Shanghai Launches Digital Push for Cultural Heritage Conservation

Shanghai will use digital and intelligent technologies to conserve its cultural heritage, outlining clear strategies for safeguarding cultural assets.

The initiative was announced at the recent 6th Yangtze River Delta International Cultural Industries Expo.

The initial phase will incorporate a wide range of data from over 200 historic buildings, establishing a robust basis for AI-driven identification, digital restoration, and early risk detection.

It will mark Shanghai's transition into a data-driven era of architectural heritage preservation, where digital intelligence shifts from a conceptual framework to practical, real-world applications.

The digital display of the Ya'er Lake Grottoes in Turpan, Xinjiang; the Rainbow Bridge in Wuyuan, Jiangxi Province; and Shanghai's "Hongkou District Is a Museum" digital City Walk are examples of innovative urban-heritage practices in China.

Tao Cheng, secretary-general of the China Foundation for Cultural Heritage Conservation, believes that, building on the national cultural digitization strategy, we should use digital-intelligent technologies to address long-standing obstacles in cultural heritage preservation and inheritance.