On April 26, the sub-forum “New Quality Productive Forces Empower the Healthy China 2030” of Shanghai Forum was held at Guanghua Tower, Fudan University’s Handan Campus. The event brought together experts, healthcare leaders, and business executives to discuss how new quality productivity can empower the construction of a healthier China and reshape the global healthcare landscape.
Embracing innovation to build a healthier China
WANG Fan, Professor of the Fudan Development Institute (FDDI), who hosted the event, explained that “with the widespread adoption of the concept of ‘new quality productivity’, the healthcare sector has been profoundly affected.” It is essential to establish a framework linking new quality productivity with the development of the healthcare industry. Meanwhile, faced with challenges such as population aging, the pace of medical innovation is accelerating.
Martin Taylor, WHO Representative to China, emphasized that “new quality productivity must be people-centered to sustain innovation and progress.” Only through this approach can it deliver fair, affordable, effective, and safe medical solutions.
ZHANG Yi, Executive Dean of FDDI, noted that while advances in productivity offer unprecedented opportunities to overcome development challenges and reshape healthcare systems, they also present significant hurdles, including population aging, the growing burden of chronic diseases, emerging infectious diseases, and imbalanced medical resource allocation.
From a clinical perspective, QIU Wanshan, Director of the Pediatric Center at Zhongshan Hospital, highlighted the expanding role of AI in medicine. “As AI becomes integrated across industries and occupational boundaries blur, medical professionals must redefine their roles and adapt to future challenges,” he said. “AI presents significant opportunities, especially for high-tech development areas and underserved regions.” He also drew attention to issues such as data privacy, model transparency, algorithmic bias, and the 'black box' phenomenon, calling for collective efforts to address them.
Expanding on practical applications, WANG Shuqiang, Dean of Spinal Surgery at Yueyang Hospital of Integrated Traditional Chinese and Western Medicine, Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, discussed recent technological advances in his field, including the use of opto-magnetic navigation, surgical robots, augmented reality, and AI-driven postoperative rehabilitation and remote monitoring systems.
Driving health innovation through domestic expertise
Innovation from the corporate sector was another focal point. ZHU Xueliang, Vice President of Business in the Division of Drug Infusion Solutions at BD Greater China, stated that “our goal is to drive medical discovery, enable comprehensive disease management, and enhance the quality of care. Centered on patient health and customer needs, we aim to achieve mutual advancement within the industry and contribute to building a ‘Healthy China for the World’.”
HE Zhiyang, President of Xunfei Healthcare Research Institute, introduced their iFlyTec Speak large model and stressed the unique demands of AI in the healthcare industry, noting that “beyond traditional AI algorithms, healthcare demands distinctive models supported by clinical reasoning data and professional knowledge bases”. He also pointed out the transformative potential of combining artificial intelligence with brain-computer interface technologies.
Further technological breakthroughs were shared by TAN Bing, CTO of United Imaging Meta Healthcare, who observed that “where once diagnostic software was disease-specific and computing-intensive, today a single scan can detect over thirty types of anomalies, demonstrating the evolution from tool intelligence to human-like intelligence.”
Despite these advances, challenges remain. TA Ergai, Co-founder and CEO of Orange Dental for Kids, highlighted the need to adopt a prevention-oriented approach and to systematically advance children’s oral health management that starting with early prevention is key to achieving the goal of ensuring life-long health from the childhood.
Addressing global health challenges through collaboration
International collaboration remains crucial to achieving health equity. XU Jianrong, Director of China, Project HOPE, described the organization’s work in strengthening healthcare systems worldwide, stating that “our mission is to equip the world with life-saving tools, train healthcare providers, combat diseases, and improve access to care for vulnerable populations.” She stressed the need to resist the politicization and extremism of public health, emphasizing fairness, resilience, and international solidarity as foundations for future progress.
Marcela Belardo, Associate at the University of Buenos Aires and Permanent Associate Researcher at Argentina’s National Council for Scientific and Technical Research, reflected on the lessons of the COVID-19 pandemic, remarking that “the pandemic exposed and deepened global structural inequalities, particularly in countries with fragile healthcare systems”.
She advocated for the establishment of a South-South medical cooperation agenda, particularly between Latin America and China, to enhance regional integration and reduce dependency on imported medicines.
From the perspective of multinational enterprises, CHEN Kai, Executive Director of Astrazeneca International Life Science Park and Regional Innovation Center, emphasized China’s advantages in pharmaceutical innovation, highlighting the country’s pioneering role, strong industrial support, and diversified innovation ecosystem as critical factors for global healthcare development.
Addressing economic challenges, LI Xin, Executive Director and Senior Vice President of Government Affairs at Shanghai Junshi Biosciences Co., Ltd., discussed the impact of U.S. tariff policies, explaining that Junshi Biosciences is helping Chinese innovative drugs enter the global market by reducing drug costs and accelerating the translation of new medicines—thus providing technological support for the Healthy China 2030.
Shao Xiang, Associate Professor at the School of Management, Fudan University, suggested strengthening collaboration and exchanges with international experts to enhance global recognition of China’s clinical research. He also recommended leveraging the country’s volume-based procurement experience as a gateway to expand into emerging markets, and accelerating the training of specialized clinical research professionals to drive the digital and intelligent transformation of the clinical trial system.
During the commentary session, Professor Zhu Chouwen, Director of the Shanghai Clinical Research and Trial Center (SCRTC), emphasized that advancing the Healthy China 2030 requires the support of new quality productive forces, alongside a transformation of the existing production relationships. He stressed the importance of balancing breakthroughs in high-end technologies with the health needs at the grassroots level. Professor Zhu also highlighted that medical research must focus on the fundamental mechanisms of disease, and that AI should be deeply integrated into specific clinical scenarios rather than being merely trend-chasing without direction. Finally, he underscored that medical companies must adhere to global standards when entering foreign markets, and called for the development of an open, efficient, and high-quality research-oriented hospital system.
The forum highlighted the urgent need for international cooperation, technological innovation, and policy reform to meet global health challenges. As participants agreed, achieving the vision of a “Healthy China 2030” will not only benefit China but also contribute significantly to building a healthier, more resilient global community.
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Writer: YIN Zhenjie
Proofreader: WANG Jingyang
Editor: WANG Mengqi, LI Yijie
