Gerd Müller, Director General of UNIDO, visits ITPO Shanghai

Gerd Müller, Director General of UNIDO led a delegation to Shanghai for the first time to attend the World Al Conference & High-Level Meeting on Global Al Governance between July 4 to 6. During this mission, the UNIDO delegation met with Mr. Zheng Gong, Mayor of Shanghai Municipality. During the opening ceremony of the World Artificial Intelligence Conference (WAIC) 2024 held in Shanghai, UNIDO Director General Gerd Müller inaugurated the new Global Alliance on AI for Industry and Manufacturing Centre of Excellence (AIM Global CoE) together with Mr. Jin Zhuanglong, Minister of Industry and Information Technology of China. The establishment of the new UNIDO AIM Global CoE in Shanghai is supported by the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT), and the Shanghai Municipal People's Government. 

After the meeting, Mr. Gerd Müller visited the UNIDO Shanghai Investment and Technology Promotion Office (UNIDO ITPO Shanghai) to discuss on how to implement Mayor's expectation.

Director General first acknowledged the contributions made by the Shanghai ITPO towards the joint establishment of the UNIDO AIM Global CoE by UNIDO and the Chinese government.

He emphasized the need to further strengthen the collaboration between the UNIDO ITPO Network and the headquarters' Technical Cooperation Departments to respond to Shanghai's proposal of "bringing more cooperative projects to Shanghai, jointly promoting and accelerating global industrial development." Additionally, he pointed out that AI is a core driving force for future development and will play a crucial role in advancing global sustainable goals. He hopes that ITPO Shanghai will continue playing a key role as a bridge between enterprises and nations, accelerating the pace of technological innovation and application, and reducing the technological gap between different countries and regions.

Mr. Ciyong Zou, Deputy Director General and Managing Director of UNIDO, Manuel Mattiat, Head of the Director General’s Office, Mr. Jie Zhao, Chief of UNIDO GLO/RFO/ASP, Stephen Kargbo, Representative of UNIDO CRO, and Ms. Chuyi Zhang, Junior Professional Officer of TCS/DAI.

The UNIDO delegation also visited the Shanghai Artificial Intelligence Research Institute (SAIRI), where the new UNIDO AIM Global Centre of Excellence will be located. A visit to the Shanghai Bailonggang Sewage Treatment Plant highlighted innovative sustainability practices in urban infrastructure and green energy.