Analysis of the Main Development Trends in AI+Education Industry: Frequent Policy Support
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In 2023, China's education informatization market reached 577.6 billion yuan, with a 6-year CAGR of 9.2%. Under the dual influence of policy support and AI technology empowerment, China's education industry is expected to undergo major changes.
AI can be applied not only to student learning, examinations, family education, and parent-child companionship but also plays a significant role in teaching and educational management. Education is one of the most direct and logically coherent application scenarios in the AI wave, particularly with the rapid development of generative AI (AIGC).
Frequent Policy Support for AI+Education
In August 2022, the Ministry of Science and Technology issued the Notice on Supporting the Construction of New-Generation AI Demonstration Application Scenarios, listing smart education as one of the first demonstration scenarios.
The Ministry of Education and 17 other departments released guidelines to strengthen science education in primary and secondary schools, proposing standards for science-related teaching equipment and laboratory construction. They advocated exploring AI and virtual reality technologies to enhance experimental teaching and bridge resource gaps in underdeveloped regions, schools, and for special-needs children.
"AI+Education" refers to the deep integration and development of AI and education, leveraging AI applications in educational settings to promote equity, improve quality, and achieve personalized learning.
Specifically, "AI+Education" encompasses innovative technologies, models, and practices in education, categorized into "computational intelligence + education," "perceptual intelligence + education," and "cognitive intelligence + education." This evolution reflects a shift from "storage and computation" to "listening, speaking, seeing, and recognizing," ultimately aiming for "understanding and thinking."
In every industry transformation, technology plays a pivotal role, and AI is no exception. In recent years, AI has empowered rapid, sustained, and stable development across sectors, with education being one of the first deeply impacted. Since its exploratory beginnings in 2014, China's "AI+Education" industry has diversified and matured, moving toward broader applicability.
The essence of AI+Education lies in achieving scalable, equitable, and personalized high-quality educational resources. AI expands the boundaries of human labor, making the large-scale distribution of quality education possible. As AI takes on increasingly complex cognitive tasks, its role in reducing costs and improving efficiency in education becomes more pronounced. Thus, the integration of AI and education fundamentally relies on leveraging low-cost technology to replace or augment high-cost human labor, enabling the mass distribution of quality education while balancing accessibility and personalization to achieve educational equity.
With the advent of ChatGPT sparking an AI industry boom, following the release of GPT-4, Duolingo, the world's largest language-learning platform (listed on the U.S. stock market), announced its official integration and launched a new product, Duolingo Max. This product features a Roleplay function, where an AI chatbot engages in multi-turn conversations with users, creating an immersive and realistic language-learning environment tailored to individual needs.
Current State of AI+Education Development Globally and Domestically
In the international education market, companies like Duolingo, Khan Academy, Chegg, Quizlet, and Speak have partnered with OpenAI to fine-tune and utilize GPT models, enhancing their existing products and accelerating the commercialization of AI technology.
In China's education sector, iFlytek released the Spark Cognitive Model, targeting applications in education, office work, automotive, and digital employees. Its educational features include essay grading and simulated oral teacher interactions. NetEase Youdao introduced an AI Oral Teacher, offering students open-ended chat scenarios for more authentic speaking practice, along with instant post-conversation reports. TAL Education Group announced its in-development MathGPT, a specialized AI model for mathematics.
Currently, AI+Education products globally and domestically span diverse applications, including language learning, adaptive learning, early education devices (with AI-assisted features like eye protection and posture correction), photo-based problem-solving, automated homework grading, virtual teachers, smart teaching, and intelligent exam systems. Listed companies involved include iFlytek, Tencent Holdings, New Oriental, Youdao, Fangzhi Technology, Gaotu, Offcn Education, Fenbi, CVTE, Hengxin Digital, TAL Education, BBK, Honghe Technology, Jiafa Education, Talkweb Information, Alibaba, and Shengtong Group.
Future Trends in AI+Education Industry Development
According to relevant statistics, the global AI education market is projected to grow at an annual rate of nearly 48% from 2019 to 2025, reaching $46.8 billion by 2025. In China, the AI education market is already valued at over 100 billion yuan and is expected to continue expanding rapidly in the coming years.
AI technology is poised to bring new development opportunities to the education sector on the application side. AI technologies represented by AIGC can help reduce costs and improve efficiency in educational content production, enabling personalized and adaptive teaching. The AI+education market has vast potential, with current industry penetration still relatively low.
The education sector has a mature foundation for industrial informatization, a solid user base, and underlying data resources. The generative AI industry chain is already taking shape, with its application direction focusing on scenarios characterized by "high-frequency iteration" and "personalized demand."
In the future, AI+education will develop along four main lines: first, AI in educational informatization (software, hardware, and solutions); second, AI empowering online education to reduce costs and improve efficiency; third, AI enhancing offline education to reduce costs and improve efficiency; and fourth, AI training courses.