Staff members work at TCL's production workshop in Guangzhou, Guangdong province, on March 28. CHINA DAILY
GUANGZHOU — In a sprawling industrial park, every seven seconds, an air conditioner rolls off an unmanned assembly line in a dark workshop with self-perception and self-decision capabilities.
This is a novel scene of smart manufacturing at Chinese tech giant TCL in Guangzhou, capital of South China's Guangdong province. The complex heralds a profound transformation in how home appliances are engineered and manufactured.
"In the past, factories simply combined information technology with manufacturing. With the rapid development of artificial intelligence, we have integrated AI into every step when building this facility," said Li Xin'an, general manager of TCL's air conditioning division in Guangzhou. "This is a truly AI-native factory."
With an investment of nearly 2 billion yuan ($297 million), TCL's phase I at the Nansha industrial park has a designed annual capacity of 8 million units. Around 4 million units are expected to be produced in 2026.
