BEIJING -- China achieved new breakthroughs in fields including integrated circuits, artificial intelligence (AI) and basic software over the past five years, with over 700 generative AI large model products having completed filing procedures, the Cyberspace Administration of China (CAC) said on Thursday.

During the 14th Five-Year Plan period (2021-25), the total number of products equipped with HarmonyOS, an open-source operating system, exceeded 1.19 billion units, and embodied intelligence is gradually advancing toward industrial application, according to the CAC.

China has seen remarkable improvement in its information technology application, with internet penetration rising from 70.4 percent to 79.7 percent during the period, the CAC said.

The country's urban-rural gap in internet penetration narrowed by 8.2 percentage points compared to five years ago, the CAC said, adding that the rate of information technology application in agricultural production increased from 22.5 percent to over 30 percent.

In 2024, national online retail sales in rural areas exceeded 2.5 trillion yuan (about $355 billion), a 43 percent growth from the end of the 13th Five-Year Plan period (2016-20). The telemedicine service network now covers all cities and counties across the country, according to the CAC.