Mi Huaquan: The Generative Logic, Core Essentials, and Practical Approaches of Xi Jinping’s Important Expositions on Data Development and Security
As the digital economy in our country deepens, the value of data as a new type of productive factor has become increasingly prominent. Its role in various segments of social production, distribution, circulation, and consumption is growing more significant, and it has already become a vital factor in driving high-quality development. However, alongside the pervasive penetration of data applications, the security challenges brought about by data development have also become more complex and urgent. The Third Plenary Session of the 20th CPC Central Committee explicitly pointed out the need to "accelerate the establishment of systems for the determination of data property rights, market transactions, distribution of rights and interests, and the protection of interests; enhance supervision capabilities for data security governance; and establish efficient, convenient, and secure mechanisms for cross-border data flows." This strategic deployment provides a clear direction for coordinating data development and security and promoting the high-quality development of the digital economy, moving our country’s digital economic development from localized breakthroughs toward systemic integration, and from scale expansion toward a new stage of quality enhancement. Since the beginning of the New Era, Xi Jinping has consistently attached great importance to data development and security. He has delivered numerous important speeches and instructions and presided over the 26th meeting of the Central Commission for Comprehensively Deepening Reform to conduct special research on the construction of the basic data system. From the early proposal to "use data to advance all areas of work," to the emphasis on "breaking through core technologies for big data," and further to the clear objective of "building a digital economy with data as a key factor," a series of forward-looking and systemic strategic thoughts has been formed. These provide the fundamental guidance for our work in data development and security. Systematically reviewing Xi Jinping's important discourses on data development and security and deeply understanding their generative logic, core tenets, and practical paths is not only an urgent need for theoretical research but also a realistic requirement for solidly advancing the modernization of data governance, fortifying the national data security shield, and fully releasing the value of data as a factor.
I. The Generative Logic of Xi Jinping’s Important Discourses on Data Development and Security
Xi Jinping’s important discourses on data development and security constitute a scientific theoretical system formed by conforming to the general trend of digital civilization’s evolution and grounding itself in the new historical orientation of our country's development. It systematically answers fundamental questions regarding the reasons, path choices, and institutional guarantees for promoting data development and maintaining data security. It is a major theoretical achievement of the combination of Marxism with China’s digitalization practices. It is based on upholding the fundamentals and breaking new ground in Marxist theory; it is deeply embedded in the grand background of the "Two Overalls" [1] weaving and surging together; and it focuses on resolving practical problems in the process of modernizing national governance while responding to the complex situation of global digital competition. It systematically explains the key role of data as a new type of productive factor and the dialectical relationship between coordinating development and security, providing the basic adherence and action guide for developing the digital economy and building a Digital China.
1. Theoretical Logic: Rooted in the Fertile Intellectual Soil of the Basic Principles of Marxism
Xi Jinping’s important discourses on data development and security possess deep theoretical roots, manifested in the creative application of the basic principles of Marxism. Their core lies in bringing "data," this new type of factor, into the analytical horizon of Marxist theory to systematically respond to a series of major era-defining questions triggered by data, such as leaps in productive forces, adjustments in the relations of production, and transformations in the superstructure. This has resulted in many original theoretical judgments.
First, these discourses achieve a major innovation in the Marxist theory of production factors, clarifying the strategic positioning of data as a new type of productive factor. Marxist political economy emphasizes that labor, land, and capital are the basic factors of social production. As practice developed, our Party successively included technology and management into the category of factors. Entering the New Era, data has integrated into the entire process of economic activities—production, distribution, circulation, and consumption—with unprecedented scale and depth, gradually becoming the core force driving economic and social development. With great foresight, Xi Jinping proposed to "build a digital economy with data as a key factor," emphasizing that "data is a new productive factor, a fundamental and strategic resource, and also an important productive force." This judgment is not merely a simple expansion of the traditional system of production factors; it is a strategic assessment built upon a profound grasp of the inherent characteristics of data. Data possesses characteristics such as non-rivalry, reproducibility, infinite derivability, and high synergy. It can significantly improve the allocation efficiency of other factors, give birth to new business forms and models, and even restructure the entire national economic system. Establishing data as a key productive factor greatly expands the temporal connotations and practical extensions of the Marxist theory of productive forces, providing solid theoretical support for our scientific understanding and effective guidance of digital economic development.
Second, these discourses profoundly embody the basic laws of the contradictory movement between productive forces and relations of production in Marxism, elucidating the dialectical thinking of coordinating development and security. In the Marxist view, the development of productive forces inevitably requires corresponding changes in the relations of production; the contradiction between the two constitutes the fundamental driving force of social progress. As one of the most representative new types of productive factors of the current era, the explosive growth of data is profoundly impacting existing relations of production, social structures, and governance systems. On the one hand, the free flow and open sharing of data have greatly liberated and developed social productive forces; this is the core meaning of its "development." Xi Jinping accurately grasped this contradiction, emphasizing the need to "promote the efficient circulation and use of data and empower the real economy." On the other hand, the concentration, monopoly, and abuse of data may trigger the disorderly expansion of capital, exacerbate the gap between rich and poor, infringe on personal privacy, damage social equity, and even endanger national sovereignty and security. These are specific manifestations of relations of production not adapting to the development of productive forces and highlight the severity of security issues. Xi Jinping has pointed out on many occasions the need to "properly handle the relationship between security and development" and to "ensure development through security and promote security through development." This concept of coordination is a vivid manifestation of Marxist dialectics in the digital age. It transcends the one-sided thinking of "technological determinism" or "security-only determinism," demonstrating the dialectical logic of proactively adjusting the relations of production while releasing the productive forces of data.
