Unleash Innovation Momentum to Lead the Development of New Quality Productive Forces

The recently concluded Central Economic Work Conference pointed out that it is necessary to promote industrial innovation through scientific and technological innovation, especially by using disruptive technologies and cutting-edge technologies to spawn new industries, new models, and new momentum, and to develop new quality productive forces. New quality productive forces involve new fields and have high technological content; it is imperative to accelerate the release of innovation momentum and adhere to leading development through scientific and technological innovation.

近日召开的中央经济工作会议指出，要以科技创新推动产业创新，特别是以颠覆性技术和前沿技术催生新产业、新模式、新动能，发展新质生产力。新质生产力涉及领域新、技术含量高，必须加快释放创新动能，坚持以科技创新引领发展。

Deeply Understand and Grasp New Quality Productive Forces

深刻认识和把握新质生产力

“New quality productive forces” is an innovation and development of the Marxist theory of productive forces, further enriching the connotation of Xi Jinping’s economic thought. It has both important theoretical significance and profound practical significance. General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out, “Integrate scientific and technological innovation resources, lead the development of strategic emerging industries and future industries, and accelerate the formation of new quality productive forces” and “actively cultivate strategic emerging industries such as new energy, new materials, advanced manufacturing, and electronic information, actively cultivate future industries, accelerate the formation of new quality productive forces, and enhance new momentum for development.” General Secretary Xi Jinping’s important discourse on new quality productive forces provides a fundamental guideline for us to understand and grasp new quality productive forces.

“新质生产力”是对马克思主义生产力理论的创新和发展，进一步丰富了习近平经济思想的内涵，既有重要的理论意义，又有深刻的实践意义。习近平总书记指出，“整合科技创新资源，引领发展战略性新兴产业和未来产业，加快形成新质生产力”“积极培育新能源、新材料、先进制造、电子信息等战略性新兴产业，积极培育未来产业，加快形成新质生产力，增强发展新动能”。习近平总书记关于新质生产力的重要论述，为我们认识和把握新质生产力提供了根本遵循。

Developing new quality productive forces is an important driving force for promoting high-quality development of China’s economy. New quality productive forces differ from traditional productive forces; they are productive forces in which scientific and technological innovation plays a leading role and which meet the requirements of high-quality development. New quality productive forces take innovation as the primary driving force, intelligence as an important resource, and data as the core factor of production. They are a new type of productive force that represents new technologies, creates new value, adapts to new industries, and reshapes new momentum. Integrating scientific and technological innovation resources, leading the development of strategic emerging industries and future industries, and accelerating the formation of new quality productive forces are important tasks before us. Only by developing new quality productive forces can we inject continuous momentum into high-quality development and consolidate the foundation for comprehensively building a modern socialist country.

发展新质生产力是推动我国经济实现高质量发展的重要动力。新质生产力有别于传统生产力，是科技创新在其中起主导作用的生产力，是符合高质量发展要求的生产力。新质生产力以创新为第一动力、智能为重要资源、数据为核心生产要素，是代表新技术、创造新价值、适应新产业、重塑新动能的新型生产力。整合科技创新资源，引领发展战略性新兴产业和未来产业，加快形成新质生产力，是摆在我们面前的重要任务。发展新质生产力，才能为高质量发展注入源源不断的动力，夯实全面建设社会主义现代化国家的基础。

Developing new quality productive forces is an inevitable requirement for seizing the opportunities of the new round of scientific and technological revolution and industrial transformation. Currently, the new round of scientific and technological revolution and industrial transformation is deepening, with continuous emergence, maturation, application, and diffusion of cutting-edge and disruptive technologies, spawning new products, new services, new models, and new business forms, and forming a series of emerging subdivided industries. The development of new quality productive forces is closely related to the cultivation and growth of emerging industries. It is necessary for accelerating the cultivation of new momentum for economic growth and achieving leapfrog development in new fields and new tracks. New quality productive forces will promote the industrial system to develop in a high-quality, high-efficiency, and sustainable direction, becoming a key driving force for the upgrading of traditional manufacturing and providing a new engine for building a manufacturing powerhouse.

