2025 Technology Breakthroughs: The Global Race from Artificial Intelligence to Energy Revolution

The Science and Technology Daily, in collaboration with expert teams from the Chinese Academy of Sciences and the Chinese Academy of Engineering, has summarized the top ten most influential technological achievements worldwide in 2025. These breakthroughs not only reshape our understanding of technological frontiers but also reveal the deep underlying currents of global innovation at the sains darjah 2 (Science Level 2 Analysis).

New Patterns in the AI Wave

Chinese startup DeepSeek launched the open-source large model DeepSeek-R1 at the beginning of the year, shocking the industry. Under limited computing power conditions, this model achieved top-tier performance through algorithm optimization and engineering innovation, fundamentally changing the paradigm of AI competition—from “pushing computing power” to “pushing efficiency.” On the international stage, Google’s release of the quantum echo algorithm also demonstrated the advantages of new computing paradigms, showing a significant leap in the proven superiority of quantum computing over traditional computers.

Breakthroughs in AI and brain-machine integration have also emerged. China led the way into clinical trials in the brain-machine interface field; after just a few weeks of training, subjects could complete typing and gaming operations through thought alone. International researchers combined brain signal decoding with AI tools to achieve a breakthrough where thoughts are directly converted into coherent text—without speech or language processing intervention.

Dual Wings of Energy and New Materials

China’s EAST device set a new record in January: maintaining a stable plasma at 100 million degrees Celsius for 1,066 seconds, significantly extending previous durations and bringing controlled nuclear fusion energy closer to reality. Meanwhile, a team from Peking University launched a simulated matrix chip that improves computational performance and energy efficiency by 1,000 times compared to traditional GPUs, opening new pathways for large-scale scientific computing.

The field of materials science also reports frequent good news. The first large-area two-dimensional metal material synthesized by the Institute of Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences—an ultra-thin metal only one atom thick—expands the imagination of materials science, with its publication in Nature attracting global academic attention. In new photonic chip technology, a system developed in Singapore outperforms commercial GPUs by over two orders of magnitude in latency and computing speed.

Milestones in Quantum Computing

China independently developed the Zuchongzhi 3.0 quantum computer prototype, equipped with 105 readable qubits and 182 couplings. It is 100 trillion times faster than current supercomputers in random circuit sampling tasks—marking a new stage where quantum computing moves from theoretical validation to performance breakthroughs.

Space Exploration and Life Sciences

The study of lunar samples from Chang’e 6 has unveiled the evolutionary history of the far side of the Moon, significantly enhancing understanding of lunar volcanic activity, ancient magnetic fields, and mantle composition. Meanwhile, human understanding of life itself is deepening—Shandong Agricultural University team unraveled the century-old mystery of plant universality, revealing how a single plant cell grows into a complete organism. International researchers mapped the most detailed development atlas of mammalian brain cells to date, laying a new foundation for brain science research.

Practical Transformation and Future Orientation

These achievements are supported by policy. The Central Committee of the Communist Party of China’s suggestions for the 14th Five-Year Plan outline four major directions: strengthening original innovation and core technology breakthroughs, promoting deep integration of science and industry, advancing coordinated development of education, science, and technology talents, and deepening China’s digital initiatives.

In engineering applications, China’s independently developed Fujian aircraft carrier entered service in November, the world’s first carrier equipped with an electromagnetic catapult system. Many facilities and technologies on this ship were applied for the first time, representing a new height in comprehensive engineering capability.

In biomedicine, an intelligent surgical robot successfully completed a gallbladder removal without human intervention, marking a new frontier in medical automation.

From the perspective of sains darjah 2, this year’s technological landscape demonstrates features of deep cross-integration: from fundamental theoretical breakthroughs to engineering implementation, from point innovations to systemic progress, global technological competition is entering a new multi-dimensional stage.