This photo taken on July 3, 2025 shows a programming-free smart welding system at EFORT Intelligent Robot Co., Ltd. in Wuhu, east China's Anhui Province. (Photo: Xinhua)

A high-end passenger vehicle jointly developed by JAC Motors and Huawei has attracted many visitors at the ongoing 2025 World Manufacturing Convention, with its luxury interior, digital chassis and Huawei's advanced intelligent driving technology gaining significant attention.

The premium MAEXTRO S800 sedan is being showcased in the exhibition area of this year's convention, which opened on Saturday in Hefei, the capital of east China's Anhui Province.

Behind the S800 stands its manufacturing base, the MAEXTRO Super Factory, which uses Huawei's digital and AI technologies to create a "digital twin" plant, enabling real-time monitoring and self-evolution across the production process, with over 1,800 intelligent robots driving fully automated stamping, welding, painting and assembly.

The launch of the MAEXTRO S800 highlights how China's advanced manufacturing is upgrading industries -- from new energy vehicles to smart computers -- and enabling them to turn innovation into market-ready products, and supporting both domestic and global industrial development.

MANUFACTURING WITH MOMENTUM

Also in Hefei, NIO's Second Advanced Manufacturing Base is not only a production site but also a popular industrial tourism destination thanks to its state-of-the-art workshops.

Inside, a vehicle storage platform has upgraded traditional flat inventory into a three-dimensional system, allowing cars to be retrieved on demand and saving time spent on sorting. The plant can even operate fully automatically without on-site workers.

According to the factory's management, industrial AI algorithms now make 80 percent of all manufacturing decisions, while 941 robots in the facility's body shop ensure a 100 percent automation rate across joining processes.

"By participating in the World Manufacturing Convention for several consecutive years, NIO has witnessed the continuous upgrading of China's manufacturing, led by new energy vehicles, bringing an increasing number of high-quality products," said Yu Dongming, general manager of NIO (Anhui branch).

The ThinkBook Plus Gen 6 Rollable Laptop, with its expandable display growing from 14 inches to 16.7 inches at the touch of a button, has become a hot topic of conversation among overseas bloggers and tech enthusiasts, drawing praise as "future" and "spectacular" technology.

The concept product was mass-produced at LCFC (Hefei) Electronics Technology Co., Ltd., which is Lenovo's flagship manufacturing hub. By integrating intelligent manufacturing, technological breakthroughs, rigorous quality verification and supply chain support -- as well as its digital process platform to link R&D and production data -- the company has boosted the efficiency of turning innovation into market-ready products.

With an annual output of 40 million laptops, LCFC produces one in every eight laptops sold globally. It is both a national model smart factory and one of 201 "lighthouse factories" around the world, more than 80 of which are in China.

"Intelligent manufacturing is the core support of advanced manufacturing, and also the core competitiveness of Gotion High-Tech's 20 production bases worldwide," said Chen Wei, a senior manufacturing executive at leading Chinese battery maker Gotion High-Tech Co., Ltd.

"With standards unified by Chinese headquarters and strictly implemented by bases across the world, China's advanced manufacturing capacity is gaining international recognition," Chen said.

Official data shows that China has built over 35,000 basic-level and more than 230 excellence-level model smart factories.

DRIVING GLOBAL INNOVATION

At a recent leading global automation event in Munich, Germany, Chinese industrial robot maker EFORT Intelligent Robot Co., Ltd. showcased solutions in such areas as dexterous robotic hands, and intelligent painting and welding workstations, attracting customers from around the world.

The company has also brought four newly developed robotic products to the intelligent robot exhibition area of the convention in Hefei.

"We can provide integrated intelligent robot solutions for international automakers' smart manufacturing," said You Wei, chairman and CEO of EFORT.

He noted that in 2024, the company sold more than 16,000 industrial robots, which are widely used in the electronics, photovoltaics, lithium battery, automotive and shipbuilding industries, and have won recognition from brands such as Maserati, BMW and Volkswagen.

As more "Made-in-China" products integrate into global industrial development, multinational companies are also partnering with Chinese players to share in the dividends of the country's manufacturing upgrade.

At Volkswagen Anhui's MEB plant, highly intelligent production lines have made the factory one of the group's most advanced worldwide.

"By 2030, we'll launch around 50 all-electric and electrified models in this market. All intelligent. All connected. All equipped with the latest driver assistance and automation tech," said Oliver Blume, CEO of Volkswagen Group. "Backed by close partnerships with strong local players, we can move 30 percent faster from idea to product. The result: We're not just planning. We're delivering."

For multinational auto parts supplier Marelli, China's strong manufacturing and innovation capabilities are enabling both local and global growth.

"China's manufacturing and innovation capabilities allow us to provide customized and fast-to-market solutions for local customers, while also leveraging China's innovation and manufacturing strengths to support global projects," said Stefano Petrilli, global head of operations at Marelli Propulsion.

Since entering China in 1999, Marelli has built eight R&D centers and 17 factories across the country, employing about 5,000 people in areas ranging from propulsion systems to lighting.

Today, advanced manufacturing is becoming a major driver for foreign investment in China. In 2024, the country's actual use of foreign direct investment totaled 826.25 billion yuan (about 116.16 billion U.S. dollars), with high-tech manufacturing accounting for 96.29 billion yuan of that total, or 11.7 percent, according to the Ministry of Commerce of China.

China's advanced manufacturing capacity has become a key magnet for global industrial innovation and a vital engine for high-quality global industrial growth, said Zhang Xianfeng, a professor at Hefei University of Technology's School of Economics.

China's manufacturing fuels global tech innovation