China will accelerate the research and formulation of artificial intelligence industry policies, and increase innovation and research on foundational technologies such as computing power and algorithms, the country's top industry regulator said.

Vice-Minister of Industry and Information Technology Xu Xiaolan said with the joint efforts of all parties, China's AI industry has flourished.

The AI industrial system is gradually improving. The market size of the core AI industry hit 500 billion yuan ($69 billion) and there are over 4,300 AI enterprises, Xu said on Thursday at an AI conference in Shanghai.

Innovative achievements such as smart chips and universal large models are constantly emerging, Xu added.