Robots, AI-related products and innovative medicines are emerging as new drivers of China's export growth, as the country expands into higher-value industries driven by innovatio.
In July, the country's exports rose 17.8 percent year-on-year (yoy), with high-tech products, including industrial robots and three-dimensional (3D) printers, accounting for nearly 60 percent of the total export increase, according to data released by China's General Administration of Customs (GAC).
Exports of industrial robots surged 13.2 percent to 7.34 billion yuan (1 yuan = Rp2,654) last month. This trend continues the momentum that began in 2025, when China became a net exporter of industrial robots for the first time.
In addition to industrial robots, Chinese-made consumer robots and humanoid robots are also increasingly being used in manufacturing and daily life worldwide.
Official data shows that in the first half of this year, exports of surgical robots surged 3.3-fold year-on-year to 480 million yuan, while exports of cleaning robots and intelligent bionic robots, including humanoid robots, robot dogs, and biomimetic fish and birds, reached 18.09 billion yuan.
AI-related exports are also gaining momentum. In the January-June period, exports of electronic components and computer parts both recorded double-digit growth, contributing a combined 6.9 percentage points to overall export growth.
Beyond manufactured goods, China's technology exports are expanding into digital services, with companies increasingly providing AI algorithms, cloud computing, and digital solutions to overseas markets. OpenRouter, a global platform that aggregates large language models (LLMs), stated that the six most-used models on its platform in July were open-source models developed in China.
The shift is also evident in the pharmaceutical industry, with Chinese companies increasingly bringing their innovations to the global market through licensing deals for new drugs.
In the first half of this year, Chinese companies signed 81 outbound licensing agreements for innovative drugs with partners in 20 countries and regions, including the United States, the United Kingdom, France, and Italy. The total value of these deals reached 80 percent of the full-year figure for 2025.
China currently accounts for about 30 percent of the world's new drugs under development, ranking second globally, according to China's National Medical Products Administration.