Finally, these discourses innovatively apply the principle of the dialectical relationship between the economic base and the superstructure, sketching a grand blueprint for advancing the modernization of national governance in the digital age. Marxism holds that the economic base determines the superstructure, and the superstructure reacts upon the economic base. The digital economy, with data at its core, is profoundly changing social structures and operating mechanisms, which requires that the national governance system and governance capability undergoes a series of corresponding changes. Xi Jinping pointed out, "We must make good use of technology, accelerate the construction of smart cities, and use information technologies such as big data to promote innovation in government management and social governance models." This is essentially the application of Marxist state theory to respond to the question of the era: "what kind of great modern socialist country to build and how to build it" in the digital age. Meanwhile, he also emphasized the need to "effectively guarantee national data security," "strengthen the protection capabilities for national key data resources," and "improve the data property rights protection system," clarifying the realistic need for the legal and institutional systems—as the superstructure—to actively adapt to the developmental requirements of the digital economy. It can be said that from the grassroots exploration of "Digital Fujian" [2] to the top-level planning of "Digital China" and the strategic deployment of a "cyber powerhouse," the series of important discourses Xi Jinping has made around data empowering national governance has enriched and developed the Marxist principle of the dialectical relationship between the economic base and the superstructure, opening a new practical path for the modernization of the national governance system and governance capability.
2. Historical Logic: Focusing on the Epochal and Inevitable Requirement of Cultivating and Developing New Quality Productive Forces
The birth of any major theory is inseparable from the grand historical background in which it is situated. The generative historical logic of Xi Jinping’s important discourses on data development and security is embedded in three historical coordinates: the global wave of the technological revolution, the journey toward the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation, and the deepening of our Party’s understanding of the laws of modernization. It precisely echoes the urgent and major era-defining task of cultivating and developing new quality productive forces.
First, this represents a historical consciousness to seized the high ground of the new round of technological revolution and industrial transformation in the face of the "Changes Unseen in a Century" [3]. Looking back at history, every industrial revolution has reshaped the production and lifestyles of human society and redefined the landscape of international competition—from the improvement of the steam engine to the use of electricity and information technology. Since the start of the modern era, our country missed the opportunities presented by technological and industrial revolutions several times, leaving behind bitter historical lessons. Today, we are at the forefront of the fourth industrial revolution, represented by artificial intelligence, big data, and the Internet of Things (IoT), where data has become the key core factor driving this transformation. Xi Jinping pointed out that "a new round of technological revolution and industrial transformation is reconstructing the global innovation map and reshaping the global economic structure," emphasizing that "we cannot fall behind in this great arena of technological innovation; we must catch up, race forward, and strive to surpass." This major judgment demonstrates his profound insight and strong awareness of opportunities. Xi Jinping’s elevation of data to the height of a national strategic resource and the deployment of the National Big Data Strategy are precisely based on a profound summary of historical laws and a scientific prediction of future trends. In short, by seizing data as a "key variable," our country hopes to form asymmetric competitive advantages in emerging fields and achieve a historic leap from following and running alongside others to leading the way.
Second, this is a historical necessity for our country as it embarks on the new journey of comprehensively building a modern socialist country and promotes high-quality development. In the more than 40 years of Reform and Opening-up, our country’s economic and social development has achieved world-renowned achievements. However, at the same time, the momentum of the traditional development model has gradually weakened, resource and environmental constraints have continued to tighten, and key core technologies face a series of "bottleneck" [4] risks. Promoting the transformation of the drivers of economic development has become the theme and mainline of our country’s economic and social development at present and for a period to come. Developing new quality productive forces has become an "inherent requirement and important focus for promoting high-quality development." The core connotation of the new quality productive forces proposed by Xi Jinping is manifested in revolutionary technological breakthroughs, innovative allocation of production factors, and deep industrial transformation and upgrading. In this process, data plays the crucial roles of "glue" and "accelerator." Through the innovative allocation of data, bottlenecks in the flow of traditional factors can be cleared, improving total factor productivity. With the deep integration of data and traditional industries, a series of new business forms such as intelligent manufacturing, smart agriculture, and modern services can be birthed, driving industrial digital transformation and a leap to the high end of the value chain. Furthermore, based on large-scale data accumulation and innovative breakthroughs in artificial intelligence technology, the new quality productive forces possess an immense core driving power. Xi Jinping further pointed out the need to "promote the deep integration of the digital economy and the real economy" and "accelerate industrial digitalization and intelligent transformation." These important discourses point out the correct direction for how to cultivate and develop new quality productive forces while achieving high-quality development for our country's economy in the new development stage by "changing modes, adjusting structures, and increasing momentum."
Finally, this is a systematic summary of our Party’s experience in governing the country and a sublimation of the deepening understanding of the laws of the Communist Party’s governance. In the great practice of leading revolution, construction, and reform, our party has always regarded the liberation and development of productive forces as a major political task and an important cornerstone for governing and rejuvenating the country. From the scientific judgment that "science and technology are the primary productive force" to the implementation of the strategy of rejuvenating the country through science and education, the strategy of strengthening the country through talent, and the innovation-driven development strategy, and further to the current explicit proposal to cultivate and develop new quality productive forces—this process clearly reflects that our Party's understanding of the laws of the development of productive forces is both a continuous heritage and something that advances with the times. Xi Jinping’s important discourses on data development and security are precisely the latest theoretical achievements of this historical process. Most importantly, Xi Jinping does not discuss data solely from a technical dimension, but closely combines data development with national security, the people's happiness, and institutional advantages. He emphasizes that "without cybersecurity, there is no national security," that personal information protection and the maintenance of social stability must be fully guaranteed, and advocates for the full play of the advantages of the socialist system in "concentrating resources to accomplish big things" to "resolutely win the battle for key core technologies." This indicates that in the process of leading digital development, our Party emphasizes not only the "instrumental" level of technological leaps but also the "institutional" level of security construction and the "value" level of the people's standpoint. This governance philosophy—which coordinates development and security, technology and humanity, and efficiency and fairness—is an innovative expansion of the Marxist theory of building a governing party. It also marks a new height in our Party’s understanding of the laws of governance in the information age.
3. Realistic Logic: A Great Strategic Choice in Response to the Modernization of National Governance and the New Situation of Global Competition
The vitality of a theory lies in its ability to explain reality and guide practice. The third dimension of the generative logic of Xi Jinping’s important discourses on data development and security is precisely the logic of reality—standing on the ground of the present and facing problems head-on. This logic profoundly grasps the complex domestic and international situations facing our country in the New Era, committing itself to breaking through development bottlenecks, preventing and defusing major risks, and seizing the strategic initiative for the future, thereby demonstrating a clear problem-orientation and practical character.
