Chinese tech giant Tencent and the First Affiliated Hospital of Guangzhou Medical University in south China have launched a powerful artificial intelligence model that can identify gene mutations in just one minute, enhancing prospects for early diagnosis and treatment of lung cancer.
The model, DeepGEM, was trained on the world's largest dataset comprising 9,000 samples and achieves an accuracy rate of 80 to 90 percent in identifying lung cancer gene mutations.
According to Liang Wenhua, a professor at First Affiliated, current genetic testing typically requires significant time and costs between 10,000 and 20,000 yuan (about 1,406-2,812 U.S. dollars), making it unaffordable for many patients.
"Gene testing is essential before formulating a corresponding precision treatment plan for lung cancer. The challenges with genetic testing are that it is relatively slow and expensive. Our current NGS (Next Generation Sequencing) gene testing generally takes 7 to 14 days," he said.
By reducing both the time and cost of testing, DeepGEM offers new hope for patients, particularly those in rural areas.
Recently, researchers are focused on further validating and improving the model's accuracy in genetic mutation detection.
"We need more and richer data to train, validate, and confirm its effectiveness," said Li Yinghua, vice president of Guangzhou KingMed Diagnostics Group.
This leap in medical AI solutions comes as China focuses on technological independence in its next Five-Year Plan (2026-2030), with goals centered on promoting the construction of a "Digital China" and advancing the Healthy China Initiative -- a national drive to promote the overall health of the people.
"As the upcoming launch of China's 15th Five-Year Plan proposes building a 'Digital China,' we aim to enhance public services, healthcare, education, urban governance, and many other aspects through the process," said Cao Zhongxiong, assistant president of the China Development Institute.
Chinese hospital launches powerful AI model with sub-60-second gene mutation testing capability
China will roll out a series of targeted measures to stabilize investment and unlock greater space for private capital, an official said on Thursday.
Chen Changsheng, deputy director of the State Council Research Office who participated in the drafting of this year's Government Work Report, made the statement at a press briefing held in Beijing.
He noted that China will leverage the guiding role of government funding and the driving effect of major projects to shore up investment.
Total government investment this year is set to exceed five trillion yuan (about 725 billion U.S. dollars), which will come from central budget investment and local government special bonds for major national strategies and security capacity building projects and equipment upgrades. Meanwhile, 109 major projects have been planned in the draft outline of the 15th Five-Year Plan (2026-2030).
China will also stimulate investment by opening up more application scenarios for businesses.
On the traditional front, a long-term mechanism will be improved to encourage private enterprises to participate in major national projects. For emerging sectors, China will further open scenarios in biomedicine, aerospace, and the low-altitude economy.
"Low-altitude economy has developed rapidly in recent years, with sound applications seen in fields such as agriculture, forestry plant protection, as well as surveying and inspection. Going forward, we will accelerate the opening of airspace resources and streamline approval procedures for low-altitude flights. This will unlock new scenarios including low-altitude logistics and urban management. Similar new opportunities can also be found in service robots and other sectors, all of which will create new space for private investment," Chen said.
By deepening reforms to further unlock investment potential, China will ease market access in the service sector, speed up revisions to the Bidding Law and the Government Procurement Law, and advance price reforms to broaden investment access for more enterprises.
"We will see a new round of investment potential unleashed. Major projects including the national water network, a new round of power grid upgrades, new generation communication networks, and computing power networks will drive massive investment, including demand from urban development. In addition, the campaign this year to expand and upgrade the service sector and the development of emerging industries will further expand space for private investment," Chen noted.
China to take measures to boost investment, expand space for private investment in 2026: official
