As Xiamen accelerates its development as a "Digital Economy Pilot Zone" and a "Cross-Strait Integration Demonstration Zone," artificial intelligence has emerged as a pivotal driver of economic transformation. However, the city still faces structural challenges in AI talent supply. First, existing enterprises require highly capable engineers to facilitate AI-driven transformations. Second, the emerging AI market calls for hybrid talents with native AI thinking and entrepreneurial skills to energize innovation. Third, AI applications permeate all industries, making AI literacy essential for professionals across sectors. In response, the centre launched the following targeted programs: Hybrid AI Talent Development (1+5+500), High-Potential Innovation and Entrepreneurship Program (100-10-1), 1+N Knowledge Diffusion Model (1,000 certified annually). Baidu’s ERNIE large model and PaddlePaddle Team seized the policy window and actively collaborated with Xiamen University, collectively cultivating AI talents for the future.

The project is structured with a "Learn from Class, Practice, and Society" model that integrates curriculum development, industry-oriented practice, and societal engagement. The project's implementation has been phased and multifaceted: In February 2024, Xiamen University launched its AI general education curriculum with three cohorts, with the opening week featuring keynote addresses by academic and industry leaders alongside Xiamen faculty members. In March 2024, the second curriculum development meeting refined the practical components for the final four weeks of the course through the joint participation of Xiamen University educators and Baidu's research and product teams. By April 2024, an AI Teaching Assistant App, co-developed with Baidu, was introduced in classrooms and quickly adopted by over 150 students within a week. Meanwhile, a physical practice base was established at the Baidu PaddlePaddle (Xiamen) Empowerment Centre, where the program provides structured learning modules ranging from foundational skills to entrepreneurship, coupled with ongoing project incubation.

The project has achieved substantial results in curriculum innovation, talent cultivation, and ecosystem building, with notable progress across competency improvement, talent development, curriculum and resource building, industry engagement, and policy impact.  Over 150 students have actively participated in the AI General Education Course, engaging deeply with the AI Teaching Assistant app and significantly improving their foundational AI literacy and hands-on capabilities. Internships and project-based collaborations with Baidu and local enterprises are creating direct pathways from education to employment, with student-developed solutions based on real enterprise problems feeding into innovation pipelines.  The program has also gained strong support from local governments, including Xiamen and Siming District, further reinforcing the integration of education and industry within municipal innovation policy frameworks.

The IIOE Micro-Certification Project for Higher Education Workforce Digital Competency initiative, built upon 6 micro-certificate courses developed by Alibaba Cloud, aims to enhance the digital capabilities of higher education educators in Africa, Asia, and Latin America.  Many teachers in these regions face significant challenges in integrating modern technologies such as artificial intelligence and cloud computing into their teaching practices. These difficulties often stem from a lack of structured training resources, limited technical foundations, and insufficient institutional support for digital transformation. To address this gap, Alibaba Cloud has completed comprehensive preparatory work on the 6 high-quality courses, covering key areas including Generative AI, data visualization, and cloud computing. Combined with UNESCO's global educational network, the program integrates international standards with industry expertise, enabling educators to gradually acquire the skills needed to effectively incorporate digital tools into real-world teaching scenarios.

The project is structured into two phases, with Phase 1 (2024) dedicated to the "1+X" Generative AI Series and Phase 2 (2025) focusing on the "AI+Discipline" Series. At the outset of the project, a comprehensive needs assessment was conducted to identify gaps in educators' digital competencies, particularly in relation to Generative AI and AI-integrated disciplines. Drawing on these findings, the team developed systematic course materials: the 2024 courses focused on the foundational concepts of Generative AI and their applications in education, while the 2025 courses expanded into the integration of AI with specific disciplines. Following course development, recording and video production were carried out, after which all content was integrated into the IIOE platform. Once the courses were launched, feedback was collected through surveys and discussion forums, providing valuable insights into their effectiveness. This feedback informed subsequent refinements and adjustments, ensuring the courses remained relevant, effective, and of high quality.

During the implementation of the training program on Alibaba's platform, we witnessed remarkable learning outcomes and a significant enhancement in participants' competencies.  A total of 604 learners from 56 countries engaged in systematic training focused on Generative AI, through which they deepened their understanding and improved their technical proficiency in this emerging field.  It is worth mentioning that these courses have been copied by many well-known universities, which not only promotes the global sharing of educational resources, but also provides students with a valuable platform for communication and learning. In particular, the course "Fundamentals of Generative AI in Higher Education" achieved outstanding results, significantly advancing the professional capabilities and global perspectives of participating learners. The course attracted active engagement from 471 participants across 54 countries, demonstrating its broad international appeal as well as the practical relevance and cutting-edge nature of its content.

In order to promote the digital transformation of higher education and promote educational equity, UNESCO-ICHEI relying on the excellent faculty of Southern University of Science and Technology (SUSTech), cooperated with GuangZhou Dazzleview Intelligent Technology Co., Ltd. to establish the "Dazzleview Smart Classroom". This project aims to enhance the infrastructural facilities of UNESCO-ICHEI's partner Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) in Asian and African countries, strengthen their capacity for designing and implementing online and blended teaching and learning (OBTL), and improve teaching quality.