First, this is an urgent necessity for the modernization of the national governance system and governance capacity. Alongside the profound transformation of our country’s economic and social structures, traditional experience-based governance models have found it difficult to adapt to the "new normal" characterized by large-scale population mobility, diversified interest patterns, and the cross-layering of risk types. How to improve the efficiency of public service management, achieve precision in social governance, and effectively respond to major emergencies has become a practical issue that our country must earnestly face. Data resources and their technical applications provide us with unprecedentedly powerful support for solving these dilemmas. Xi Jinping has explicitly pointed out that we "must use big data to improve the level of national governance modernization." In recent years, our country has significantly enhanced administrative efficiency by building digital governments, breaking down data silos, and optimizing approval processes; we have vigorously promoted the precision, universality, and equalization of livelihood services by constructing smart cities and digital villages; and we have continuously strengthened ecological environmental governance through big-data monitoring and analysis, achieving an "intelligent guardianship" of "lush mountains and lucid waters." [5] All of this indicates that Xi Jinping’s important discourses on data development and security are dedicated to comprehensively enhancing the Party's governing capacity and the efficacy of national governance through digital technology, ensuring that the great ship of Chinese-path modernization sails steadily and reaches far amidst the winds and waves. This fully demonstrates our Party's continuous deepening of its understanding of the laws of Communist Party governance, the laws of socialist construction, and the laws of human social development.
Second, this is an inevitable requirement for fortifying the overarching national security screen and preventing and defusing major risks and challenges. Entering the New Era, the security threats and risk forms facing our country have become increasingly complex and diverse. Xi Jinping creatively proposed the Holistic Approach to National Security, emphasizing the necessity of "achieving the integrated governance of traditional and non-traditional security." In the wave of digitalization, data security has become the core hub of national security, deeply integrated into the political, economic, military, cultural, and social fields. For example, regarding the maintenance of national sovereignty and political security, he has repeatedly emphasized the need to "fortify the national cyber security screen" and resolutely safeguard data sovereignty and the right to speak in cyberspace. He has pointed out that "the internet is increasingly becoming the main position, main battlefield, and foremost front of ideological struggle," and that critical information infrastructure is like the national neural center—once damaged, the consequences would be incalculable. Regarding the guarantee of economic and financial stability, he regards industrial data, financial data, and supply chain data as the lifeblood of economic operation, believing that their security is directly related to national industrial security and the economic lifeline; he explicitly requires preventing data monopolies and "curbing the disorderly expansion of capital," while severely cracking down on the "black industry chain" [6] of data. Regarding the protection of citizens' personal information rights and interests, he personally planned, deployed, and promoted the promulgation and implementation of the Cybersecurity Law of the People's Republic of China, the Data Security Law of the People's Republic of China, and the Personal Information Protection Law of the People's Republic of China, laying a solid rule-of-law foundation for the development, utilization, and security protection of data. In short, Xi Jinping’s important discourses on data development and security, based on the broad vision of the Holistic Approach to National Security, are a strategic combination systematically deployed to respond to new types of risks in the digital age, aimed at building a solid "Digital Great Wall" for the realization of the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation.
Finally, this is a strategic design for deeply participating in global data governance and shaping new advantages in international competition favorable to us. Currently, competition in key areas such as global data rules, technical standards, and data sovereignty is becoming increasingly fierce. Western countries, relying on their first-mover advantage in technology, attempt to build exclusive digital barriers and promote so-called "data hegemonism." As a responsible new type of digital power, China must firmly safeguard its own development rights and interests while contributing Chinese wisdom and Chinese solutions to the future development of global digital space. First, we must firmly grasp the initiative of development. Xi Jinping profoundly pointed out that "key core technologies cannot be asked for, bought, or begged for"; we must accelerate the independent innovation of core technologies. Only by achieving self-reliance and self-strengthening [7] in the true sense in key fields such as high-end chips, operating systems, and databases can we remain invincible in the fierce international competition. Second, we must continuously enhance our international right to speak and our power in rule-making. Our country possesses the advantage of a super-large-scale market and rich data application scenarios, which lays a solid foundation for participating in and leading global data governance. The Global Initiative on Data Security, advocated and initiated by our country, explicitly proposes building a community with a shared future in cyberspace and promoting the establishment of a more just, reasonable, inclusive, and beneficial global data governance system. Third, we must actively serve the new development pattern. By promoting the construction of the "Digital Silk Road" and encouraging data resources and digital technologies to "go global," our country has not only promoted the export of related industries and technologies but also deepened digital cooperation with countries co-building the "Belt and Road." By using data flows to drive the interconnection of technology, capital, and talent, we have injected strong impetus into smoothing the dual circulation of domestic and international markets.
II. The Core Essentials of Xi Jinping’s Important Discourses on Data Development and Security
As an important component of Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era, Xi Jinping's important discourses on data development and security possess rich theoretical connotations, a forward-looking strategic vision, and profound guiding significance. They profoundly answer the major proposition of "why we must strengthen data development and security, and how to do so." The entire body of important discourses unfolds by clarifying the functional positioning, goal orientation, principal content, and international propositions of data development and security. It places the maintenance of data development and security in an important position while pointing out the development principle of "data for the people"; it emphasizes the dialectical synergy between data development and security while highlighting the necessity of international and domestic exchange and collaboration.
1. Functional Positioning: Coordinating Data Development and Security as the Innovation Engine for Promoting Economic and Social Development
In today's era of rapid development in information, digital, and intelligent technologies, data has become a core strategic resource for promoting economic and social development. Xi Jinping profoundly pointed out that we must "give play to the role of data as a fundamental resource and an innovation engine to accelerate the formation of a digital economy led and supported primarily by innovation."
