Shanghai hosts conference on ultra HD audiovisual industry development

A conference on the development of the ultra HD audiovisual industry was held in Shanghai on Friday, showcasing a series of innovative initiatives poised to shape the future of entertainment and communication.

An array of technological innovations used to produce the live broadcast of the 2026 China Media Group (CMG) Spring Festival Gala was featured at the conference. These included advanced 8K systems entirely supported by domestically produced equipment, demonstrating China's rising strength in high-end broadcast technology.

At the event, a center for the promotion of AI application scenarios in Shanghai's Jing'an District was officially launched.

Envisioned as a hub integrating "business, culture, creativity, and technology," the center aims to become an experimental platform for AI scenario innovation and an accelerator for converting technological advances into practical applications, supporting Shanghai's goal of establishing a world-class AI industry cluster.

Also launched was a cloud network platform designed to ease cultural organizations and practitioners' challenges related to computational costs, technical barriers, and compliance requirements, aiming to make AI a convenient tool for content creation, smart marketing and international dissemination.

"Leveraging our strengths as a traditional industry hub as a district in downtown Shanghai, we will provide an open platform for these numerous AI technology companies, allowing them to discover their business models here," said Xie Tian, director of the Science, Technology, and Economy Commission of Jing'an District.

Named after the ancient Jing'an Temple, Jing'an District boasts a time-honored history, picturesque environment, prosperous business, innovation vitality and convenient information availability and transportation facilities, offering an important window in the exchanges between Shanghai and the outside world.

The conference also unveiled a series of major industry initiatives, spotlighting the vast potential of deep integration between AI and ultra HD audio-visual technology, energizing the industry with new opportunities for innovation and growth.

Shanghai hosts conference on ultra HD audiovisual industry development

The Council of the European Union (EU) said in a statement on Monday that it had decided to extend the mandate of the EU Military Assistance Mission in support of Ukraine (EUMAM Ukraine) for another two years, until Nov 15, 2028, and establish a presence in Ukraine.

Nearly 300 million euros (about 336.3 million U.S. dollars) has been allocated for the extended period. The planned presence in Ukraine aims to ensure direct and effective coordination with Ukrainian military authorities, the Ukrainian Armed Forces (UAF) and like-minded international partners, including the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada and Norway.

The mission will also cooperate with the Coalition of the Willing and NATO under the NATO Security Assistance and Training for Ukraine (NSATU) command, said the statement.

The decision follows a recent strategic review of EUMAM, which led to an expansion of the mission's mandate, with a focus on ensuring that EU training evolves in line with the UAF's needs, drawing lessons from the battlefield and strengthening military training in support of Ukraine's defense agenda, according to the statement.

The Council described the mission as a key instrument of the EU's military support for Ukraine. Since its establishment in October 2022 at Ukraine's request, the mission has trained more than 100,000 soldiers.

Established by a Council decision on Oct 17, 2022, EUMAM Ukraine initially had a two-year mandate. The mission provides individual, collective and specialized training to the UAF in EU member states and coordinates and synchronizes training delivered by member states. The mission is financed by the European Peace Facility.

EU extends military assistance mission, plans presence in Ukraine