Export orders for new toys with artificial intelligence capabilities and built-in programming lessons are surging, with some companies' production already scheduled through the first quarter of next year, injecting new momentum into China's foreign trade.

"This year, overseas customers' demand for innovation has been particularly evident. In particular, toys with AI functions are often snapped up by distributors the moment they arrive at the port," said Zhan Junyan, general manager of Guangdong Qman Toys Industry Co Ltd. The company's AI smart pets and programming robots have seen export volumes soar by over 200 percent year on year since the beginning of this year.

In Chenghai district of Shantou, South China's Guangdong province — dubbed China's "toy capital" — many manufacturers are operating at full capacity. China remains the world's largest toy producer and exporter, with Chenghai accounting for 60 percent of the global toy market. Among local toy enterprises above designated size, the share of AI toy exports has risen from less than 10 percent last year to around 30 percent now.

"Our orders are booked through March next year," said an executive of Guangdong Weili Intelligent Development Co Ltd. The company's AI programming robot series, launched this year, has become a hit in Europe and the United States, with monthly export container volumes increasing from 20 at the beginning of the year to 50 now.

According to data from the General Administration of Customs, in the first three quarters of this year, China exported holiday products, dolls and animal-shaped toys worth over 50 billion yuan ($7.02 billion) to more than 200 countries and regions.

Many products fall under the "Guochao" category — a trend that blends modern design with traditional Chinese cultural elements — highlighting Chinese cultural appeal. In recent years, numerous "Guochao" products have become global bestsellers, gaining favor among overseas consumers and fueling expansion in China's exports.

Facing surging market demand, toy companies are ramping up investment in research and development and expanding production capacity.

"We're no longer satisfied with simple contract manufacturing. We've established our own AI algorithm team to develop differentiated interactive content for children of various age groups," said Zhou Yu, chairman of a Guangzhou-based company. This year, the company expanded its AI toy production lines from two to five and increased the number of R&D personnel from 10 percent to 20 percent.

A notable trend this year has been the integration of Chinese cultural elements with advanced technology in AI toy exports.

In the Chenghai toy industrial cluster, an AI smart mecha incorporating Chinese martial arts elements went viral on overseas video platforms, with one review video garnering over 5 million views and directly driving sales that led the product to sell out in the North American market.

"We integrated Chinese kung fu moves into AI chips, allowing children to control the mecha's martial arts movements through gestures while learning simple Chinese commands during play," said the product's designer.

Wang Lei, a council member of the Chinese Association for Artificial Intelligence, noted that Chinese toy companies are evolving from traditional manufacturing to intelligent manufacturing, building distinctive global competitiveness by blending traditional Chinese culture with emerging technologies like AI.

The rapid development of AI toys has been spurred by both policy support and technological breakthroughs.

In September, Guangdong province released an action plan to speed up the adoption of AI in the toy industry through 2027. According to the plan, the operating revenue of toy companies above designated size in the province is expected to reach 100 billion yuan by 2027, with AI toy penetration exceeding 30 percent. The plan also aims to strengthen industrial cluster competitiveness by developing advanced toy industry clusters in Shantou, Dongguan and Shenzhen, while cultivating at least five internationally competitive leading AI toy companies.

On the technical front, the maturation of AI voice recognition, computer vision, affective computing and other technologies has enabled continuous innovation in smart toys.