From the perspective of data development's role in ensuring the economy continues to recover and improve: as a key factor of production, data can not only promote the innovation and dissemination of knowledge—giving birth to new knowledge and gestating new technologies—but also optimize the intensive allocation of technological innovation resources, effectively lowering barriers to information interaction and the costs of factor mobility. This promotes the clustering of various innovation factors in high-tech, high-efficiency, and high-quality fields. Simultaneously, data significantly enhances comprehensive industrial innovation capabilities, accelerating the bidirectional integration of digital industrialization and industrial digitalization, and reinforcing the synergistic development efficacy between traditional industries and high-tech industries. This injects strong impetus into building a modern economic system and nurturing new quality productive forces. Entering the New Era, our country's economy is shifting from extensive growth to high-quality development; the adjustment of the industrial structure has entered the "deep-water zone," [8] and the transformation of the economic structure is facing a "period of labor pains." At this critical stage, the digital economy—with data as its key driving force—provides important support for stabilizing the overall economic situation, reshaping the momentum of traditional industries, and laying out new industrial formats, thanks to its characteristics of strong innovation vitality, deep integration, and wide coverage. The National Data Resources Survey Report (2024) issued by the National Data Bureau shows that "in 2024, the national data production volume reached 41.06 zettabytes (ZB), a year-on-year increase of 25%." Regarding data storage, "the total national data storage volume was 2.09 zettabytes (ZB), a year-on-year increase of 20.81%. The storage space utilization rate was 61%." The dual increase in data production and storage has formed a positive cycle of "data circulation promoting production increase—production increase driving data storage—data storage assisting data circulation," laying the foundation for the integrated development of the digital economy and the real economy.
From the perspective of data security's role in ensuring the long-term vitality and survival of the economy: currently, the global economy is facing multiple challenges. Complex factors such as insufficient consumption capacity, China-US trade frictions, and a continuous decline in the birth rate have led to weak effective demand in traditional industries, and the stability of supply and industrial chains has been severely impacted. The internal and external environments for the real economy have become more severe. Against the backdrop of increasing downward pressure on the economy, the digital economy—by virtue of its efficient integration and comprehensive analysis of data resources—can rapidly identify gaps between market supply and demand, achieve comprehensive adjustments in market structure and layout optimization, and inject new development momentum into stimulating consumption potential and stabilizing economic growth. Xi Jinping profoundly pointed out: "Information resources have increasingly become an important factor of production and social wealth; the amount of information possessed has become an important mark of national soft power and competitiveness." This important discourse not only clarifies the important role of data resources in promoting high-quality economic development but also profoundly elucidates that mastering data advantages and fortifying data security screens have become key indicators for measuring a country's comprehensive national strength. On April 15, 2014, at the first meeting of the Central National Security Commission, Xi Jinping first proposed the Holistic Approach to National Security and included data security within its systematic exposition. On June 22, 2022, while presiding over the 26th meeting of the Central Commission for Comprehensively Deepening Reform, Xi Jinping emphasized: "The construction of basic data systems concerns the overall situation of national development and security; we must safeguard national data security." This requires that while promoting the development and utilization of data, we must attach great importance to the significance of data security. At present, our country's economy is in an important stage of shifting gears in growth speed and optimizing structure; traditional industries face the dual pressure of resource constraints and overcapacity, and there is an urgent need to achieve a succession of developmental momentum by forward-looking layouts in strategic emerging industries and future industries. To this end, we must earnestly fortify the data security defense line, promote the deep fusion of data with other factors of production, fully release the powerful momentum of data in promoting high-quality economic development, and continuously expand the digital space for the development of new quality productive forces.
2. Value Position: Coordinating Data Development and Security Must Use Improving People's Well-being as the Goal Orientation
While the wide application of data brings great convenience to people's lives, it is also accompanied by a series of new challenges brought about by data abuse and leakage. How we steer data depends fundamentally on the development position and security concepts we uphold. Xi Jinping's series of important discourses on data development and security profoundly clarify the fundamental and directional issues of "for whom is development" and "for whom is security."
Adhering to the "data for the people" position is an essential requirement of the socialist system. The original aspiration and founding mission of the Communist Party of China lie in "seeking happiness for the Chinese people and rejuvenation for the Chinese nation." The people-centered development philosophy is the core value orientation and essential pursuit of the system of socialism with Chinese characteristics. The fundamental goal of promoting data development and fortifying security screens is by no means simple technological evolution or economic growth; rather, it is to give play to the powerful empowering role of data in improving the modernization of social governance, facilitating the daily lives of the masses, optimizing grassroots grid management, and driving the smart operation of cities, ultimately benefiting all the people. Whether data can truly be transformed into a tool for improving people's well-being depends, in the final analysis, on who controls the data and whom it serves. Under the capitalist system, the dominance of data technology is in the hands of the bourgeoisie; the primary goal of data development and application is the pursuit of excess surplus value and the consolidation of capital power, rather than improving overall social welfare or promoting the comprehensive development of the person. This monopolistic control over data resources exacerbates the concentration of social wealth in the hands of a few, erodes social fairness, and even becomes a structural barrier hindering common prosperity. In sharp contrast, in socialist China, the starting point and goal of developing big data, artificial intelligence, and other sciences and technologies are always to satisfy the people’s needs for a better life to the greatest extent and to provide solid support for the realization of the free and comprehensive development of the person. This systemic advantage ensures that data resources can truly be used by the people and for the profit of the people.
Promoting data development and security must take satisfying the people's needs for a better life as the starting point and the goal. The report to the 19th National Congress of the CPC clearly pointed out that the principal contradiction in our society has been transformed into...
"The contradiction between the people's ever-growing need for a better life and unbalanced and inadequate development." This major judgment profoundly reveals that the level of the masses' demands has shifted from the foundational guarantee of "whether it exists or not" toward the pursuit of high-quality experiences of "whether it is good or not." To satisfy the urgent demands of high-quality development, activating the potential of data as a factor of production is imperative. The advantages of data—such as its high connectivity, rapid propagation, and powerful integration—are profoundly changing social operational modes and providing a strong guarantee for improving the quality of life for the masses. Xi Jinping has repeatedly emphasized: "We must adhere to the people-centered development philosophy, promote 'Internet + Education,' 'Internet + Healthcare,' 'Internet + Culture,' etc., to let the people run fewer errands and let data 'run' more, continuously improving the level of equalization, universality, and convenience of public services." This requires Party committees (Party leadership groups), governments, and social organizations at all levels to always place the people in the highest position in their hearts when advancing data development and security work.
