to that of humans. In addition, various forms of embodied intelligence products such as humanoid robots, exoskeletons, dexterous hands, and quadruped robotic dogs have been unveiled, and companies such as Galaxy Universal, Unitree Robotics, Yuejiang, and Zhipu AI have corresponding products.
In terms of commercial applications, 2025 is regarded as the "Year of the Industrial Application of Humanoid Robots". From prototype machines to mass production, embodied intelligence robots have entered real scenarios such as inspection, service halls, factories, and elderly care and medical care. Among them, the industrial field has become the most potential market. Many enterprises have received orders.
At the policy level, many places in China, including Beijing, Shanghai, Shenzhen, and Xiamen, have issued support policies, presenting a pattern of dual - wheel drive by policies and capital.
As an "integration" of emerging industries such as artificial intelligence, mobile communication, and robotics, embodied intelligence is expected to become a disruptive product in human society after computers, smartphones, and new - energy vehicles, which will profoundly change the way of human production and life and reshape the global industrial development pattern.
Sixth - Generation Mobile Communication
Most performance indicators of the sixth - generation mobile communication (6G) will be 10 to 100 times higher than those of 5G. The potential application scenarios can be divided into three categories: full - coverage and diversified intelligent connection applications, high - fidelity extended reality applications, and intelligent industry applications.
In terms of key technologies, multiple breakthroughs were achieved in 2025. For example, the ten - thousand - element electromagnetic lens prototype developed by ZTE Digital Nebula was the first in the industry to achieve a ten - thousand - scale element prototype, which can achieve a hundred - stream level of spatial division ability;
Hongshan Technology achieved a 30.4 - km long - distance transmission at a terahertz rate of 20 Gbps, setting a new record for similar systems;
China Unicom completed the construction of the first low - orbit in - orbit environment for vehicle - connected satellites, taking a key step towards empowering the Internet of Things and vehicle - to - everything with low - orbit satellites;
China Telecom, in cooperation with multiple parties, completed the innovation of intelligent metasurface technology for 6G and the industry's first multi - station and multi - RIS networking test;
China Telecom, in cooperation with multiple units, completed the research on key technologies for 6G satellite - terrestrial integration and high - medium - low - orbit tests, laying a foundation for multi - orbit collaborative networking;
Datang Mobile launched a holographic metasurface large - scale antenna array, realizing high - speed dynamic multi - stream beamforming transmission.
In 2025, 6G standardization was formulated in China. Commercialization is expected to be achieved around 2030.
It is understood that China's 6G technology tests are divided into three stages: first, the key technology test to clarify the main technical directions of 6G; second, the technical solution test to develop 6G prototype machines for key scenarios; finally, the system networking test to develop equipment and conduct tests on key 6G products.
Currently, China has completed the first - stage 6G key technology test and formed more than 300 key technology reserves.
Future industries represent the direction of the new round of scientific and technological revolution and industrial transformation and are the key variables determining the future industrial landscape and industrial competitive pattern. Actively developing future industries helps to seize the high - ground of global industrial development.