Chongqing - The Fifth Global Semiconductor Industry Expo (GSIE) commenced in Chongqing, Southwest China, on May 10. The expo saw 350 top-tier national enterprises exhibiting innovative technologies and advancements in the semiconductor industry.

Designed to foster an ecosystem of exchange and collaboration for the semiconductor and electronic manufacturing industry, the expo has its spotlight on key sectors such as integrated circuits, AI, and 5G. It offered a diverse roster of activities to engage attendees.

Running concurrently with the expo, a variety of high-end events took place. These events brought together domestic and international academics, experts, and industry leaders for thoughtful discussions on the future trends of the semiconductor and electronics industries. 

"Semiconductors play a crucial role in our nation, bolstering China's focused efforts on digitalization, intelligence, and informational infrastructure," remarked Cao Xueqin, Deputy Secretary General of the Chinese Institute of Electronics.

Today, the semiconductor industry has evolved into a global ecosystem. "It will unquestionably serve as the foundation of economic growth and the center of global competition in the coming decade," Cao predicted.

In recent years, Chongqing's integrated circuit (IC) design industry has demonstrated leading growth rates nationwide. Chongqing must overcome key technical challenges to develop an internationally influential IC industry cluster at the 100-billion level.

Cao advocates that Chongqing should address issues concerning IC design, manufacturing, packaging, and testing to fortify the industrial supply chain and solidify the foundation for the IC industry.

At the GSIE, Chengdu, and Chongqing collaborated on initiatives and signed agreements to boost the high-quality development of the electronic information industry.

In the first quarter of 2022, the Chengdu-Chongqing economic circle in southwestern China generated a regional GDP of 5.52 trillion yuan (approximately USD 801.5 billion), marking an increase of 2.2% over the same period in 2017.

At present, Chengdu and Chongqing produce 66% of the world's iPads, 50% of laptops, and 10% of smartphones, thanks to the advanced manufacturing clusters of electronic information.

These achievements have positioned Chengdu and Chongqing as the third and tenth electronic information manufacturing clusters in mainland China and the world, respectively.