Digital News

　　As the new wave of sci-tech revolution and industrial transformation accelerates, the deep integration of the digital and real economies has injected strong momentum into fostering new quality productive forces and advancing high-quality economic growth. As a key emerging form of economy leading the development of new quality productive forces, this integration plays a vital role in comprehensively reshaping and optimizing the labor force, means of labor, and objects of labor.

　　To enable the integration of the digital and real economies to play a greater role in fostering new quality productive forces, it is necessary to strengthen the construction of digital infrastructure to lay a solid foundation for the development of new quality productive forces; improve the digital industrial ecosystem to unlock their potential; leverage the driving role of data elements to unleash the development momentum; and enhance the governance capacity of digital government to invigorate their development.

　　The Intrinsic Relationship between Digital-Real Economy Integration and New Quality Productive Forces

　　The deep integration of the digital and real economies, as a key strategic initiative for China to secure a first-mover advantage in the new wave of sci-tech revolution and industrial transformation, is powerfully driving the digital transformation of traditional industries in areas such as sci-tech innovation, the allocation of production factors, and structural optimization, serving as a core force for accelerating and nurturing new quality productive forces.

　　The integration of the digital and real economies promotes the emergence of new quality productive forces by optimizing resource allocation. In this integration process, data, as a new type of production factor, is deeply embedded in the production and circulation of the real economy, enabling resources to be optimized and reorganized through the network effect of value multiplication, and serving as a key driver of digital productivity. The development of digital–real economy integration facilitates the widespread application of digital technologies in the real economy, accelerates the flow and sharing of innovative elements, broadens physical enterprises’ access to innovation resources, and provides strong momentum for the transformation, upgrading, and innovative development of the real economy.

　　The integration of the digital and real economies promotes industrial upgrading and the development of new quality productive forces. It drives breakthrough advancements in digital technologies such as digital communication tools, augmented reality, and virtual reality, enabling the acquisition, accumulation, reorganization, and creation of technical knowledge in real industries through digital technologies and continuously fostering the deep integration of digital technologies with traditional industries. The widespread application of emerging technologies such as AI and the Internet of Things has given rise to new industries, including quantum information, high-end equipment manufacturing, and big data analytics, as well as new business forms such as the sharing economy, Internet-based medical care, and online education. The rise and development of emerging industries promote the digital upgrading of traditional sectors, effectively enhancing the quality of economic development and providing strong momentum for the accelerated emergence of new quality productive forces.

　　Theoretical Logic Behind the Accelerated Emergence of New Quality Productive Forces via the Digital–Real Economy Integration

　　As a carrier for the development of new quality productive forces, the integration of the digital and real economies plays a vital role in innovating and upgrading the labor force, means of labor, and objects of labor, mainly reflected across three levels: the macro level of society, the meso level of industries, and the micro level of enterprises

　　First of all, the integration of the digital and real economies drives the digital transformation of social production. At the macro level of society, by promoting such transformation, this integration enhances the knowledge and skills level of the labor force, facilitates the better formation of new forms of labor means, and accelerates the evolution of new types of labor objects.

　　First, promote the digitalization of production processes and enhance the knowledge and skills of the workforce. The digital and intelligent development of production processes encourages workers to continuously acquire new knowledge, master new technologies, and accelerate the rapid iteration and upgrading of their labor skills. Second, advance the platform-based transformation of production relations, and facilitate the better formation of new forms of labor means. The integration of the digital and real economies leverages intelligent, interconnected digital technologies to establish digital production platforms. As “new-medium” means of labor, digital production platforms, with digital technology at their core, can extensively collect and integrate various types of production data, seamlessly combine them with traditional production factors such as labor, capital, and technology, unlock and realize the value of data, and unleash its multiplier effects. Third, drive the borderless allocation of production factors, and foster the rapid emergence and evolution of new types of labor objects. The widespread application of digital technologies such as blockchain, cloud computing, and big data has greatly lowered the costs of production factor mobility and significantly enhanced the efficiency of factor supply-demand matching.

