Alain Benichou, CEO of IBM Greater China Group, said AI can play an important part in helping companies match consumer expectations, increase core efficiencies and differentiate themselves, especially as the COVID-19 pandemic accelerates digital transformation.

"Here in China, I have seen CEOs across all industries such as banking, manufacturing, retail and telecom are now very focused on pushing forward with digitalization and AI," Benichou said at the 19th Vision China event.

He quoted a recent study commissioned by IBM that found that over half of Chinese IT professionals say their companies are using or considering using natural language processing solutions to improve customer experience.

Jointly organized by China Daily and the Publicity Department of the Communist Party of China Tianjin Municipal Committee, the event, titled "New Era of Intelligence: Empowering New Development, Fostering New Pattern", was broadcast online to a global audience on Thursday night. It coincided with the ongoing 5th World Intelligence Congress, an event that started on the same day and runs until Sunday in Tianjin.