The General Office of the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology has released a notice regarding the launch of a special initiative to cultivate AI application service providers. The notice emphasizes the need to elevate the level of service provision.

Under this plan, service providers will be organized to take the lead in forming "AI application service teams" focused on areas such as model-data resonance and computing-power coordination. These teams will collaborate with upstream and downstream partners to create integrated solutions. Local authorities are encouraged to fully utilize national AI application pilot bases and technology enterprise incubators within their regions, offering service providers the foundational resources needed for technology development, testing and validation, and pilot-scale maturation, thereby accelerating solution innovation and supporting the growth of specialized and sophisticated service providers.

The initiative also calls for supporting service providers in conducting targeted research to tackle key technical challenges, including software-hardware adaptation and multi-model collaboration. Service providers are urged to enhance their capabilities in integrating and applying basic software and hardware products, such as secure and reliable operating systems, databases, and AI training and inference chips. Furthermore, timely information on security risks and incidents related to AI software and hardware products should be communicated to service providers.

In a move towards proactive risk management, the notice directs service providers to embed compliance requirements concerning network security, data security, ethical governance, and business operations into the entire lifecycle of research and development, deployment, and application, shifting their approach from reactive response to active prevention.