The Xi'an gathering drew delegations from several Asian countries and more than 30 Chinese cities, while promoting cross-border data standards and the city's 129 billion yuan digital economy base.
Xi'an said the 7th Western Digital Economy Expo concluded on June 28 after drawing delegations from Singapore, South Korea, Thailand, Cambodia and other countries, along with government and corporate representatives from more than 30 Chinese cities and 119 leading digital economy companies. The event resulted in 34 key project signings, a record for the expo. This year's edition also introduced a first-time "Digital Economy Enterprise Going Global" exchange event, underscoring Xi'an's push to move from receiving industrial transfer to exporting digital capabilities. Organizers released the "Silk Road Cross-Border Data Flow and Operations White Paper," aimed at guiding standardized digital trade among Belt and Road partner countries, and signed the "GEO Industry Standard Self-Regulatory Convention" to support compliant cross-border digital business activity. The city positioned itself as a major digital economy hub in western China. It said core digital economy industries above designated size reached 129 billion yuan in 2025, equivalent to 9.28% of GDP. Xi'an also highlighted five new-infrastructure initiatives spanning networks, cloud, computing, data and security, as well as 303 application requirements across smart tourism, XR (extended reality), new energy and other areas. The release said Xi'an has built technology centers for open-source chip, AI (artificial intelligence) algorithms and industrial software, while using policy tools such as white-list arrangements and innovation funds to attract companies including Huawei and JD.com and to support specialized SMEs (small and medium-sized enterprises).