Mexico and China Forge New Era of Tech Cooperation with Landmark Bilateral Agreement

Mexico and China signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) focused on science, technology, and innovation, anchored in the core principles of reciprocity, equality, and mutual benefit.

The MoU establishes a new phase of scientific and technological cooperation. The joint agenda is centered on artificial intelligence, supercomputing, robotics, and electromobility.

Rosaura Ruiz Gutiérrez, head of the Secretariat of Science, Humanities, Technology, and Innovation (Secihti), and Chinese Minister of Science and Technology, Yin Hejun spearheaded efforts to broaden bilateral cooperation during the Ninth Meeting of the Science and Technology Subcommittee of the Mexico–China Permanent Binational Commission.

The meeting marked a historic milestone, featuring the first-ever direct participation from China's Minister of Science and Technology since the Subcommittee was established in 2004.

Rosaura Ruiz emphasized that China’s decade-long transformation stems from its focus on education, research, and tech advancement. She added that Mexico stands to gain from China’s expertise in mathematics, artificial intelligence, and industrial research integration.

“We share a history of cooperation, but above all, we have a future agenda and a special affection between Mexico and China,” stated Ruiz Gutiérrez.

She stresses that this new phase must translate into more joint projects, student and researcher mobility, knowledge and technology exchange, and advanced scientific and technological capabilities, emphasizing closer collaboration between Mexican and Chinese professionals.

Meanwhile, Yin Hejun emphasized that strengthening bilateral tech ties is vital for driving socioeconomic development and tackling global challenges. Pointing to over fifty years of diplomatic and past collaboration in hydroelectricity and biodiversity, the Chinese Minister called for deeper cooperation to bridge the digital divide and address critical energy and health demands.

The agreement expands cooperation between universities and enterprises in research and innovation, joint forums, policy exchange, training, and public-private digital infrastructure.

In the meeting, Mexico presented strategic projects led by Secihti, such as the National High-Performance Computing and Artificial Intelligence Cluster—aimed at linking the country’s primary computing assets to serve researchers—alongside Coatlicue, a Mexican supercomputer and key infrastructure designed to scale up national capabilities in AI modeling, scientific simulations, and massive data analytics.

Other projects currently under development span key areas for national development, including electromobility, AI, the screwworm, river and watershed remediation, chip design, meteo-oceanic monitoring and early warning systems for extreme weather events, satellite monitoring of the Gulf of Mexico, sargassum utilization, agriculture and food sovereignty, and water and energy management.

Meanwhile, addressing the audience virtually, Mexican Ambassador to China Jesús Seade Kuri emphasized that bilateral ties are deepening across multiple fronts, encompassing governmental, commercial, youth, academic, and scientific exchanges.

Image: Secretariat of Science, Humanities, Technology, and Innovation (Secihti)