　　Next, the integration of the digital and real economies promotes both digital industrialization and industrial digitization. At the meso level, by collaboratively advancing the digital industrialization and industrial digitization, this integration innovates the way workers perform their tasks, drives the intelligent transformation of labor means, and facilitates the dematerialization of labor objects.

　　First, promote the establishment of industry-wide technology platforms and innovate the way workers perform their tasks. By leveraging digital and intelligent technologies such as AI and intelligent algorithms, the integration of the digital and real economies drives the transformation of business models in the real economy and facilitates the development of high-level, sophisticated R&D institutions and innovation platforms. Second, accelerate the digital transformation of traditional industries and drive the intelligent upgrading of labor means. Supported by mature digital technologies and robust digital infrastructure, the integration of the digital and real economies effectively facilitates the application of technologies such as the Internet and blockchain in traditional industries, promotes the shift of the real economy from “product manufacturing” to “service-oriented manufacturing,” and advances the digital transformation of traditional industries. Third, optimize the digital industrial ecosystem and promote the dematerialization of labor objects. Driven by digital technologies, the integration of the digital and real economies has fostered a range of new business forms of the digital economy, such as big data services and Internet-based medical care, contributing to the development of a digital industrial ecosystem characterized by collaborative innovation and empowered by digital and intelligent technologies. A new production system, characterized by an ecosystem-based structure, fosters the deep integration of digital technologies with traditional labor objects and accelerates the expansion of labor objects into non-material forms, including data, information, and knowledge.

　　Additionally, the integration of the digital and real economies promotes the digital and intelligent transformation and upgrading of enterprises. At the micro level, by driving the digital and intelligent transformation and upgrading of enterprises, this integration reshapes the labor market structure, enhances the utilization efficiency of means of labor, and enables the refined management of labor objects.

　　First, empower enterprises to accelerate technological innovation and reshape the labor market structure. The application of digital technologies drives enterprises to conduct digital transformation, enhancing the digital and intelligent capabilities in product research and development, as well as production and manufacturing processes. This, in turn, promotes a shift in the labor market from low-skilled to high-skilled labor, requiring workers to continuously learn and improve their competencies and skill sets. Second, promote the optimization of resource allocation within enterprises and enhance the utilization efficiency of labor means. Optimized resource allocation promotes enterprises to increase investment in the automation and intelligent upgrading of production processes. By introducing advanced automated equipment and intelligent control systems, enterprises can achieve automated operations and intelligent scheduling throughout the production process, thereby improving overall equipment utilization and creating space for the development of new quality productive forces. Third, drive the innovation of enterprise management models and enable the refined management of labor objects. By leveraging emerging technologies such as big data and AI, the integration of the digital and real economies helps enterprises move beyond traditional, rigid, and slow management practices, implementing more flexible and adaptive management mechanisms.

　　Practical Paths for the Emergence of New Quality Productive Forces via the Digital–Real Economy Integration

　　To ensure that the digital–real economy integration plays a greater role in the emergence and development of new quality productive forces, it is essential to further strengthen digital infrastructure, improve the digital industrial ecosystem, leverage the driving effect of data elements, and enhance the governance capacity of digital government. Through comprehensive, multi-sector deep integration of the digital and real economies, these efforts help accelerate the emergence of new quality productive forces.