At the same time, Xi Jinping attaches great importance to fairness and justice in the digital age, taking the dismantling of the "digital divide" [9] as an important measure to guarantee people's wellbeing and promote balanced social development. He clearly pointed out the need to "accelerate the construction of information infrastructure and the popularization of information services, with a focus on poverty-stricken areas and border ethnic areas." By tilting resource allocation and strengthening weak links in digital infrastructure, the masses in these regions can also equally enjoy the dividends of data development. This not only demonstrates Xi Jinping's profound grasp of the unbalanced and inadequate nature of data development but also reflects his deep concern for the masses in difficult and special regions. In essence, whether it is leveraging data advantages to enhance the convenience of daily life or ensuring the development rights and interests of specific regions, a distinct people-centered standpoint is manifested.
3. Core Substance: Coordinating data development and security must adhere to the basic principle of collaborative advancement.
Data development is an important foundation for data security; only by achieving the full development of data can we provide solid technical and resource support for maintaining data security and drive continuous innovation and application of data security protection technologies. At the same time, data security is the fundamental prerequisite for data development; only under conditions where security is fully guaranteed can data effectively resist various threats and destruction during the development process, achieving healthy and sustainable development.
On one hand, we must maintain data security to guarantee data development. Xi Jinping pointed out: "We must handle the relationship between security and development well, achieving coordination and simultaneous progress, ensuring development through security and promoting security through development." Data security concerns not only the collection, utilization, and protection of data itself but is also closely linked to national sovereignty, security, and development interests; it must be afforded high priority. From a strategic perspective, building a strong data security barrier helps us seize the initiative in the global digital competition landscape, advance the construction of a Digital China, and better serve economic and social development and the improvement of people's livelihoods, effectively enhancing the people's sense of gain, happiness, and security. The root of current risks and challenges in the field of data security lies not in data technology itself, but more in the disorderly expansion of capital. Karl Marx profoundly pointed out in Capital that capital possesses an inherent impulse to constantly pursue appreciation and break through boundaries: "With the extension of capitalist production, the scientific factor is, for the first time, consciously and widely developed, applied, and embodied in life on a scale which previous epochs had not even imagined." In the real environment, whether it is the theft of private personal information or the leakage of sensitive national data, the root causes are inseparable from the profit-seeking nature of capital. Therefore, the core of maintaining data security lies in achieving comprehensive protection and scientific governance throughout its entire life cycle. Based on this, the CPC Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at its core has focused on refining the institutional system for data security, issuing a series of data security laws and regulations. These have both strengthened the rule-of-law guarantee and government supervision of data processing flows and laid a solid legal foundation for the efficient circulation and innovative application of data.
On the other hand, we must better maintain data security while promoting data development. Xi Jinping profoundly pointed out: "Security is the prerequisite for development, and development is the guarantee for security." In all work promoting the development and utilization of data resources, we must always place security guarantees in a prominent position, correctly grasping and properly handling key issues such as the definition of data property rights, circulation and trading, income distribution, and security governance. We must "adhere to the path of internet governance with Chinese characteristics and persist in coordinating development and security," accelerating the construction of a foundational institutional system for data development and security that conforms to our national conditions. Only by placing the assurance of data security and the promotion of data development on an equally important strategic footing can we fully leverage the role of data as a factor of production in building security barriers and driving economic high-quality development.
4. International Advocacy: Coordinating data development and security to hand-in-hand build a community with a shared future in cyberspace.
In today's surging wave of global digitalization, data flows at an accelerating pace through networks and platforms, profoundly changing the organizational forms and rule systems of international economic development and bringing brand new opportunities for economic globalization. At the same time, influenced by factors such as technological monopolies, the development gap, and the over-generalization of the concept of security, global data governance also faces severe risks and challenges, with realistic concerns such as "North-South imbalance" [10] and governance fragmentation. In response to this situation, Xi Jinping clearly proposed: "We must conform to the development trends of digitalization, networking, and intelligence, jointly committing to eliminating the 'digital divide' and boosting the digitalization process of trade in services."
On one hand, we must bridge the digital divide on the basis of respecting the data sovereignty of different countries and regions. With the rapid development of network information technology, all countries in the world have increasingly become a community with a shared future where we rise and fall together and depend on one another. By virtue of its efficient flow and deep interconnection characteristics, data is continuously strengthening the ties between countries in fields such as economic and trade cooperation, mutual learning in governance, and cultural exchanges, pushing international collaboration to break through traditional boundaries toward deeper synergy and broader integration. Win-win collaboration has become the irreversible trend of the era of economic globalization. However, Western countries, represented by the United States, are vigorously promoting digital colonialism and digital hegemonism globally through means such as "digital technical assistance," implementing unilateral control over the critical data resources and digital spaces of many countries. Large American multinational digital technology enterprises such as Apple, Google, Microsoft, and Amazon currently occupy more than 90% of the global internet market share, forming a highly concentrated market structure. In contrast, the vast number of developing countries, due to weak digital technology foundations and insufficient innovation capabilities, lag significantly behind in the digital transformation of their economies and industries, facing a severe risk of "data marginalization." Furthermore, the "winner-takes-all" logic practiced by Western digital capitalism further exacerbates the structural contradictions of unbalanced digital development and uneven technical resources between nations. Facing the realistic plight of global data governance, Xi Jinping clearly pointed out that China is willing to work with the international community to jointly build data security and promote common development, "using 'data governance' to help implement the United Nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, joining hands to build an open and win-win international cooperation pattern in the field of data, and promoting the common development and progress of all countries." He emphasized that we should uphold the concept of a community with a shared future for humanity and, on the premise of fully respecting the data sovereignty of all countries, promote data development and security governance through open cooperation, strengthen mutual trust, connectivity, and the principle of extensive consultation, joint contribution, and shared benefits on a global scale, and jointly build a more inclusive, fair, and sustainable new order for global data governance, so that data as a factor of production truly benefits the people of all countries.
