On 12 March 2026, Justice Minister He Rong said at the third “Ministers’ Corridor” session of the 14th National People’s Congress’s fourth session that artificial intelligence was the “high-frequency word” of this year’s Two Sessions, and that China would accelerate research on and advance legislation in fields including AI and the low-altitude economy, amend the Road Traffic Safety Law, and formulate regulations on airspace management.
Why the phrasing carries weight
“Accelerating research on and advancing legislation” is strong wording in a minister’s remarks. It indicates that an AI law has entered the legislature’s field of view and agenda, rather than remaining at the level of departmental rules and regulatory documents.
Read together with the Government Work Report’s “improving AI governance”, a clear institutional path emerges: run first with departmental rules and filing systems, then move progressively to the level of statute.
Three implications for company expectations
First, the transition period will not be indefinitely extended. The main sources of AI duties today are departmental rules such as the Interim Measures for Generative AI Services and the Deep Synthesis Provisions, plus algorithm filing and synthetic-content labelling. Legislative progress means these duties become more stable, though their framing may be consolidated and restated.
Second, the half-life of compliance investment is shortening. Moving from rules to statute is usually accompanied by finer standards and stronger enforcement. Compliance documents must be updatable rather than one-off deliverables — see our note on China’s AI governance and development arrangements.
Third, topic-specific and field-specific legislation run in parallel. Beyond an AI law, rules for narrower fields are also advancing — see our note on regulating anthropomorphic AI interaction through small, fast, flexible legislation and our analysis of the interim measures on anthropomorphic interactive AI services. This “umbrella law plus targeted rules” combination is key to reading the regulatory rhythm ahead.
What companies can prepare now
Shift compliance from “responding to inspections” to “maintaining ledgers”: whether algorithm and model filing status matches the product version; whether synthetic-content labelling is engineered; whether data-processing activities and authorisation chains are traceable; whether security assessments and contingency plans are updated on a schedule.
None of this work is wasted by legislative timing — any version of a law requires companies to explain what their systems are, what they process and what they control. For related services, see our algorithm filing service and data compliance service.
Legislation moves on a timescale of years, but company preparation can move by quarter.
This article is based on the Ministry of Justice’s public remarks at the “Ministers’ Corridor” on 12 March 2026. It is for general reference only and does not constitute legal advice.