Sichuan Province to Bolster Chinese Economy With New Metaverse Initiative

China’s Sichuan province is entering the metaverse as the country’s Web3 ambitions kick into high gear. The initiative is part of a state push to strengthen economies along the Yangtze Delta.

Building on the country’s push for technological supremacy, the metaverse project will focus on developing virtual, augmented, and mixed-reality technologies to grow key industries, including health care, television, and energy. In addition, the province will research eye-tracking, haptic feedback, and how the human brain can talk to computers.

Industries Will Share Data in Sichuan Metaverse

These efforts will aid in creating a metaverse “twin” of the province through an open platform that will share data across industries. 

For example, the platform could crunch data from a virtual gas smelter and a hydropower station to inform decarbonization strategies. It could also collect data from water conservancy models to better predict emergency scenarios.

But possibly the plan’s most controversial element is a bid to develop “service-oriented” artificial humans through new graphics technology. The project will aim to emulate humans through cutting-edge facial technology and sophisticated large language models.

Initially, artificial humans will be involved in education, consulting, medical care, and performing arts.

Sichuan Joins Efforts to Unify Economies of Yangtze Delta

According to Sichuan, its metaverse strategy is guided by socialist ideals promoted by President Xi Jinping. The metaverse plan considers the government’s plan to link the economies of over 20 cities situated on the Yangtze Delta.

Last month, members of China’s Communist Party developed a new plan to build urban blockchain digital infrastructure in the delta’s largest city, Shanghai. 

According to the city’s government website, the new service will link government, public services, and industry. It will trace the region’s trade and farming output and host government data.

Earlier this year, Henan province’s Zhengzhou city released a new document describing the country’s metaverse strategy. Central to the strategy are plans for blockchain transactions.

Earlier this year, China’s internet national internet agency restricted the use of non-socialist thought in artificial intelligence models.

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