AliCloud artificial intelligence ET, shows off its calligraphy skills by writing Spring Festival couplets for Alibaba employees in Alibaba Xixi park in Hangzhou, East China's Zhejiang province. [Photo/VCG]

China will set guidelines and raise the industry entry threshold to avoid repetition in construction of industrial robots, Xin Guobin, vice-minister of Industry and Information Technology, said at a news conference during the annual session of NPC.

Xin said more than 20 provinces and cities across the country consider the robotics industry as a key sector to drive the local economy, with the number of robot industrial parks built or under construction surpassing 40.

China produced 72,400 industrial robots in 2016, increasing 34.3 percent year-on-year, Xin said.