In recent years, the intersection of data element industrialization and the evolution of AI models has catalyzed a transformation within various markets, stimulating the growth of abundant business opportunities and novel commercial modelsParticularly, the evolving demand for computing power has seen a shift from training to inference stages, leading to a rise in the utilization of domestic intelligent computing resources, ultimately benefiting various companies along the industrial chain.

As information technology (IT) enterprises expand their business horizons during the industrialization of data elements, many now offer comprehensive public data licensing and operational servicesOver the past six months, vertical applications in sectors such as financial services have surged significantlyThis flourishing sector highlights the untapped market potential of data elements, with the rewards tied to AI large models and DeepSeek gradually penetrating upstream industries, thereby enhancing the performance of big data, cloud computing, and foundational infrastructures through metrics such as increased traffic, improved efficiency, and reduced inventory.

Following several years of concerted efforts, the landscape of China's data element policy framework has become markedly clearerNumerous data group companies have emerged across over ten provinces and cities, intensifying the planning around data management at the enterprise levelNow that data can be recognized as a revenue-generating asset, companies rich in data resources or those with unique data characteristics are emerging as direct beneficiaries of this trend.

As we look to the future, the market for data elements continues to expand significantlyData is increasingly regarded as a new form of production, serving as the foundation for digital, networked, and intelligent industries

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The blending of data with other production elements can elevate the overall production capacity, thereby driving economic growthThroughout China’s 14th Five-Year Plan (2021-2025), estimates suggest that the scale of the data element circulation market may reach between 500 billion to 1 trillion yuanFurthermore, projections indicate that from 2024 to 2030, the data industry could sustain a growth rate exceeding 20%, potentially reaching a market size of 7.5 trillion yuan by 2030.

Currently, numerous IT companies in the A-share market are offering data assetization services, including firms like Yihualu and Shensa ARecent statistics reveal that in 2024, a total of 64 listed companies disclosed their enterprises' data resource metrics in their semi-annual reportsThe aggregate amount disclosed reached 1.402 billion yuan, a notable increase of 41 companies compared to just 23 at the start of the year, reflecting a significant growth of 37.6% in total monetary value.

Public data operation and licensing have emerged as key methods for tapping into data value and ensuring equitable data distributionPolitically, the foundational rules governing public data resource development and utilization are being established, with expectations that by 2030, such regulations will be robust, leading to a comprehensive framework for resource development and utilization.

Huaxi Securities has highlighted the aggressive and comprehensive expansion of data businesses focused on public data authorizations, which is expected to activate the dynamics of the data elements industry and hasten the closing of the industry's supply chain loop by creating an entirely new investment landscape.

A significant event occurred in December 2024, with the establishment of China’s first state-owned data technology enterprise — China Data Union Logistics Information Co., Ltd

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Registered with capital of 10 billion yuan, it aims to integrate logistics, information flow, and financial flow, ultimately creating a national-level logistics big data platformThis milestone is viewed by the market as a major breakthrough for central enterprise funds venturing into the data elements industry.

The powerful financial reserves and asset mobilization capabilities of state-owned enterprises can boost resource circulation and sharing within the logistics industryIf this new company's founding marks a positive response to data element policies, the anticipated ripple effect in other key sectors is generating considerable market excitement.

As companies intensify their focus on data management, data group companies have begun popping up in numerous provinces and citiesRecent updates indicate a strategic approach to further integrate and optimize national data resources, facilitating effective configuration and deep application of data elements.

Analysts at Dongxing Securities suggest that under the current regulatory framework, the National Data Bureau is focusing on establishing governance systems to support industry developmentIn contrast, future national data groups may prioritize the release of resource value, attaining policy goals through resource integration and technological innovation, indicating that both approaches may complement each other in pushing forward the construction of the data element market and the evolution of the digital economy.

Presently, the circulation and application of data elements are in a fundamental infrastructure-building phaseMarket demand has dictated divergent business models, giving rise to two main categoriesThe first centers around governmental and public sectors, primarily focused on infrastructure development, with procurement and operational maintenance of software and hardware IT services and associated consulting services

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The second category highlights sectors such as finance, healthcare, and transportation, which are implementing practices centered on data operation and service modelsThey customarily charge either a one-time fee based on practical application scope and data source complexities or share profits according to generated revenues.

In this evolving narrative, numerous IT companies are exploring innovative modes for public data authorization operations, establishing industry-specific data spaces that encompass governance, education, healthcare, energy, water conservancy, and airport servicesThis initiative aims to promote the fluidity and value realization of public data resources, constructing platforms for public data operations and commercial data transactions to meet oversight, integration, privacy computing, and processing needs.

Sectors such as financial services, healthcare data, spatiotemporal data, and network visualization have already established a solid foundation for industrializationTaking the finance sector as a prime example, new technologies like big data and artificial intelligence have demonstrated their efficacy, with internal data integration and sharing being progressively enhancedThis shift has resulted in an increase in the intelligence and personalization of financial services, significantly empowering risk management capabilities.

Over the past six months, within the application software sector tracked by Shenwan, companies engaged primarily in financial services experienced stock price increases exceeding three-fold; notable entities like Huijin Technology saw their stock prices grow by 5.3 times, while Winsight and Yinzhijie witnessed growth rates of 4.7 and 4.0 times, respectively.

In the domain of smart cities, software firms are offering integrated soft and hardware solutions for intelligent computing center construction and operational support, leveraging large models to iteratively upgrade digital government products and solutions

In digital security, IT companies are focused on ensuring data security within domains, providing comprehensive safety guarantees for data elementization.

Additionally, IT service companies are assisting corporate users in evaluating data assets for inclusion on balance sheets, offering services for data resource inventories, construction of data asset frameworks, and consulting on data licensing operations.

As demand for cloud services rapidly evolves, the requirements for data security and regulation are increasingly stringent, thus maintaining a sustained demand for dedicated end-to-end cloud infrastructure services.

To enhance the synergy between computing and networking, the three major telecom operators have begun constructing a 400G optical transmission backbone network, achieving high-bandwidth, all-fiber connections between national hubs and demand locationsBy the third quarter of 2024, both revenue and net profits among these telecom giants increased significantly compared to the same period the previous year, with China Mobile and China Unicom witnessing double-digit growth in net profits.

The foundation for the growth of the data element industry lies in the expansion of data infrastructure, with several related subsectors experiencing significant upgrades in recent yearsFor instance, in the field of Content Delivery Networks (CDN), the technology underpinning CDN services has evolved towards edge cloud operating systems, shifting market competition from pricing wars to service differentiationChina's CDN market expanded from 12.3 billion yuan in 2019 to 37 billion yuan in 2023.

Currently, China's data infrastructure is still in its nascent stages of construction; however, the fortunate combination of artificial intelligence technologies facilitates the more effective use of data elements, accelerating the pace of industry development.

The incursion of AI content generation applications has further benefited enterprises, as evidenced by Haitai Ruisheng's notable growth in demand for smart voice and natural language services in 2024, significantly boosting the company's revenue and resulting in a turnaround from loss to profit.

The DeepSeek model, regarded highly for its capabilities, is seeing a significant uptick in API calls

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