China is moving to establish a comprehensive legal framework for artificial intelligence and the low-altitude economy, with Vice Minister of Justice Wu Zeng announcing at a press conference on Wednesday that legislation in both areas will be accelerated throughout 2026. As reported by the Global Times, the legislative push is designed to provide the institutional foundation required for the 15th Five-Year Plan’s technology development goals and to create a stable regulatory environment that supports innovation while managing risk. The announcement reflects Beijing’s recognition that the pace of technological change in AI and low-altitude aviation has outrun the existing legal infrastructure.
The urgency of the legislative agenda is underscored by the scale of economic activity already underway in both sectors. China’s AI industry has grown at a compound annual rate exceeding 30% for several consecutive years, and the low-altitude economy, encompassing commercial drones, eVTOL aircraft, and autonomous aerial logistics, is projected to generate trillions of yuan in economic value by 2030. Without clear legal frameworks governing liability, data rights, airspace access, and commercial operations, the growth of both industries faces structural constraints that cannot be resolved through industry self-regulation alone.
(Related: China’s 15th Five-Year Plan Elevates AI to Core National Infrastructure)
AI Ethics, Algorithmic Discrimination, and Data Security
The forthcoming AI legislation will address several of the most contested issues in the field. Regulating technology ethics, preventing algorithmic discrimination, and strengthening data security are identified as key priorities. These concerns have become increasingly prominent as AI systems are deployed in high-stakes domains including credit scoring, hiring, healthcare triage, and law enforcement. The legislation will build on the foundation established by China’s existing AI-specific rules, including the Algorithmic Recommendation Regulations of 2022, the Deep Synthesis Regulations of 2022, and the Generative AI Measures of 2023, to create a more integrated and comprehensive legal framework.
The revised Cybersecurity Law, which took effect on January 1, 2026, has already incorporated AI-related provisions and strengthened coordination with the Data Security Law and the Personal Information Protection Law. The new comprehensive AI legislation will further extend this coordination, addressing gaps and ambiguities that have emerged as AI capabilities have advanced beyond what earlier rules anticipated.
Liu Guixiang, a senior member of the adjudicatory committee of the Supreme People’s Court, stated that Chinese courts will refine judicial rules governing AI and data property rights over the next five years. The focus will be on new business forms in the digital economy, with particular attention to data rights, data transactions, and AI-generated content. This judicial refinement is intended to provide the legal certainty that businesses require to invest in AI applications and data-driven services with confidence.
(Related: China Issues Sweeping AI Ethics Review Rules Covering All Developers)
Low-Altitude Economy: From Regulatory Vacuum to Legal Framework
The low-altitude economy has experienced particularly rapid growth in the absence of comprehensive legislation, creating both commercial opportunities and safety risks. The Civil Aviation Administration of China recently established a dedicated low-altitude safety department — the second national-level body focused on the sector following the National Development and Reform Commission’s initiative in December 2024. The forthcoming legislation will provide the statutory authority and procedural framework that these regulatory bodies need to operate effectively.
Key issues to be addressed in the low-altitude economy legislation include airspace access rights for commercial operators, liability frameworks for accidents involving autonomous aerial vehicles, data privacy requirements for drone-mounted sensors, and standards for integrating low-altitude traffic management systems with existing air traffic control infrastructure. Resolving these issues through legislation rather than administrative guidance will provide a more durable and legally enforceable framework for the industry’s long-term development.
Li Changan, an economist at the University of International Business and Economics, noted that as technology contributes an ever-growing share to China’s economic development, strengthening legislation provides essential institutional support. The 2026 legislative agenda represents an attempt to close the gap between the pace of technological deployment and the pace of legal development, a challenge that every major economy faces as AI and autonomous systems become more deeply embedded in economic and social life.
The international context matters here as well. The European Union’s AI Act entered into force in August 2024 and is now being implemented progressively, establishing a risk-based regulatory framework that is influencing AI governance discussions globally. China’s forthcoming AI legislation will inevitably be compared with the EU framework by foreign companies operating in both markets. Beijing has signaled that it intends to develop a distinctly Chinese approach to AI governance, one that prioritizes innovation and economic development alongside safety and ethics, rather than adopting the more precautionary stance embedded in the EU model. How that balance is struck in the final legislation will have significant implications for the competitiveness of China’s AI industry in international markets and for the broader global debate about how AI should be governed.