China's booming artificial intelligence sector is reshaping the country's cybersecurity landscape with both unprecedented opportunities and complex risks, participants attending the 2025 Beijing Cyber Security Conference said on Thursday.

To secure the country's digital future, they called for tighter public-private coordination and a shift toward integrated, intelligent, and resilient defense systems.

"Artificial intelligence is both a strategic opportunity and a disruptive challenge for cybersecurity," said Zhao Zhiguo, executive deputy director of the Expert Advisory Committee of the Internet Society of China. "AI amplifies threats, accelerates attacks, and further deepens the asymmetry between attackers and defenders."

"We must build a more flexible, intelligent, and collaborative security system," he said. "It's not just about breaking through — it's about reconstructing a new intelligent defense architecture."

He offered three key recommendations: system-wide deployment of AI in cybersecurity infrastructure, scenario-driven innovation led by top firms, and a focus on real-world, battle-tested applications such as advanced threat detection and vulnerability analysis. "Cybersecurity is a complex engineering effort," Zhao emphasized. "It requires the joint efforts of government, enterprises, research institutions, and all sectors of society."

An Lijia, vice-chairman of the All-China Federation of Industry and Commerce, called on enterprises to take greater responsibility in building intrinsic cybersecurity frameworks and transitioning from "passive response to proactive defense."

Sun Weimin, chief engineer of the Cyberspace Administration of China, said: "Cybersecurity has become deeply integrated into every aspect of the national economy."

"We must raise our endogenous security baseline," Sun said. "Too many systems still rely on open-source software — in some sectors as high as 90 percent. Once vulnerabilities are exploited, it's too late for outer-layer defenses."

Sun said more efforts should be made to strengthen basic security protocols during software development and build a national joint defense system involving operators, regulators, and services providers.

In a resolution adopted at the third plenary session of the 20th CPC Central Committee in July last year, it was clearly stated that the country will strengthen the cybersecurity system and institute oversight systems to ensure the safety of AI.

"Without cybersecurity, there is no national security — and without it, enterprises are defenseless in the AI era," said Qi Xiangdong, chairman of Chinese cybersecurity company Qi-Anxin Technology Group. "The key to breaking through lies in system-level integration."

ouyangshijia@chinadaily.com.cn