AI-driven smart farming adopted in Beijing's Haidian, Hebei's Xiongan

From autonomous robots to AI-driven large language models, cutting-edge technologies are transforming farms in Beijing's tech highland Haidian District into futuristic hubs of precision and sustainability.

At an AI-powered vertical farm, lettuces are growing in a 19-tier high-tech high-rise.

"Harvesting happens layer by layer here，while one level is being picked, another is being planted, creating a seamless cycle. With 19 tiers, each has its own serial number. Even the nutrient delivery is fully automated and industrialized. Sensors track the solution's 16 essential ions, monitoring nutrient solution concentration levels," said Wei Lingling, director of the Key Laboratory of Leisure Agriculture under China's Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs.

The remote control system collects all plant growth data in real time and displays it on the central dashboard for monitoring.

Modern farming has evolved far beyond manual labor; it is now a high-tech operation. As production processes become digital, the entire agricultural sector is undergoing informational and intelligent transitions. It also requires a significant amount of brainpower, both human and artificial.

In a landmark move, the Agriculture and Rural Affairs Bureau of Xiong'an New Area in Hebei Province and China Telecom jointly developed Xiong Xiaonong, literally meaning "Xiong'an's Little Farmer," which is China's first agri-focused large AI model powered by DeepSeek.

"Xiong Xiaonong now offers services from agricultural Q and A, services, and planting decisions to production management and market analysis, forming a full digital service loop. Unlike general AI models, we've tailored this system to Xiong'an's key crops like sweet potatoes, wheat, and tomatoes," said Yang Yi, deputy director of Rural Revitalization Research Institute of China Telecom.

According to Yang, family farming cooperatives and small-to-medium scale farmers stand to benefit most from this AI assistant, as they often rely on personal experience rather than industrialized systems.

"I think this AI system is ideally suited for family farming cooperatives and small-to-medium scale farmers with production capabilities. While large commercial farms already operate with their own industrialized systems, smaller producers often rely primarily on personal experience and traditional knowledge," he said.

The integration of AI marks the beginning of a transformative era in smart agriculture. The technology is also revolutionizing crop disease management. Instead of manually inspecting every plant, smart glasses equipped with HD cameras can capture images and compare them against massive databases, enabling rapid disease identification.

"Take wheat diseases: before, technicians had to painstakingly examine every inch of each plant, from bottom to the top. Now, AI glasses with HD cameras zoom in, snap photos, transmit and match them against thousands of images in our database, making disease identification immediately clear," said Xu Shiwei, principal scientist from the Institute of Agricultural Information of Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences.

The legitimate rights of the Palestinian people must be respected and protected, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning said at a press briefing in Beijing on Friday.

Mao made the remarks in response to a media query about the reports that the Israeli parliament recently adopted a new law introducing death penalty for Palestinians, and countries such as the United Arab Emirates (UAE) have expressed strong condemnation, saying such practice is "entrenching a system of apartheid."

"All legislation must conform to legal principles such as the principle of legality, fairness and justice, and must not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, nationality or political view. The legitimate rights of the Palestinian people must be respected and protected. Relevant party’s actions that escalate tensions and exacerbate confrontation must stop," said Mao.