On the other hand, we must promote the joint consultation and determination of rules in the data field through strengthening international exchanges and cooperation. In his congratulatory letter to the 4th United Nations World Data Forum, Xi Jinping pointed out that as a firm supporter of the UN 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, China will "continuously improve digital infrastructure, establish and refine the foundational institutional system for data, strengthen capacity building in data and statistics, and actively share China's practices and experiences in monitoring Sustainable Development Goals." From proposing the Global Initiative on Data Security to carrying out transnational cooperation in network communication technology with Gulf countries; from launching the Global Initiative on Data Cross-border Flow Cooperation to building a global scientific and technological literature data platform; from signing the “Belt and Road” Digital Economy International Cooperation Initiative and the G20 Digital Innovation Cooperation Action Plan to organizing the 2025 China International Big Data Industry Expo, Xi Jinping has always stood at the height of "seeking a future for humanity and seeking the Great Unity for the world," [11] advocating active participation in exchanges and cooperation on international data issues, contributing Chinese wisdom to solving global data development and security problems, and providing Chinese solutions for bridging the digital divide and building a fair and inclusive global data governance system.
III. The Practical Path of Xi Jinping’s Important Discourse on Data Development and Security
Doing a good job in data development and security is a major task of the era that must be answered well to advance the construction of a Digital China. This is directly related to the construction of national security barriers, profoundly connected to the release of kinetic energy for economic development, and more closely tied to the vital interests of the masses. Xi Jinping’s important discourse on data development and security possesses a distinct problem-awareness and practical orientation. On the basis of completely and accurately grasping its generative logic and core substance, we must focus on improving the systems and mechanisms for the market-based allocation of data as a factor of production, refining the data security governance system, and promoting the efficient allocation and safe use of data to better serve the overall situation of economic and social development.
1. Adhere to the Party's overall leadership to ensure that data development and security advance in synchronization.
The fundamental key to promoting data development and maintaining data security lies in adhering to the Party's overall leadership. The Party's overall leadership is the fundamental guarantee for ensuring that data development and security work always proceeds in the right direction and practices the value concept of creating benefits for the people. The key to doing things well in China lies in the Party; "the Party, the government, the military, the people, and the academics; east, west, south, north, and center—the Party leads everything." Only by adhering to the principle of "the Party manages data" and integrating the Party's leadership into all aspects of data development and security work can we make correct strategic choices in grasping the major trends of the era and form complete implementation plans and efficient operational mechanisms.
First, we must firmly grasp the Party's dominance over data development and security work. As a new type of productive factor, data has not only given birth to new forms of the digital economy in the process of deep integration with various social resources but has also "empowered the transformation and upgrading of traditional industries and spawned new industries, new business forms, and new models" through extensive combination with the real economy, driving total factor productivity to achieve a historic leap. At the same time, we must clearly recognize that China still faces multiple risks and challenges in the data field, such as data leakage, abuse, and illegal trading. We must adhere to the Party's centralized and unified leadership over data development and security work, effectively transforming institutional advantages into governance efficacy to provide a strong political guarantee for the construction of a cyber powerhouse.
Second, we must firmly grasp the Party's initiative in data development and security work. With the in-depth development of information technology, proactively laying out future digital industries and seizing the initiative in economic development has become the focus of a new round of international competition. The 2024 China Data Trading Market Research and Analysis Report, jointly released by the Shanghai Data Exchange and the National Engineering Laboratory for Big Data Distribution and Exchange Technology, shows that "China's data trading market is expected to grow from 153.69 billion RMB in 2023 to 715.9 billion RMB in 2030, demonstrating strong growth momentum and huge market potential." However, the situation of China's digital economy being "large but not strong, fast but not optimal" remains prominent. Globally, in 2023, the scale of data trading in North America reached 56.1 billion USD; although Europe is in a catch-up phase regarding market growth rate, its data infrastructure and institutional systems have formed a world-leading advantage, with the market size expected to increase to 29.3 billion USD by 2025. Compared with the world's major economies, China still has obvious shortcomings in effective data supply, proactive layout of computing power, smooth circulation channels, and the full release of value. Facing new situations and challenges, we must fully leverage the Party's leadership as the greatest institutional advantage, enhance strategic initiative, and make the first move in development. We must continuously promote the deep integration of the digital economy and the real economy, improve the efficiency of data resource allocation, strengthen the role of digital industry clusters in empowering new quality productive forces, and accelerate the construction of a virtuous development pattern where Party building leads the transformation and upgrading of the data industry.
Finally, we must firmly grasp international discourse power regarding data development and security. As the initiatives for a cyber powerhouse and a Digital China advance in depth, various new business forms and models that boost high-quality economic development are emerging in abundance. While data factors are profoundly reshaping the socioeconomic landscape, they also place more urgent demands on China to enhance its international discourse power in data governance. To seize the initiative in global data governance, we must actively participate in the formulation of international rules, strive to break through the Western monopoly in the field of digital technology, and further strengthen China's rights of expression, bargaining power, and rule-making authority in data governance. This will create a more favorable international environment and external space for promoting our country's data development and security. To this end, in the process of deepening the integration of data with the real economy, we must innovate the discourse system and communication mechanisms for data development and security, comprehensively enhance China’s international communication capacity and governance influence in the field of data governance, and gradually build an international discourse advantage commensurate with China's status as a major digital power.
2. Adhering to a People-Centered Approach to Promote Data-Enabled Common Prosperity for All
Xi Jinping has pointed out that "big data has much to offer in terms of guaranteeing and improving people's livelihoods." From the "stroke-by-stroke" record-keeping in the Yan'an caves [12] to today’s "East-to-West Computing Resource Transmission" [13], our Party has always strictly observed the principle and tenet that development is for the people, development relies on the people, and the fruits of development are shared by the people. In the practice of promoting the construction of a Digital China, we must adhere to the fundamental standpoint of putting the people first and fully release the immense value of data in enhancing people’s wellbeing and creating a high-quality life.
