China's top internet of things (IoT) event, the 2018 World Internet of Things Exposition, will be held from Sept 15 to 18 to feature the latest IoT applications and products.

The new generation of information technology, represented by the IoT, has led to even more rapid development of the digital economy in recent years.

Wuxi, as China's only innovation demonstration area of the national sensor network, has hosted the exposition in less-developed form since 2010. It became bigger and more high-profile when it was elevated into the World IoT Expo by CPC Central Committee and State Council in 2016.

The 2018 WIOT will be attended by over 360 heavyweights, including 31 academicians of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and the Chinese Academy of Engineering, among them Zhou Ji and Wu Hequan. One hundred and fourteen renowned experts and scholars, including Xiong Fanlun and Xu Weiling, 202 well-known entrepreneurs and company executives, including Zhou Ji and Wu Hequan, and 22 foreign scholars and leading figures in the field such as Dole Ahmad and Phil Todd will also be there.

The number of total participants is expected to exceed 3,000, and will include leaders of national ministries and commissions and Jiangsu province officials. Seven world famous entrepreneurs and scholars will give keynote speeches on IoT and digital economy.

Covering an area of 50,000 square meters, the four-day expo will mount five themed exhibitions featuring the latest cutting-edge IoT technology. They will feature communication and platform support systems, smart manufacturing and sensors, smart daily life, smart transportation and Internet of Vehicles and smart cities.

A total of 526 exhibitors from 20 countries and regions are expected to take part, 35 of which will be Fortune Global 500 companies. Renowned domestic and foreign industry leaders, including Amazon, Microsoft, China Telecom, Huawei and JD.com will participate.

The expo will showcase a number of projects that have swept the board in the IoT industry and been put into practical use, including the CTICT Vehicle BeiDou Satellite Sub-meter Level Positioning Intelligent Terminal, the Siemens Industrial IoT Platform and Demonstration Project and the Chinese Academy of Sciences' Logistics Sorting System.

The world's first city-level Internet of Vehicle LTE-V2X (vehicle to everything) application demonstration area will also be officially presented to the public as part of the exhibition on September 15.

A press conference presenting the latest technologies, products and applications related to the IoT will be highlighted during the 2018 WIOT. A total of 1,128 projects have been collected from home and abroad since this May, 61 of which will be awarded on the evening of September 15.

This year's WIOT Expo will include one main summit, one IoT application and production exhibition, 10 high-end forums and 16 series of events.

The main summit will focus on IoT and intelligent manufacturing, industrial internet, intelligent transportation and internet of vehicles and artificial intelligence.

Also, the expo's series of events will include a high-end talents innovation and entrepreneurship conference, seminars on new smart city construction, a smart court, and presentations on education and health. The final race of the 2018 Feifeng Data Innovation - World Internet of Things (IoT) Data Innovation Contest will be held on Sept 16, during the expo.

The 2018 World Internet of Things Exposition promises to showcase the latest products, models and development trends related to the IoT and advance its integration with traditional industries.