China Targets High-End Markets with AI-Driven Manufacturing

China is moving to capture the high-end manufacturing market using 3D scanning, artificial intelligence (AI), and 3D printing. This comes as a manufacturing method that converts physical objects into digital data, designs them with AI, and turns them back into products spreads rapidly. 3D scanning and printing technologies are emerging as a key pillar of competition in next-generation manufacturing.

The starting point of this technology is 3D scanning. When an aircraft engine part is scanned, an identical three-dimensional shape appears on the computer screen. It can faithfully capture everything from hieroglyphic rubbings to the human form. Guo Zihao, a 3D scanner engineer in China, explained, "We record the point cloud features of the laser projected onto an object and combine them to create a 3D model."

The range of applications is also expanding to automobiles, humanoid robots, and rocket and aircraft parts. Generative AI technology that creates 3D models in seconds from just 2D photos or text has also emerged. A 3D printer has even been introduced that makes candy shaped like your face when you take a photo.

Amid this trend, design data is sent directly to 3D printers and turned into actual products. The level of technology has also advanced a step further, with 3D printers that melt metal to produce products now appearing.