First, we must promote data in empowering new quality productive forces to consolidate the material foundation for common prosperity for all. We should deeply recognize that "science and technology have never affected the future and destiny of the country as profoundly as they do today, nor have they ever affected the welfare of the people’s lives as profoundly as they do today." To promote the coordinated advancement of data development and security, we must actively explore effective paths for integrating digital technology into the entire process of enhancing productive forces. We must empower industrial transformation and upgrading through data, optimize public employment services, and assist high-quality economic development to build a solid material foundation for building a Great Modern Socialist Country. We must utilize data resources to empower technological innovation, continuously give rise to new business forms and models, and unceasingly strengthen, optimize, and expand the digital economy to inject new kinetic energy into high-quality development. Meanwhile, we should give full play to the prominent role of data in breaking down information barriers and optimizing resource allocation, promoting coordinated urban-rural and regional development, widening employment channels, and increasing the disposable income of residents. We must use data empowerment not only to make the "cake" of economic development bigger but also to divide the "cake" well, ensuring that the fruits of development benefit all people more extensively, fairly, and sustainably, thereby boosting common prosperity for all.
Second, we must establish and improve the mechanism for data’s participation in income distribution to promote the sharing of development fruits by the people. The fair and equal participation of data factors in the distribution of national income not only helps protect data rights and the legitimate interests of individuals but also promotes the healthy and orderly development of the data industry chain and cultivates new growth points for fiscal revenue. We must improve the income distribution incentive mechanism based on data value creation; while further enlarging the "cake" of social wealth, we must optimize the income distribution pattern and build a distribution system for returns on data factors that unifies efficiency and fairness. We must continuously improve the existing data property rights system, clarify the issue of data ownership, and protect the legitimate and lawful income of data owners. Furthermore, we must strengthen the construction of data security and privacy protection systems, earnestly safeguard the circulation security of the entire data life cycle, and promote the standardization, rationalization, and legalization of data transactions. By allowing the market to play a decisive role in resource allocation to rationally price the value of data, we can activate the internal vitality of data factors and assist the high-quality development of the digital economy.
Finally, we must implement a development strategy of data-empowered projects for people’s livelihoods to promote the free and well-rounded development of individuals. Liberating people from arduous labor and promoting free and well-rounded development is the value pursuit of scientific socialism and a basic feature of the future communist society. Integrating data—this new factor of production—into the systemic restructuring of the relations of production requires both promoting the transformation of labor forms from the "separation of simple and complex labor" toward the "deep integration of mental and manual labor," and using technological innovation as a starting point to inject new vitality into livelihood construction through precision services and efficient supply. Data should be applied to online education, assisted medical care, and employment services. Through the precise matching of big data, we can continuously enhance the people's sense of gain, happiness, and security, creating favorable conditions for the free and well-rounded development of individuals. This allows them to "do one thing today and another tomorrow, according to their interest" [14], truly breaking free from the shackles of survival pressure and alienated labor, so that the inherent potential of every life can blossom freely.
3. Improving the Data Governance Institutional System to Ensure Data Security Risks are Preventable and Controllable
In today's world of explosive growth in information and data, big data is increasingly becoming a key factor influencing people's modes of production, lifestyles, and ways of thinking. Data opening and sharing has become an inevitable choice in line with the trend of historical development, but the accompanying data security issues have also become a practical problem in urgent need of resolution. We must "establish and improve basic data systems, accelerate the cultivation of the data factor market, and promote the efficient, compliant circulation and use of data factors." Only by organically combining the safeguarding of data security, the improvement of institutional construction, and the clarification of benefit distribution can we build a secure and efficient protection system for data development, providing a safeguard for the full realization of the value and efficient circulation of data factors.
First, we must improve the data governance institutional system and promote the fulfillment of responsibilities for data development and security. Data security covers multiple dimensions such as technology, institutions, and rights; we must both strengthen technical protection capabilities and improve institutional norms and rights protection mechanisms. We should focus on core issues such as the definition of data ownership and benefit distribution, clarifying the principles of "whoever uses it is responsible" and "whoever collects it protects it," and promoting the formation of a data governance structure with clear rights and responsibilities, incentive compatibility, and effective supervision. By formulating a negative list for data collection and use, we can promote systemic and law-based governance in the data field, using legislation to clearly prohibit or restrict the collection of certain data types, especially by drawing strict "red lines" for the use of core data involving national secrets. Meanwhile, we must standardize the management of personal information, strictly limit the scope of collection and use, and clarify the boundaries of data use in the application of new technologies such as cloud computing, blockchain, and generative AI, in order to earnestly prevent various risks and losses caused by the abuse of personal information.
Second, we must improve the ownership of data resources and delineate the boundaries of data ownership, usage, and custody for different subjects. Xi Jinping pointed out that we must "promote the accelerated development of manufacturing toward digitalization, networking, and intelligence, and improve the stability and modernization level of the industrial and supply chains." To implement this requirement, we must coordinate data development and security, standardize the data disposal and usage behaviors of government departments, enterprises, institutions, individuals, and organizations, and clarify the rights and responsibilities of various types of data during the process of use to prevent risks such as data abuse or leaks caused by management gaps or boundary-crossing. Based on China's specific realities, we must explore the establishment of a comprehensive data security governance system compatible with the socialist market economy. We must both give full play to the value of data as a new factor of production and build a bottom line for security during development, achieving a benign interaction between data utilization and security safeguards. Aiming at the prominent problems currently existing in the field of data security, we must value the production factor attributes of data. Through specialized legislation and other means, we should clarify the ownership of data factors and refine the authorities and obligations of various subjects in the links of data storage, use, circulation, and transit. This will prevent disputes and risks caused by unclear rights and responsibilities at the source, providing a strong institutional guarantee for building a standardized, efficient, and trustworthy environment for data circulation.