Dazzleview Smart Classroom is an interactive teaching solution for Makerere University in Uganda's teachers and students, covering all teaching scenarios before, during and after class, providing efficient and stable technical and product support for the development of digital classrooms, interactive classrooms and synchronous classrooms, and meeting the teaching mode of teacher-student interaction, multi-terminal interconnection and intelligent sharing. Dazzleview provides the following hardware and software to support online and hybrid teaching: Interactive Smart Touch Panel, Desktop Virtual Simulation Training System and Smart Recording System. The IIOE team assists in equipment installation, software training, upgrades and other comprehensive support.

Through the deep integration of advanced technology and education, Dazzleview's smart classrooms have driven the digital transformation of higher education in Makerere University in Uganda, enhancing teaching interactivity and learning efficiency. The full-scenario interactive teaching ecosystem it has created demonstrates significant advantages. Through technological integration, it enables the intelligent delivery of pre-class preparation resources, multimodal interaction during class—such as AI-powered real-time Q&A and cross-terminal collaboration—and closed-loop analysis. In terms of adaptive innovation, low-bandwidth synchronous classroom technology has been optimised for local network conditions to ensure teaching stability in remote areas. With regard to scale potential, modular smart classroom solutions have supported the construction of multiple classrooms worldwide, serving both teachers and students while enhancing overall classroom participation.

Recognizing the urgent need for skilled professionals in fields such as automotive repair (including electric and hybrid vehicles), industrial robotics, and advanced manufacturing, the USG Shared University Consortium in the Republic of Korea identified major limitations in traditional lecture-based teaching and limited physical labs.  High equipment costs, safety risks with heavy machinery and high-voltage systems, and restricted access to specialised tools hindered students from gaining sufficient hands-on experience.  As a higher education innovation consortium, USG Shared University pools resources across multiple institutions to expand practice-oriented learning.  To address these challenges, Best Tech implemented the project across several campuses, leveraging cutting-edge immersive XR technology to provide safe, cost-effective, and realistic training opportunities.

Best Tech systematically deployed the XR smart classroom solution across the designated engineering and technical departments of multiple universities participating in the USG consortium during the implementation phase.  Key installation and setup activities were focused on the primary USG university campuses identified for initial deployment, requiring careful coordination across different institutional sites.  The implementation process, representing an investment of approximately 2 billion Korean Won, was executed under the lead of Best Tech Co., Ltd. and involved several critical steps. Best Tech supported the physical space setup and environmental preparation of dedicated smart classrooms at each campus to accommodate the PC-based XR devices, followed by the detailed technical installation and configuration of the respective XR hardware systems.  Best Tech assisted with the development, adaptation, or enhancement of existing curricula to effectively integrate the hands-on simulation sessions provided by the XR technology as a core, essential component of relevant technical courses, replacing or supplementing traditional resource-intensive laboratory hours with unlimited virtual practice using the deployed XR hardware and extensive software library.  

The XR smart classrooms deployed by Best Tech have had a measurable positive impact on technical higher education within the USG consortium. Student learning outcomes have significantly improved, particularly in mastering complex practical skills in automotive, robotics, and manufacturing. Learners developed deeper conceptual understanding (e.g., EV battery management, robotic arm kinematics, hydraulic system operations) and enhanced problem-solving abilities through interactive simulations that enabled fault diagnosis and complex repair or programming strategies. The safe virtual environment allowed unlimited practice of advanced procedures, building confidence and adaptability before working with real equipment. The highly interactive and visually engaging platform increased student motivation, transforming passive learning into active exploration while supporting self-paced progression with immediate feedback. Faculty shifted from traditional lecturers to facilitators, integrating XR-based assignments and monitoring student progress. As a result, graduates gained demonstrable, job-ready competencies directly applicable to high-demand sectors such as EV repair, industrial robotics, and manufacturing maintenance, enhancing employability.

Founded in 2012, Wedon Education Group positions itself as a global internet-based education service provider, offering educational resources and services to governments, enterprises, universities, and institutions worldwide. By building an open online education cloud platform, it has established a lifelong learning ecosystem that benefits people globally, with nearly 20 million platform users around the world. As one of the UNESCO-ICHEI’s first strategic partners, Wedon Education Group is currently implementing Smart Classroom projects in six countries across Asia and Africa (Pakistan, Cambodia, Sri Lanka, Egypt, Djibouti, and Ethiopia) and has already planned a second phase, donating six additional Smart Classrooms. Looking ahead, UNESCO-ICHEI will continue working with Wedon Education Group to help higher education institutions build the necessary hardware and software infrastructure to support online and blended learning, thereby accelerating the digital transformation of higher education in developing countries.

WisdomGarden has long been dedicated to the field of AI + education technology, focusing on leveraging AI to improve teaching and management, enhance teachers' professional capacity and teaching quality, and enrich students' academic experiences, while serving as an important promoter of industry standards. On 12 June 2025, UNESCO-ICHEI signed a strategic cooperation framework agreement with WisdomGarden. Centered on AI-powered teaching, both sides will engage in in-depth collaboration on multiple fronts, including upgrading Smart Classroom teaching software and jointly developing AI Micro-Certification courses. Through pilot cooperation, the original 6 WisdomGarden Smart Classrooms will be upgraded, continuously providing development models for regional education digital transformation.