On the evening of April 18, 2026, the 56th session of the "Digital Economy and Management Lecture Hall", entitled The Wave of Large Models: Progress and Application Trends of Intelligent Agents, took place in the lecture hall of the Electronics Building. The lecture was delivered by Liu Qiong, Senior Expert at Tencent Research Institute, and hosted by Teacher Zhou Jianghua from BNUBS. More than 80 undergraduate, master’s and doctoral students of the School attended the event.

Centering on the core viewpoint that "2026 is not just another year of AI, but a watershed in the ways we work and study", Ms. Liu systematically reviewed the current development and evolutionary trends of large models and intelligent agents. She pointed out that AI development is no longer incremental. In merely two to three years, intelligent agents have achieved leaps in ecological diversity, token consumption scale and in-depth application, with industrial advancement far exceeding previous expectations.

She further analyzed the core mechanisms of intelligent agents and their three generations of evolution, noting that the essential change lies in the power shift from "humans operating tools" to "autonomous AI execution". Around this core theme, she illustrated three key elements: Harness, the engineering management framework for large models; Skills, the replicability of experience; and Token, which is evolving from computing cost to a consumer product. These explanations helped students build a systematic understanding of the intelligent agent technology stack.

In terms of industrial disruption, Ms. Liu presented the differentiated impacts of large models across various sectors through an industry impact matrix. She stated that the high-premium pricing model of SaaS enterprises is being disrupted by AI. Meanwhile, continuous advances in AI-generated advertising materials have diversified advertising formats and reconstructed the industrial chain of the advertising industry. For education and scientific research, immersive and personalized AI empowerment has unlocked brand-new development possibilities. Beyond analyzing industrial challenges, the lecture also guided students to explore new growth opportunities brought by the intelligent wave across industries.

Facing the intelligent transformation, Ms. Liu shared three core principles and a five-step action framework for enterprises to implement intelligent upgrading, and put forward the strategic judgment of "lean investment in large models, and heavy investment in workflow optimization". Drawing on vivid practical cases of Tencent’s industrial services, she demonstrated best practices for enterprise AI adoption, emphasizing key experience such as CEO-led AI transformation and gradual promotion starting with high-fault-tolerance scenarios. In combination with the latest research data from Tencent Research Institute, she analyzed AI’s influence on the recruitment market and the penetration changes of various positions, encouraging students to rethink the collaborative relationship between humans and AI.

Teachers and Students Listening on Site

After the lecture, Ms. Liu engaged in in-depth interactions with students, exchanging views on AI career development, technological evolution of intelligent agents, and industrial application prospects. Students shared that the lecture deepened their understanding of intelligent agent trends and provided valuable strategic guidance for personal development under human-AI collaboration. The event concluded perfectly with warm applause from all teachers and students.

Brief Introduction to the "Digital Economy and Management Lecture Hall" Series

Upholding the mission of "Promoting business and culture to serve the nation and the world by creating knowledge and developing talents.", BNUBS keeps a close focus on the development and practice of the digital economy and modern management.

Launched in September 2020 as the "Frontier Lectures on Digital Economy and Management", the serial activity has held 54 sessions to date. Officially upgraded to the "Digital Economy and Management Lecture Hall" in May 2023, the series presents a comprehensive panorama of contemporary digital economy and management from multiple perspectives including economy, management, culture, technology and industrial transformation. It strives to interpret the inherent connotations and development laws of the digital era, and inspire in-depth thinking and practical innovation for China’s economic development as well as corporate reform in the new economic age.

Contributed by MBA Education Center

Edited by Zhang Li

Reviewed by Zhou Jianghua