Enhancing regional connectivity, advancing economic integration high on agenda of ASEAN Summits

Enhancing regional infrastructure connectivity and advancing economic integration are high on the agenda of the 44th and 45th ASEAN Summits and Related Summits running from Oct 8 to 11 in Vientiane, the capital of Laos.

Under the theme "ASEAN: Enhancing Connectivity and Resilience," the summits, gathering around 2,000 delegates and approximately 1,000 journalists, feature more than 20 meetings. Discussions will focus on enhancing regional infrastructure connectivity, narrowing the development gap, advancing economic integration, and promoting people-to-people exchanges to strengthen relations between ASEAN member countries and other nations while addressing current opportunities and challenges.

The meetings will be attended by heads of state and government from ASEAN member countries, dialogue partner countries and external partner countries, as well as representatives of regional and international organizations.

Economic and trade exchanges between China and ASEAN have become increasingly closer over the past years, with China remaining as ASEAN's largest trading partner for 15 years since 2009. The latest statistics from China's General Administration of Customs show that ASEAN has been China's largest trading partner in the first eight months of 2024, with a 10 percent year-on-year increase in the volume of imports and exports from China to ASEAN.

Participants said that promoting the high-quality development of the Belt and Road Initiative, strengthening cooperation in various sectors under the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership, and advancing negotiations on a new round of upgrades for the China-ASEAN Free Trade Area will create new opportunities for the integration of regional economies.

"With this regional integration, with logistics and the Belt and Road Initiative, we can bring ASEAN to be the center point as a hub or center for the big company to open their headquarters or manufacturing hub in ASEAN or Laos. Apart from that it also provides opportunities for technology transfer and human resource development, because integrating with the advanced economies like China, Japan, South Korea, Australia and others will help the local economy learn from the advanced technologies," said Thanongsinh Kanlaya, executive vice chairman of the Lao National Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

"Advancing regional integration could help reduce costs and taxes, which has allowed us to mobilize the entire industrial chain in Laos and the surrounding countries," said Wu Xinghua, executive vice chairman of the Lao-Chinese Chamber of Commerce.

Enhancing regional connectivity, advancing economic integration high on agenda of ASEAN Summits

Enhancing regional connectivity, advancing economic integration high on agenda of ASEAN Summits

The Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) announced major RISC-V achievements at a sub-forum during the 2026 Zhongguancun Forum (ZGC Forum) on Thursday, highlighting a new path for open-source chip industrial application.

RISC-V is an open-source, flexible and efficient processor architecture that has gained global attention.

Two landmark achievements were introduced at the forum. Xiangshan, an open-source high-performance RISC-V processor system, has set a new international record and includes the world's first open-source network-on-chip IP.

"The Xiangshan processor core now ranks among the global top tier in performance. Several companies are already developing actual chips based on it. Real market demand, high-level expertise, and high quality are the core elements for open-source chip projects to transition from the lab to industrial deployment," said Bao Yungang, a researcher at the Institute of Computing Technology, CAS.

While Ruyi, a native RISC-V operating system, became the first to support the RVA23 high-performance international standard.

Together, Xiangshan and Ruyi have formed two RISC-V open-source communities led by China.

Currently scientific research teams in China have constructed a full-chain RISC-V development system, strengthening China’s voice in shaping global open-source technology standards.

The 2026 ZGC Forum, running in Beijing through Sunday, is focused on the theme of "Full Integration Between Technological and Industrial Innovation". Since its founding in 2007, this forum has become a major international event for advancing science and technology innovation.

China unveils major RISC-V achievements, opens new path for open-source chip industry