(Yicai) Feb. 9 -- Chinese companies, including Alibaba Group Holding and TCL Technology Group, are taking the opportunity presented by the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics to parade China's technological strength to the world.

The International Olympic Committee -- the governing body of the modern Olympic Games -- has teamed up with internet giant Alibaba to build the first artificial intelligence model in the history of the Winter Olympics based on the Hangzhou-based firm's Qwen assistant, making these games "the smartest" yet, IOC President Kirsty Coventry said on Feb. 5.

Under the partnership, the IOC launched an AI assistant on its website. Relying on Qwen's multilingual understanding, the tool has studied millions of words from Olympic manuals and can provide national team members with services in their own languages, enhancing the operational efficiency of the games.

In addition, Alibaba’s AI technology is also being used in broadcasting the Olympics. Through multi-model fusion algorithms, it enables high-precision reconstruction of snowy scenes and provides global audiences with clearer “bullet-time” slow-motion replays.

Home appliances titan TCL is providing a range of products and technical support for Olympic venues, the broadcast centre, the media centre, and the Olympic Village. For example, it has joined hands with Olympic Broadcasting Services to supply hundreds of large-screen HDTVs, digital signage, and light-emitting diode displays for broadcast operations during the games.

Huizhou-based TCL has also worked with the Milan games' organizing committee and the local government to create a Winter Olympics-themed exhibition space. It opened at Piazza Duca d'Aosta, where the Milan Central Station is located, on Feb. 5 and showcases a variety of products, including TVs, air conditioners, refrigerators, and AI glasses. 

Separately, Clivet -- the high-end heating, ventilation, and air conditioning brand under Foshan-based Midea Group -- is supplying smart heating, ventilation, and aircon solutions for the Milano Santa Giulia Ice Hockey Arena, which can seat up to 16,000 spectators. Its systems include air-cooled and water-cooled chillers, heat-pump units, and a centralized touchscreen control system.

Shenzhen-based Ledman Optoelectronic has provided a 272-inch 8K resolution Micro LED giant screen for the broadcast room of China Central Television at the Olympics, showing off China’s ultra-high-definition display technology during live broadcasts.

The Winter Olympics runs from Feb. 6 through Feb. 22, with more than 2,900 athletes from 92 countries and territories competing across 116 events.

Editors: Dou Shicong, Martin Kadiev