Embracing AI, Engineering a Better Future Together: ABB Accelerator China Week Accelerates Innovatio

From May 26-30, the ABB Accelerator China Week—an AI innovation program themed “Embracing AI, Engineering a Better Future Together”—was held simultaneously at the ABB Robotics Mega Factory in Shanghai and on an online platform, drawing more than 6,000 employees, customers, and partners from China and abroad. During the event, an AI Hackathon produced nearly 350 AI-based innovation proposals, while close to 50 partner organizations and ABB technology experts exchanged insights and best practices through AI-forward keynotes and application forums. ABB also showcased more than 40 AI-driven solutions, illustrating the transformative power of AI across multiple dimensions.

Sami Atiya, President of ABB’s Robotics & Discrete Automation business area and member of the ABB Group Executive Committee, stated: “Artificial intelligence is no longer a distant vision of the future—it is already a reality in our daily lives. As a key enabling technology, AI will be embedded in virtually every product. At ABB, we develop AI solutions ‘bottom-up,’ creating innovations that solve real problems and deliver tangible results.”

“One of the most important drivers of ABB’s innovation is our culture of collaboration. By connecting start-ups, business partners, and academic institutions, we are building an open innovation ecosystem. This week’s ABB Accelerator in China is a vivid demonstration of that philosophy. Together with our partners, we are developing intelligent technologies that better serve our Chinese customers.”

As part of the ABB Accelerator program, the ABB AI Hackathon attracted numerous teams from across ABB China and the wider ABB organization, resulting in roughly 350 AI proposals and use cases spanning machine learning, deep learning, natural-language processing, computer vision, and reinforcement learning. Twenty teams advanced to the finals, demonstrating AI’s vast potential to enhance efficiency, reduce costs, drive growth, and promote sustainability.

The ABB Accelerator was strongly supported by nearly 50 partner companies—including Microsoft, China Telecom, Foxconn, Infosys, SAP, Salesforce, Lianweicloud, and Shanshu Technology. Senior AI specialists and ABB technology experts explored the latest trends in AI deployment and the future convergence of AI and industry during AI-forward keynotes and application forums.

In the solutions showcase, ABB presented more than 40 AI-powered offerings from its four business areas, covering everything from production automation to green manufacturing. Examples include AI-enhanced computer vision that is revolutionizing quality control and object recognition, enabling faster and more accurate inspections. AI’s predictive capabilities are also on display in data-driven predictive maintenance and intelligent energy-management applications that boost resilience and efficiency while advancing sustainability.

Globally, ABB is currently running more than 250 active AI projects—both analytical and generative—more than double the number a year ago. These projects include internal initiatives that optimize workflows and enhance efficiency, as well as external projects co-developed with customers to drive product innovation and unlock value.

In China, ABB’s AI solutions are already delivering concrete value across industries:

• The ABB Xiamen Industrial Center has installed 100,000 m² of rooftop photovoltaics, achieving 50 % green-electricity substitution. ABB’s intelligent energy-management solution, equipped with AI algorithms for generation and load forecasting, enables precise, flexible control that improves energy efficiency and reduces annual carbon emissions by 13,400 t.

• ABB’s AI-driven district-heating upgrade solution analyzes big data from more than 2,000 variable-frequency drives at Xinjiang Tianfu Energy’s heating subsidiary, providing energy-consumption analysis and early warnings that guide energy-saving measures and deliver significant efficiency gains.

• For Qingdao Special Steel’s new high-speed wire-rod line, ABB deployed an intelligent-manufacturing solution. The System 800xA-based intelligent operator platform consolidates four legacy control rooms into a single integrated command center, fostering improved collaboration and interaction. AI image-recognition systems provide real-time alerts for abnormal production conditions and integrate with digital control logic.

• For Kecheng Cloud, a large-scale data center in western China, ABB supplied an innovative power-distribution solution tailored to the data-center sector, including high-performance switchgear, circuit breakers, and software. Its digital capabilities reduce operational energy consumption and optimize Power Usage Effectiveness (PUE), strongly supporting China’s high-quality computing-infrastructure build-out.

When ideas converge through shared purpose, innovation flourishes. ABB remains committed to placing customer needs at the heart of innovation. Through a “test-learn-scale” approach, the company is driving deep integration of AI into operations and products, joining forces with partners to unlock ever more intelligent solutions that enable leaner, cleaner operations across industries and continuously unleash new momentum for industrial upgrading.

ABB is a global technology leader in electrification and automation, dedicated to enabling a more sustainable and resource-efficient future. By combining engineering expertise with digital technologies, ABB helps customers operate efficiently, improve energy and operational efficiency, advance sustainability, and achieve new levels of performance—engineering a better future together. With more than 140 years of history, ABB employs approximately 110,000 people worldwide and is listed on the SIX Swiss Exchange (ABBN) and Nasdaq Stockholm (ABB).

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Tags: ABB, ABB Accelerator, AI