Technological equality ignites the ‘AI + Education’ sector, with tech giants and education leaders competing in a billion-dollar track.

The STAR Market Daily reported on January 15th (by reporter Li Jiayi) that as open-source models like DeepSeek ignite the ecosystem, the cost of using large models has drastically decreased, leveling the playing field for AI education. Top-tier AI capabilities have shifted from being exclusive to major companies to becoming inclusive infrastructure, achieving technological equity and enabling small and medium-sized institutions and startups to enter the market.

At the same time, AI-powered search is gradually changing user decision-making paths. When students shift from ‘Baidu search’ to directly asking ‘DeepSeek, please explain Newton’s First Law in language suitable for middle schoolers,’ a transformation in knowledge acquisition methods, teaching interaction models, and even the entire value chain of the education industry has quietly begun.

▎The Path to Implementation of ‘AI + Education’: From Conception to Classroom Reality and Home Desks

The wave of generative AI technologies like ChatGPT and DeepSeek is sweeping across the global education sector. In this profound digital transformation, ‘AI + Education’ is emerging as a new trend in the global digital education revolution.

On December 30, 2025, Zhou Dawang, Director of the Department of Science and Technology and Informatization of the Ministry of Education, stated at an MOE press conference: ‘Plans are underway to issue relevant policy documents in 2026 to systematically deploy artificial intelligence education and applications, building an education system for the future.’

Under the impetus of favorable policies, by the end of 2025, a total of 509 artificial intelligence education base schools have been established nationwide to pilot and explore AI-empowered education practices. Minister of Education Huai Jinpeng has also personally delivered AI-focused lectures to school principals, education bureau chiefs, and university counselors across the country through a combination of online and offline methods, reaching over 400,000 people cumulatively.

Multiple primary and secondary school teachers told The STAR Market Daily reporters that although systematic deployment of ‘AI + Education’ has yet to be implemented at the school level, teachers are encouraged to incorporate artificial intelligence tools into their teaching work. Meanwhile, AI technology has already deeply integrated into students’ daily learning and teachers’ lesson preparation.

In actual teaching, AI is becoming a ‘technological enabler’ to invigorate classrooms. ‘I now use AI software like DouBao and JiMeng extensively in my lesson preparation,’ one Chinese language teacher shared her firsthand experience with reporters. She often uses AI tools to generate imagery scenes for classical poetry and combines video editing to make illustrations dynamically presented. ‘This way, classes are not only more engaging, but students also find it easier to concentrate.’

On the other hand, the teacher also observed that while schools discourage students from early exposure to mobile phones, during actual learning processes, there remain a considerable number of students who proactively use AI tools to look up information and complete assignments.

The teacher clearly pointed out to the reporter from the STAR Market Daily that AI, as a tool, has no inherent good or bad attributes. “On the positive side, it enables students to efficiently access information and inspire creativity; however, the risk lies in the fact that over-reliance may weaken their ability to develop deep thinking and holistic reasoning.”

In addition to utilizing online AI software to assist with learning and teaching, the “AI + Education” wave has also swept through the offline hardware market, making AI learning devices highly favored by students and parents.

Especially in 2025, when learning tablets will be included in the scope of the ‘National Subsidy’ policy, directly lowering the consumption threshold and driving rapid growth in the electronic education hardware market. According to the latest market report by RUNTO, it is predicted that China’s learning tablet sales across all channels will reach 6.5 million units in 2025, representing a year-on-year increase of 9.7%.

▎Technological inclusiveness ignites a billion-dollar track, with tech giants, educational leaders, and startups accelerating their strategic deployments.

With the comprehensive explosion of open-source models represented by DeepSeek, alongside ecosystems such as DouBao and ChatGPT both domestically and internationally, the sharp decline in the cost of using large models, and the successful listing of companies like Zhipu and MiniMax validating business models, the barrier to entry for AI in education has been completely leveled.

Top-tier AI capabilities, once exclusive to major tech firms, have gradually become inclusive industry infrastructure, enabling technological democratization and allowing numerous small and medium-sized educational training institutions and startups to participate in this educational revolution.

A report from Changjiang Securities Research Institute shows that the “AI + Education” industry has vast market potential, with an expected market size reaching 160 billion yuan by 2027 and nearing 180 billion yuan by 2030.

As the “AI + Education” sector continues to heat up, the competitive landscape is also evolving. From intelligent applications to online courses and hardware products, an increasing number of tech giants, traditional education enterprises, and startups are investing heavily in this space, leveraging their strengths in technology, content, and scenarios to engage in differentiated competition.

Tech companies represented by Tencent and iFlytek focus their strategic core on building open infrastructure and underlying AI capability platforms, reducing the technical barriers within the industry. For instance, Tencent’s programming education platform “KouDing” has covered all 33 provincial administrative regions in China, with the total number of cooperative and serviced schools reaching 39,000.

Traditional educational technology giants like TAL Education Group and New Oriental combine AI hardware and software products, teaching content, and emotional support from human teachers. According to China Merchants Securities International, the integrated development of model capabilities, systematic content, emotional support, and generalized learning scenarios will become the future trend of “AI + Education.”

Innovative startups are increasingly seeking breakthroughs in niche scenarios such as AI-enabled learning lamps, writing tablets, and other smart hardware, as well as specialized tools for vertical disciplines. They leverage multimodal AI technology to create new product experiences.

China Merchants Securities International believes that by 2026, leading Chinese educational training companies will continue to balance revenue growth with profitability. Revenue and core net profit are expected to increase by 16% and 18% year-on-year, respectively, with the average core net profit margin expanding from 6% to 7%.

It is worth noting that this profound transformation, driven by AI technology, policy, and market forces, has an ultimate goal not of replacing teachers but of empowering education itself. It is accelerating the shift in industry value from mere knowledge transmission to a comprehensive focus on personalized student growth and core competency development. The new paradigm of future education will move toward a harmonious integration of human-machine collaboration and complementary strengths.