We must… give full play to the driving and leading role of informatization and digitalization in Chinese Style Modernization; [and] continuously advance the construction of Cyber Great Power and Digital China; [all] to provide strong support for the … comprehensive advancement of the Great Rejuvenation of the Chinese Nation.

我们要全面贯彻落实党的二十大精神，充分发挥信息化数字化对中国式现代化的驱动引领作用，不断推动网络强国、数字中国建设，把握新机遇、塑造新优势、实现新发展，为全面建设社会主义现代化国家、全面推进中华民族伟大复兴提供有力支撑.

Cao Shumin (曹淑敏), Deputy Director, Office of the Central Cyberspace Affairs Commission, “Driving and Leading Chinese Style Modernization with Informatization and Digitalization” (以信息化数字化驱动引领中国式现代化), Red Flag Manuscript (红旗文稿), Jan.26, 2023

One of the most common analytical mistakes in writing about Digital China is treating informatization and digitalization as interchangeable. In Chinese Communist Party usage, and that includes the PLA, the two terms refer to distinct stages and functions of technological development.

Informatization (信息化) refers to the application of information technology: deploying networks, platforms, sensors, software, and connectivity to improve efficiency and control. Digitalization (数字化), by contrast, refers to adding value to data itself, turning data into an active factor of production that reshapes decision-making, governance, and economic outcomes.

This distinction matters because, in Beijing’s view, global competition in the digital age is no longer primarily about technology alone. It is about data. Data is now treated as the most consequential factor of production in the digital era, capable of reconstructing production, distribution, and consumption, and, in Party language, becoming “the high ground in the competition between major countries.”

As data has assumed this central role, the Party’s theory of modernization has evolved accordingly. What was once framed almost exclusively in terms of informatization has been expanded to include digitalization as a separate and more powerful lane. Intelligent data is now expected to drive the transformation of the forces of production into what the Party calls New Quality Productive Forces, a concept that applies across society and, through Military-Civil Fusion, extends into the military domain as New Quality Combat Power.

Importantly, digitalization does not replace informatization. It builds on it. Networks, platforms, and infrastructure remain essential, but they are no longer the strategic end state. The strategic objective is extracting, governing, and applying value from data at scale.

This evolving terminology helps explain why Chinese policy documents sometimes appear inconsistent, with older language stretched to fit new concepts. Terms such as “digitalization” often require contextual interpretation, while others such as “digitalized” carry strong political and ideological connotations. Inconsistent definitions from think tanks and advisory firms only add to the confusion, both inside and outside China.

The Specialized Terms tab on this website reflects my best effort to track the current center of gravity in the Party’s digital vocabulary. Because both Digital China and its underlying terminology continue to evolve, that glossary will be updated as needed.