　　First, strengthen the construction of digital infrastructure to solidify the foundation for the development of new quality productive forces. To this end, efforts should be made in three aspects: 1. Accelerate the development of new digital infrastructure. This includes promoting the scientific planning and coordinated deployment of digital infrastructure such as 5G, the Internet of Things, and the Industrial Internet, providing high-speed and secure channels for data exchange and transmission, facilitating the efficient deployment and operation of various digital technologies, and optimizing the layout of data centers, thereby accelerating the transformation of scientific research achievements into practical applications and contributing to the rapid commercialization and industrialization of innovative achievements. 2. Enhance the construction of digital innovation platforms. This involves establishing open, efficient, and secure platforms that effectively attract users, suppliers, and research institutions for collaborative innovation, promoting the integration and flow of various production factors, accelerating the conversion of high-tech achievements into tangible productive forces, facilitating information sharing via digital innovation platforms, and strengthening interconnectivity among equipment, products, and services, thereby empowering the digital transformation of traditional infrastructure and fostering new drivers of economic development through digital innovation platforms. Furthermore, it requires strengthening the digital transformation of traditional infrastructure by accelerating the deployment of next-generation information technologies such as big data and cloud computing, deeply integrating digital technologies with conventional infrastructure, and upgrading sectors including transport, water conservancy, and communications. 3. Strengthen the digital transformation of traditional infrastructure. This involves accelerating the deployment of next-generation information technologies such as big data and cloud computing, deeply integrating digital technologies with traditional infrastructure, and empowering the transformation and upgrading of traditional infrastructure, including transportation, water conservancy, and communications.

　　Second, improve the digital industrial ecosystem to stimulate the development potential of new quality productive forces. To this end, efforts should be made in three aspects: 1. Foster new business forms in the digital economy through the innovative application of emerging technologies such as the Internet of Things, blockchain, and the metaverse in traditional industries, fully leveraging the multiplier effects of digital technologies and cultivating new forms of online services such as online education, telemedicine, and digital financial services. 2. Optimize the digital industrial innovation ecosystem by strengthening enterprise R&D investment in key digital technologies including big data, cloud computing, and the Internet of Things, accelerating the commercialization of R&D achievements, creating new business models and industrial forms, and, centered on leading industries, optimizing the industrial chain layout, driving the extension of industrial chains, and promoting collaboration and exchanges among different enterprises within the digital industry to establish a complementary and synergistic innovation ecosystem. 3. Enhance digital governance by establishing and improving laws, regulations, and standards framework on data sharing, privacy protection, and cybersecurity, etc., clarifying digital governance standards, optimizing governance mechanisms to provide robust legal support for digital governance, strengthening the R&D and application of cybersecurity technologies, establishing and improving cybersecurity monitoring, early-warning, and emergency response systems, and reinforcing digital security supervision.

　　Third, leverage the driving effect of data elements to unleash the development momentum of new quality productive forces. In this regard, efforts should be made in three aspects: 1. Accelerate the cultivation of the data element market by enhancing the construction of data exchanges across regions, and fostering a group of specialized data service providers, while promoting the establishment of a unified and open, competitive, and orderly data trading market to fully explore and unlock the value of data assets. 2. Expand the application of data across multiple scenarios by exploring its use in various industries and business scenarios such as intelligent manufacturing, smart cities, and healthcare, broadening innovative application scenarios, and driving innovation in data-driven business models. 3. Strengthen the cultivation and attraction of high-level data talents.

　　Fourth, enhance the governance capacity of digital government to unleash the development vitality of new quality productive forces. In this regard, efforts should be made in three aspects: 1. Strengthen the supply of public data resources by accelerating the development of data resource systems, establishing an open and shared data resource framework, improving the provision of public data platforms, pubic digital technologies, and public digital services to elevate enterprises’ digital knowledge. 2. Optimize the system for platform-based innovation and development by increasing investment in digital platform construction, actively guiding platform enterprises to participate in the R&D and implementation of major national science and technology innovation projects, and establishing a dynamic innovation network among government agencies, innovation institutions, and platform enterprises. 3. Improve market regulation systems and mechanisms by leveraging digital technologies to strengthen market regulation and enhance its accuracy and effectiveness, integrating data resources across government departments to advance the development of digital regulatory platforms, breaking down “digital information silos,” and enabling cross-departmental, cross-level, and cross-sectoral data connectivity to boost regulatory efficiency.