发展新质生产力是抓住新一轮科技革命和产业变革机遇的必然要求。当前，新一轮科技革命和产业变革深入推进，不断有前沿技术和颠覆性技术涌现、成熟、应用和扩散，催生新产品、新服务、新模式、新业态，形成一系列新兴的细分产业。发展新质生产力与新兴产业的培育壮大息息相关，是加快培育经济增长新动能、在新领域新赛道实现跨越式发展的需要。新质生产力将推动产业体系向高质量、高效率、可持续方向发展，成为推动传统制造业升级的关键驱动力，为制造强国建设提供新引擎。

High-Level Scientific and Technological Self-Reliance and Self-Strengthening Is Crucial

高水平科技自立自强至关重要

The report of the 20th National Congress of the CPC [1]1 The 20th National Congress of the CPC was held in October 2022, where Xi Jinping delivered a report outlining made important arrangements for accelerating the implementation of the innovation-driven development strategy, requiring “accelerating the realization of high-level scientific and technological self-reliance and self-strengthening.” When presiding over the second collective study session of the 20th Central Political Bureau, General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out, “Accelerate the pace of scientific and technological self-reliance and self-strengthening.” At the First Session of the 14th National People’s Congress, General Secretary Xi Jinping emphasized, “Strive to enhance the capability of scientific and technological self-reliance and self-strengthening.” General Secretary Xi Jinping’s series of important speeches profoundly clarify the importance and urgency of scientific and technological self-reliance and self-strengthening. High-level scientific and technological self-reliance and self-strengthening is a reliable guarantee for the formation and development of new quality productive forces.

党的二十大报告对加快实施创新驱动发展战略作出重要部署，要求“加快实现高水平科技自立自强”。习近平总书记主持二十届中央政治局第二次集体学习时指出，“加快科技自立自强步伐”。在第十四届全国人民代表大会第一次会议上，习近平总书记强调，“着力提升科技自立自强能力”。习近平总书记的系列重要讲话深刻阐明了科技自立自强的重要性与紧迫性。高水平科技自立自强是形成和发展新质生产力的可靠保证。

Scientific and technological self-reliance and self-strengthening is the foundation of national prosperity and the key to security. Innovation is the soul of a nation’s progress and an inexhaustible driving force for a country’s prosperity and development. Practice has proven that for China to prosper and for the Chinese nation to achieve rejuvenation, it is imperative to vigorously develop science and technology and continuously enhance the capability to meet major challenges, resist major risks, and safeguard national security and strategic interests. Accelerating the building of a scientific and technological powerhouse is a strategic support for comprehensively building a modern socialist country and comprehensively advancing the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation. Promoting scientific and technological self-reliance and self-strengthening demonstrates the Party’s historical consciousness of grasping the initiative in scientific and technological development. It is necessary to deeply perceive the times and trends, dialectically grasp crises and opportunities, concentrate efforts to promote scientific and technological innovation, and strive to cultivate opportunities amid crises and open up new prospects amid changes.

科技自立自强是国家强盛之基、安全之要。创新是一个民族进步的灵魂，是一个国家兴旺发达的不竭动力。实践证明，中国要强盛，中华民族要复兴，就一定要大力发展科学技术，不断提升应对重大挑战、抵御重大风险，维护国家安全和战略利益的实力。加快建设科技强国是全面建设社会主义现代化国家、全面推进中华民族伟大复兴的战略支撑。推进科技自立自强彰显我们党把握科技发展主动权的历史自觉，必须深刻洞察时与势，辩证把握危与机，集中力量推进科技创新，努力于危机中育先机、于变局中开新局。

Achieving high-level scientific and technological self-reliance and self-strengthening is crucial for comprehensively building a modern socialist country. It is of great significance for basing ourselves on the new stage of development, implementing the new development philosophy, building a new development pattern, promoting high-quality development, and winning the initiative in the new round of scientific and technological revolution and industrial transformation. Only by achieving high-level scientific and technological self-reliance and self-strengthening can we provide new growth space, key focal points, and main support systems for building a new development pattern and promoting high-quality development, enabling high-quality development to rely more on innovation-driven endogenous growth. We must adhere to taking scientific and technological self-reliance and self-strengthening as the basic and strategic support for China’s modernization, open up new fields and new tracks for development, and continuously shape new momentum and new advantages for development.

实现高水平科技自立自强，对于全面建设社会主义现代化国家至关重要，对于立足新发展阶段、贯彻新发展理念、构建新发展格局、推动高质量发展，赢得新一轮科技革命和产业变革主动权具有十分重要的意义。只有实现高水平科技自立自强，才能为构建新发展格局、推动高质量发展提供新的成长空间、关键着力点和主要支撑体系，使高质量发展更多依靠创新驱动的内涵型增长。要坚持把科技自立自强作为我国现代化建设的基础性、战略性支撑，开辟发展新领域新赛道，不断塑造发展新动能新优势。

Fully Leverage the Leading Role of Scientific and Technological Innovation

充分发挥科技创新引领作用

In developing new quality productive forces, innovation is the core. Facing the future, we must adhere to leading the development of new quality productive forces through scientific and technological innovation. It is necessary to accelerate the realization of high-level scientific and technological self-reliance and self-strengthening, build a modern industrial system, promote high-quality development, and inject inexhaustible momentum into comprehensively building a modern socialist country and comprehensively advancing the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation.

