The use of artificial intelligence (AI) in key manufacturing processes in China reached 34.2 percent in the first half of 2026, up 5.5 percentage points from a year earlier, according to a report released on Sunday.
The report was released at the ongoing 2026 World Manufacturing Convention in Hefei City, in east China's Anhui Province, by a research body at China's Ministry of Industry and Information Technology.
Most Chinese enterprises have achieved digitalization in Research and Development and design, manufacturing, and operational management, the report said.
More than 10 percent of large manufacturing enterprises have used large AI models to drive business innovation.
High-tech manufacturing in China saw a 13.3 percent rise in added value in the first half of 2026, with integrated circuit manufacturing and smart automotive equipment manufacturing maintaining a 30 percent growth rate.
AI use in key manufacturing processes in China reaches 34.2 pct in first half
Iran's Islamic Revolution Guard Corps (IRGC) announced on Tuesday that the country possesses the technological infrastructure to make missiles with significantly longer ranges.
IRGC spokesman Hossein Mohebbi made the announcement in an interview with the official news agency IRNA, stressing that a political decision needs to be made within the country regarding the production of such missiles.
Mohebbi noted that in any confrontation, Iran will unveil new weapons with new ranges, precision and destructive power, emphasizing that battlefield is the best place to test new weapons.
He said Iran recently tested a new missile on an aircraft carrier and a warship both belonging to the United States, adding the missile hit the aircraft carrier, which was within a range of 500 km.
Mohebbi explained that the strike did not disable the U.S. aircraft carrier, but caused damage to it, saying Iran maintains that the strike inflicted casualties, although the United States did not announce that.
Earlier this month, Secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council Mohsen Rezaei told state-run IRIB TV that the country had carried out an important attack "within the preceding 48 hours" against a U.S. aircraft carrier as a warning to make the "enemy" know that its naval blockade is vulnerable.
IRGC says Iran has technological infrastructure to make missiles with far longer ranges
