It started as a novel technology contest, but the "AI Super League" has quickly developed into a leading platform for greater China-ASEAN cooperation on artificial intelligence, according to industry chiefs and officials.

The concept has also provided South China's Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region with the opportunity to shore up its geographical advantage as a bridge to member states of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations.

The "AI for All: China-ASEAN" initiative, or "AI Super League", organized by the Guangxi regional government, started in July.

It has drawn an impressive lineup of more than 3,300 teams from across China's 31 provincial-level regions and ASEAN member states. A total of 329 teams from ASEAN are competing in nine categories, ranging from cross-border e-commerce and cultural tourism to automotive innovation and modern agriculture.

Lu Xinning, a member of the Standing Committee of the Communist Party of China Guangxi Committee and vice governor of the Guangxi People's Government, said the league has evolved beyond a mere technology contest.

With no entry barriers, the competition has built an innovation community reaching from Guangxi to the rest of China and extending across the region. "This marks a shift in China-ASEAN cooperation from traditional domains to the digital sphere, paving the way for more inclusive development of artificial intelligence," Lu said.

From its inception, the AI Super League has actively engaged ASEAN enterprises and encouraged the formation of joint teams involving Chinese and ASEAN companies, fostering deeper industrial integration, she said.

With the theme, "AI Guangxi, AI China, AI ASEAN", the event runs from July to November and has drawn top domestic and international enterprises, research teams, university students, and individual developers.

ASEAN-specific application scenarios are being explored and AI enterprises targeting the ASEAN market supported. Deep integration of AI technology with the real economy is also being promoted.