发展新质生产力，创新是核心所在。面向未来，必须坚持以科技创新引领新质生产力发展。要加快实现高水平科技自立自强，建设现代化产业体系，推动高质量发展，为全面建设社会主义现代化国家、全面推进中华民族伟大复兴注入不竭动力。

First, promote industrial innovation through scientific and technological innovation. Leverage the leading and driving role of scientific and technological innovation in the development of industries such as next-generation information technology, artificial intelligence, biotechnology, new energy, new materials, high-end equipment, and green environmental protection. Strengthen applied basic research and frontier research, especially using disruptive technologies and cutting-edge technologies to spawn new industries, new models, and new momentum. Relying on new quality productive forces, promote the intelligent, green, and integrated development of industries, and build a modern industrial system with completeness, advanced nature, and security.

一是以科技创新推动产业创新。发挥科技创新对新一代信息技术、人工智能、生物技术、新能源、新材料、高端装备、绿色环保等产业发展的引领带动作用。加强应用基础研究和前沿研究，特别是以颠覆性技术和前沿技术催生新产业、新模式、新动能。依托新质生产力，推进产业智能化、绿色化、融合化，建设具有完整性、先进性、安全性的现代化产业体系。

Second, accelerate the promotion of high-quality development of key manufacturing industry chains. Improve the new nationwide system for mobilizing resources [2], strengthen strategic scientific and technological forces, and focus on shoring up weaknesses, strengthening strengths, and consolidating foundations. Targeting key manufacturing industry chains, identify weak links in key core technologies and components, concentrate high-quality resources for joint research, and promote the “intelligent transformation, digital transformation, and network connectivity” of manufacturing. Strengthen quality support and standard leadership, enhance the resilience and security level of industrial and supply chains, ensure the independent controllability and safety and reliability of the industrial system, and achieve a positive interaction between high-quality development and high-level security.

二是加快推动制造业重点产业链高质量发展。完善新型举国体制，强化战略科技力量，着力补短板、锻长板、强基础。围绕制造业重点产业链，找准关键核心技术和零部件薄弱环节，集中优质资源合力攻关，推进制造业“智改数转网联”。加强质量支撑和标准引领，提升产业链供应链韧性和安全水平，保证产业体系自主可控和安全可靠，实现高质量发展和高水平安全良性互动。

Third, vigorously promote new-type industrialization. On the one hand, accelerate the development of artificial intelligence, build strategic emerging industries such as new energy, new materials, bio-manufacturing, commercial aerospace, and low-altitude economy, open up new tracks for future industries such as quantum information, life sciences, brain-inspired intelligence, and hydrogen energy and energy storage, and cultivate new momentum for future economic growth. On the other hand, widely apply digital intelligence technology and green technology, accelerate the transformation and upgrading of traditional industries, and stimulate the vitality of traditional industries.

三是大力推进新型工业化。一方面，加快推动人工智能发展，打造新能源、新材料、生物制造、商业航天、低空经济等战略性新兴产业，开辟量子信息、生命科学、类脑智能、氢能与储能等未来产业新赛道，培育未来经济增长的新动能。另一方面，广泛应用数智技术、绿色技术，加快传统产业转型升级，激发传统产业活力。

Fourth, strengthen the principal position of enterprises in scientific and technological innovation. Leverage the leading and supporting role of leading science and technology enterprises, promote the healthy growth of small and medium-sized science and technology enterprises, and promote the deep integration of the innovation chain, industrial chain, capital chain, and talent chain. Encourage the development of venture capital and equity investment, open up the “technology-industry-finance” chain, and promote better financial support for scientific and technological innovation. Deepen the reform of the science and technology system, continuously improve the level of transformation and industrialization of scientific and technological achievements, improve the science and technology evaluation system and incentive mechanism, and create a good environment for innovative talents to stand out and fully display their talents.

四是强化企业科技创新主体地位。发挥科技型骨干企业引领支撑作用，促进科技型中小微企业健康成长，推进创新链产业链资金链人才链深度融合。鼓励发展创业投资、股权投资，打通“科技—产业—金融”链条，促进金融更好地支持科技创新。深化科技体制改革，不断提高科技成果转化和产业化水平，健全科技评价体系和激励机制，为创新人才脱颖而出、尽展才华创造良好环境。

(The author is a specially-appointed researcher of the Beijing Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era Research Center and a professor at the Party School of the Beijing Municipal Committee of the CPC)

（作者系北京市习近平新时代中国特色社会主义思想研究中心特约研究员、中共北京市委党校教授）

Online Editor: Zhang Fujun

网络编辑：张福军