Zahlen, bitte! Made in China: The Fourth Industrial Revolution

China persistently aims for technological leadership in many future areas through its industrial policy until 2049. A concise look at Asia.

(Image: heise medien)

Mar 31, 2026 at 10:25 pm CEST

3 min. read

By

Detlef Borchers

While the US under Trump continues to get bogged down in its Iran war, China under Xi Jinping is sticking to its goal of making the country a technological world leader with the fourth industrial revolution. In March 2026, the Xinhua news agency disseminated a speech by Xi in which he stated: “The degree of self-reliance and strength in science and technology will be significantly improved. The overall effectiveness of the national innovation system will be significantly enhanced, with nationwide R&D spending increasing by an average of more than 7% annually.”

In this section, we present amazing, impressive, informative and funny figures ("Zahlen") from the fields of IT, science, art, business, politics and, of course, mathematics every Tuesday. The wordplay "Zahlen, bitte!" for a section about numbers is based on the ambiguity of the German word "Zahlen." On one hand, "Zahlen" can be understood as a noun in the sense of digits and numerical values, which fits the theme of the section. On the other hand, the phrase "Zahlen, bitte!" is reminiscent of a waiter's request in a restaurant or bar when they are asked to bring the bill. Through this association, the section acquires a playful and slightly humorous undertone that catches the readers' attention and makes them curious about the presented numbers and facts.

Alle Artikel zu "Zahlen, bitte!"

The fields in which China is to become a world leader are broad: In addition to IT and robotics, Xi often mentions space technology, shipbuilding, and railway technology, as well as neurosciences and biochemistry. Artificial intelligence also plays a significant role in this program. There are some figures for the fourth industrial revolution that prove that China has laid the groundwork for the project to dominate global industrial production by the 100th anniversary of the People's Republic in 2049.

Rockets of the "Long March" type have secured China's access to space since the 1970s, as seen here in 2022 during the launch of the "Wentian" science module on its way to the Chinese space station.

(Image: CC BY 3.0, 中新网)

Top positions for young scientists

In the Leiden Ranking for the most influential publications of 2025, a Chinese university leads, and Harvard is in third place as the former champion. The index of the journal Nature shows the same. China leads the ranking for students sent abroad in STEM subjects. The figures indicate that China can herald the fourth industrial revolution, just as England did the first industrial revolution, Germany the second industrial revolution, and the USA the third with the digital age.

With the production of batteries and electric cars, China has managed to achieve market leadership in 10 years. The country is also a world leader in the installation of industrial robots – the Augsburg-based industrial robot manufacturer Kuka, now owned by China, sends its regards. In 2024, a total of 295,000 industrial robots were installed in China alone. That is 54% of the world market. And for the first time, the majority of robots came from Chinese production.

Industrial robots, like those on the assembly line of a Porsche plant, are a central element in China's Industry 4.0 strategy.

(Image: CC BY-SA 4.0, Industrie117)

Something similar could happen to the plastics industry. Also in the area of Industry 4.0, a term coined in Germany, China is now ahead. If one believes the Chinese Consul General Huang Yiyang, German companies are very enthusiastic about the new business climate in China and feel more like they are in a “gym.” What could possibly go wrong?

Let's conclude with the assessment by Tanner Greer and Nancy Yu: “The Chinese strategy rests on two assumptions: first, that the world is indeed at the dawn of an economic transformation comparable in scale to the industrial revolution, and second, that China will lead this new technological revolution, should it occur. Neither of these assumptions is certain.”

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