From November 15 to 17, 2024, the "First AI FOR ENGINEERING Conference & 2024 Frontier Technology Lecture Series (Ningbo)" was held in Ningbo, co-hosted by EIT and the Jingjinji National Center of Technology Innovation. Over 10 academicians from the areas of artificial intelligence and engineering, along with more than 100 top industry experts and scholars from the government, universities, research institutions, and well-known enterprises, gathered to discuss the development trends, frontier breakthroughs, and application prospects of artificial intelligence in engineering.

On the morning of November 16, the opening ceremony of the main forum was hosted by the conference chairman, Shiyi Chen, Academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and President of EIT. In his welcome message, he noted that this year has seen a breakthrough in AI technology in scientific research, and that the application of AI technology in engineering is also encountering unprecedented opportunities. EIT, as a new type of research university with a mission to serve national development and promote social progress, naturally has the responsibility to serve the development of new quality productive forces. We hope to establish an open, shared, efficient, and collaborative platform through the AI FOR ENGINEERING Conference, breaking down barriers between disciplines, regions, and industries, gathering global wisdom, and jointly promoting the innovation and application of AI technology. We aim to facilitate deep integration of industry, academia, and research, contributing wisdom and strength to the technological advancement and industrial transformation and upgrading of Ningbo and the nation.

Xiaochen Fei, Director and Party Secretary of the Ningbo Science & Technology Bureau, Dongcai Shi, Member of the Party Leadership Group and Deputy Director of the Department of Science and Technology of Zhejiang Province, and Quan Sun, Director of the Ministry of Science and Technology of the People’s Republic of China, each delivered speeches. Bo Jin, Party Secretary of EIT, and An Jin, a representative of the Jingjinji National Center of Technology Innovation, jointly signed a strategic cooperation agreement. President Shiyi Chen and Director Jixiang Wang of the National Innovation Center par Excellence, together witnessed the unveiling of the “Ningbo Research Center of the Jingjinji National Center of Technology Innovation” and the “Ningbo Disruptive Technology Innovation Demonstration Base of the Jingjinji National Center of Technology Innovation.” 

Subsequently, several renowned academicians and experts delivered keynote speeches on topics such as industrial software, intelligent computing, aerodynamics, quantum computing, intelligent flight, and disruptive technologies.

The Jingjinji National Center of Technology Innovation is a national strategic technological force personally promoted by General Secretary Jinping Xi. It is the first comprehensive national technology innovation center in China, adhering to the strategic positioning of enhancing the capacity of technological innovation as a growth engine. The center organizes national disruptive innovations, cultivates national outstanding engineers, and promotes coordinated innovation in the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region. It aims to become a strategic node in the national innovation system, a strategic hub for the coordinated innovation community in the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region, and a major driving force for high-quality development.