Finally, we must continue to deepen the distribution of benefits from data resources and establish a mechanism for rights and interests distribution based on "Security First, Development as Essential, and Fairness as the Core." Xi Jinping emphasized, "We must strengthen the protection of critical information infrastructure security, enhance the protection capabilities of national key data resources, and improve data security early warning and source-tracing capabilities." To implement the spirit of this instruction, we should focus on the following tasks: First, we must strengthen the awareness that data security is the fundamental prerequisite for achieving benefit distribution, ensuring security throughout the entire data life cycle through precision technical protection and standardized social operations to avoid interest disputes caused by data leaks. Second, we must explore the establishment of income distribution rules based on the degree of data value contribution, clarifying the lawful and compliant returns for individuals, enterprises, organizations, governments, and social groups at the level of economic benefits. Through the dual approach of national taxation and market supervision, we can prevent and treat the imbalance in rights distribution caused by data monopolies. Third, we must improve existing data rights distribution mechanisms to ensure that the legitimate rights and interests of all parties in the process of data value creation are effectively protected. We must both prevent the imbalance of returns caused by data monopolies and build a distribution mechanism where primary distribution emphasizes efficiency, secondary distribution emphasizes fairness, and tertiary distribution emphasizes coordination, fundamentally stimulating the endogenous motivation of data subjects.
4. Deepening International Exchange and Collaboration to Build a Global Community for Data Development and Security
In Marx's view, exchange and collaboration can not only enhance individual productivity but also create a new productive force, and "this productive force itself is necessarily a collective power." Whether it be material production practice, socioeconomic and political practice, or scientific and cultural practice, all require the completion through the interaction and collaboration between people and people, and organization and organization. To promote international exchange and cooperation in the data field in the New Era, we must start by building a diverse and integrated data exchange platform, promoting bilateral and multilateral cooperation and exchange, building regional high-grounds for data circulation, and promoting data resource sharing and value release, in order to jointly build a community with a shared future for global data governance.
First, we must respect the differences in data management systems of different countries and enhance mutual inclusiveness and understanding. Respecting systemic differences is the ideological foundation for deepening international data exchange and cooperation. Due to differences in economic development status and historical and cultural backgrounds, the policies, systems, laws, and regulations formulated by different countries and regions regarding data development and security will inevitably vary. Acknowledging and respecting these explicit differences in the field of data governance is not only an important manifestation of strictly adhering to international interaction norms based on the Charter of the United Nations, but also an inevitable requirement for safeguarding data development and security, promoting international cooperation, and achieving mutual benefit and win-win results. Strengthening international data cooperation, empowering the digital transformation of global economy and society, and enhancing the common well-being of all humanity is a shared mission of all countries in the world; no country can remain indifferent or isolated. All parties should build consensus through promoting international data exchange and cooperation, working together to formulate international rules and standards for data development and security that take into account the interests of all parties, and jointly creating a favorable environment of openness, inclusiveness, fairness, and justice, providing a strong institutional guarantee for the sustainable prosperity of the global digital economy.
Second, we must improve the dialogue mechanisms for data governance among all parties and promote the achievement of a consensus on collaborative data governance among different countries and regions. We should rely on international organizational platforms such as the United Nations, the World Trade Organization, and the World Bank to actively build multi-level and institutionalized bilateral and multilateral dialogue channels, deepening communication and collaboration among all parties in the fields of data development and data security. On the basis of fully respecting the opinions and suggestions of all parties, we should promote the formation of global cooperation initiatives for data governance that align with the interests of all countries. Specialized agencies should be established to take responsibility for formulating and revising international data governance cooperation rules, mediating international disputes, and guiding countries—especially the vast number of developing countries—to adjust and optimize their own data governance policies and systems, ensuring the orderly connection of cross-border data flow rules among countries. With the deepening and development of global data governance practices, we must also establish regular and long-term data exchange and dialogue mechanisms. On the basis of adhering to the principles of extensive consultation, joint contribution, and shared benefits, we should promote the formation of a new, standardized, and orderly pattern of data governance.
Finally, we must explore the establishment of a negative list for the cross-border circulation of critical data to promote safe and reliable data flow. Data security is an important cornerstone of international data cooperation and governance. Exploring the establishment of a negative list for cross-border data circulation in combination with a country's actual conditions is an important measure to ensure the safe and efficient flow of data across regions. Establishing a negative list and clearly defining the types of data prohibited from cross-border transmission can both effectively safeguard national data sovereignty and development security, and also improve the efficiency of data flow and the level of cooperative governance, promoting deep cooperation and the sustainable development of the digital economies of various countries. In practice, we must formulate scientific and rational data security classification and categorization standards to ensure that the content of the list is accurate, comprehensive, and operable. We should explore the construction of a dynamic optimization mechanism for the negative list, conducting regular evaluations and timely updates of the list’s contents, so that negative list management always stays in line with the laws of data technology development and data governance trends, achieving the coordination and unity of data development and security.
Conclusion
Xi Jinping’s series of important expositions on data development and security profoundly grasp the epochal trends of the world’s new round of scientific and technological revolution and industrial transformation. They represent a scientific inheritance and innovative development of the basic principles of Marxism, as well as a scientific program for systematically responding to the new global situation of data development and mitigating new risks to data security. Centered on major issues such as the functional positioning, value stance, and basic principles of data development and security work, as well as the construction of a community with a shared future for humanity in the digital realm, these important expositions have formed a theoretical system with rich connotations, rigorous logic, and systemic integrity. In the theoretical dimension, this discourse—through a series of original theoretical achievements—has enriched and developed Marxist theories of productive forces, demonstrating the contemporary value of scientific truth. In the practical dimension, these expositions have pointed the way forward and provided a fundamental basis for promoting the continuous and healthy development of our country's digital economy, and for leading global data governance and cooperation. Deeply studying and implementing the spirit of this important discourse will powerfully advance the modernization of our country’s data governance system, facilitate the structural upgrading of digital industries, and strengthen the new driving forces for the development of the digital economy. Looking toward the future, we must uphold and improve the fundamental principle of "the Party managing data," firmly establish the development philosophy of taking the people as the center, continuously improve the system for preventing and controlling data security risks, and unceasingly deepen international exchange and cooperation in data governance. Only in this way can we comprehensively advance data development and safeguard data security amidst the waves of the digital age, thereby boosting high-quality development of the economy and society, and laying a solid foundation for the great cause of building a strong nation and national rejuvenation [15].
Author Profile: Mi Huaquan, Associate Professor, School of Marxism, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China (UESTC). Source: Marxist Studies (Makesizhuyi Yanjiu), Issue 12, 2025. Editor: Huihui