WHETHER the subject is health, traffic control, consumer shopping, security, robots or self-driving cars, the Big Data Expo held last month in the Guizhou Province capital of Guiyang had something for everyone.

The emerging importance of the technology revolution in daily life was underscored by the appearance of Premier Li Keqiang at the expo. China’s top leaders rarely attend such industry exhibitions.

“China should better use the huge volume of data, just like using water and electricity,” Li said in a keynote speech opening the event. “It’s the key to national economic development and close to daily life.”

China is supporting big data technology and services as a part of a national strategy to encourage entrepreneurship and innovation — key elements in pursuing a modern growth path.

The formal name of the expo was China Big Data Industry Summit and China E-commerce Innovation and Development Summit.

The industry is as sprawling as the expo title.

China’s big data industry is expected to grow by 50 percent annually over the next five years. By 2020, China’s data volume will make up about 20 percent of the global total, covering industry, finance, education, healthcare, urban management and car-making, government officials said.

China’s explosive growth of data in recent years is largely due to a huge user base in telecommunications, banking, e-commerce and online social services. Its information economy grossed over 18 trillion yuan (US$2.8 trillion) in 2015, with e-commerce transaction volume totaling more than 20 trillion yuan.

Li’s optimism about the future of the industry was echoed by business executives from overseas IT giants like Qualcomm, Dell and Microsoft and from domestic dot-com firms like Tencent and Baidu. All harbor high hopes of exploiting the market potential of big data.

So what exactly is big data?

It generally refers to so-called “data sets” that are so large and complex that traditional data-processing systems can’t handle them. The term includes such elements as data capture, analysis, sharing, storage and transfer. Big data can produce new correlations that assist in functions such as spotting business trends, preventing disease or combating crime.

Data volume is expected to double every two years globally, thanks to the popularity of smart devices like smartphones, and high-tech gadgets like drones, self-driving cars and other Internet of Things devices, according to Qualcomm President Derek Aberle.

Social media popularity and technology upgrades have created an era of “data explosion,” said Pony Ma, chairman of Tencent, which operates the 600-million user WeChat platform.

“China is playing a major role in this era of digital globalization. Internet Plus, big data and cloud computing,” Michael Dell, chairman and chief executive of the United States-based IT giant that bears his name, said at the expo event. “Together, they have become the new engine of China’s future economic growth.”

Dell signed a cooperation deal with Guizhou-based Wind Cloud to provide cloud services to small and medium-sized companies in China. It’s part of the Texas-based company’s plan to invest US$125 billion in China in the next five years

Cloud computing, data analysis and intelligent technologies will help China complete a “digital transformation” from its past reliance on traditional manufacturing, said Satya Nadella, Microsoft’s chief executive, who also visited Beijing and Shenzhen last week on his China tour.

Microsoft signed a deal with smart device maker Xiaomi on Offices and other cloud-based services during Nadella’s visit.

Big data development will boost research in artificial intelligence, which requires advanced analysis technology, said Robin Li, chairman of Baidu. China’s biggest online search engine is currently working on research for self-driving cars.

Meanwhile, China Telecom and Nielsen announced a deal last week to cooperate in big data, offering guidance to shoppers by tracking purchasing habits.

Various big data applications and products were displayed at the Big Data Expo in Guiyang, which occupied 60,000 square meters across six halls.

The Xiao I robot, developed by a Shanghai startup firm, was a hit during the show, “communicating” with Premier Li and other visitors through voice recognition and machine-learning functions.

SAP, Foxconn and several domestic firms all displayed real-time traffic analysis systems that can be used in sports stadiums and on roads to control crowds and ease traffic jams.

Foxconn is also testing the waters of car-sharing services in Beijing, Hangzhou, Shanghai and other major cities. Its system charges users an hourly rate and allows them to return cars in various locations.

It all requires advanced and complicated data analysis.

Smart wristbands and watches operating on Intel chips were displayed at the Intel booth at the expo. They transmit nutrition and healthcare advice to wearers through data analysis.

Big data technologies will improve daily life and narrow digital gaps, the premier told his expo audience.

That has special meaning in China, where there remain many under-developed regions, like Guizhou in the southwest. The new technologies, Li said, could provide exciting business opportunities for a city like Guiyang.

Guiyang established the Global Big Data Exchange in 2015, the first of its kind in China. By March, data transactions at the exchange, which has a base of 300 companies, reached more than 60 million yuan.

The weather and environment of Guiyang make it an ideal site for data centers in energy consumption, water supply, labor costs and data safety, said officials from Dell and Qualcomm.

Concerns about security leaks did occupy discussion at the expo. Industry experts called for more measures to ensure the privacy of information in the nation’s big data strategy.

“Big data is a double-edged sword,” said Qi Xiangdong, president of Qihoo 360, the country’s biggest Internet security services provider. “It can be huge business, but also increases risks.”

For example, big data can allow users to remotely control ovens and washing machines at home via smartphones. However, if someone accesses your information on the cloud, the home machines can be reset to your disadvantage, Qi added.

Current regulations on the collection, storage, management and use of data are inadequate, according to some Expo attendees.

The law does not clearly define the value and property rights of data in some areas, which could allow data collectors to hide their true motives, said Lu Wei, secretary-general of the Internet Society of China.

Illegal activity online can include data abuse, infringement of privacy, fraud and theft of confidential information, experts said.