The National Development and Reform Commission and the National Energy Administration recently announced that China has preliminarily established an innovation system that integrates energy and AI. One company that is in the lead of this is power utility State Grid Jiaxing, which has launched an AI dispatch system.

The National Development and Reform Commission and the National Energy Administration statement said that nationally, the foundation for the coordinated development of computing power and electric power is continuing to strengthen — with breakthroughs in core AI-enabled energy technologies and increasing applications.

A senior official from the NEA's Department of Science and Technology said that as AI applications became more widespread, it was critical to accelerate their deep integration into the energy sector.

He said this would foster systemic transformation and support the creation of a new energy system.

For AI to scale across the energy industry, application scenarios were key, the official added.

Among various energy systems, the power grid — already in the process of intelligentization — has become a forerunner of the digital transformation.

On July 30, around 4:30 am, Typhoon Co-may — the No 8 of  the year — made landfall along the coast in Zhejiang province, bringing with it heavy winds and rain.

Just hours later, at 8:19 am, Cai Yunjie, an on-duty dispatcher at State Grid Jiaxing Power Supply Company, swiftly handled a tripping fault with the assistance of "Qihang" — the company's AI-powered virtual chief dispatcher.

Developed by State Grid Jiaxing Power Supply Company, Qihang is an intelligent auxiliary decision-making system designed for distribution network operation and dispatch.

It integrates functions such as anomaly detection and alerts, AI-powered voice calling, one-click ticket generation, remote operations supervision, automated work order dispatches and AI-driven voice follow-ups.

These features enable dispatchers to monitor key distribution indicators and make decisions more efficiently.

Distribution dispatching is highly complex, especially during extreme weather, when operators must analyze multiple layers of information  — ranging from fault data to protection and automation device responses — often under significant time pressure.

Gong Liwu, a dispatcher at the company, said that it had piloted an operational model in Pinghu city in Zhejiang province, where human dispatchers were assisted by Qihang.

He added that the model had reduced the information retrieval time for distribution dispatching by 30 percent and increased the efficiency of handling critical operations by more than 40 percent.

Building on the success of these pilot results, State Grid Jiaxing Power Supply Company is expanding the application of Qihang across other county-level subsidiaries.

Moreover, the company has also developed an integrated transmission–distribution coordination platform, which features intelligent early warnings and decision-making applications.

By embedding AI throughout the entire business process — including grid monitoring, fault diagnoses and emergency repairs coordination — the company is said to be enhancing its service quality and operational efficiency, further advancing the integration of energy and AI.