Zhou Hongyi's speech at the Zhongguancun Forum: Intelligent agents reshape the industrial landscape, six directions nurture new unicorns

At the recent 2026 Zhongguancun Forum Annual Global Unicorn Enterprises Conference, Zhou Hongyi, founder of 360 Group, delivered a keynote speech focusing on the new generation of intelligent agent technology represented by "Lobster" (OpenClaw), systematically elaborating on the industrial transformation opportunities brought about by the accelerated evolution of artificial intelligence. He pointed out that the rise of "Lobster" in 2026 marks the successful "breaking of the circle" of intelligent agent technology from the geek community to the general public. This not only completes the popularization of intelligent agents but will also drive the comprehensive reconstruction of the entire internet infrastructure, software industry, and even various physical industries, containing vast opportunities for nurturing a new generation of unicorns. First, the reconstruction of AI-native infrastructure. Zhou Hongyi pointed out that the current internet system is mainly built around "human" interaction habits, while in the era of intelligent agents, browsers, search engines, databases, and even account systems need to transform into "service intelligent agents." This comprehensive rewriting and reshaping of the underlying framework will itself give birth to new platform-type enterprises. Second, the evolution of the software industry towards "atomization." Traditional software, which clings to existing models, will find it difficult to sustain and is transitioning from complete product forms to a more foundational and modular approach, becoming "skill components" that can be flexibly called upon by intelligent agents. In this model, software acts as "raw materials," while intelligent agents serve as "chefs" and coordinators, capable of dynamically combining or even rewriting functions based on demand. Service upgrades can be achieved without companies having to redo software, fundamentally changing the sales and usage logic of software, thereby reshaping enterprise service forms and giving rise to a new generation of software giants. Third, the rise of "custom intelligent agents" in vertical fields. Faced with the stringent requirements for stability, consistency, and certainty in enterprise work, current general intelligent agents (such as the general "Lobster") still lean towards geek tools and struggle to directly meet complex standardized and procedural business scenarios. At the same time, enterprises generally lack the capability to create exclusive intelligent agents, which has created a huge market for customized professional intelligent agents and vertical industry intelligent agents. This trend will accelerate the implementation of intelligent agents in fields such as finance, manufacturing, and government affairs. Fourth, the emergence of new organizational models such as "One Person Company (OPC)." With the popularization of intelligent agents as "silicon-based partners" and "digital employees," the "One Person Company" model will thrive. Entrepreneurs can command a "digital team" composed of multiple intelligent agents to complete complex tasks, achieving higher efficiency with fewer human resources The number of future unicorn companies may decrease by ten times compared to now, and the business innovation surrounding this lightweight, high-efficiency organizational model will reshape the fundamental logic of innovation and entrepreneurship. Fifth, the formation of an "intelligent economy" ecosystem driven by intelligent agents. Zhou Hongyi stated that in the future, intelligent agents will emerge as a "new species" on the internet, gradually possessing independent accounts, communication, and even payment systems, capable of automatically completing information processing, business decision-making, and transaction fulfillment on behalf of humans. With a large number of intelligent agents collaborating, a dedicated intelligent economy ecosystem is expected to accelerate its formation. Sixth, the interconnected upgrade of underlying industries such as computing power and energy. The all-weather operation of intelligent applications will lead to a hundredfold increase in computing power consumption, which will promote the separation of inference computing power and training computing power, directly giving rise to the independent development of the "inference chip" industry. At the same time, the massive demand for computing power will further transmit to the electricity and energy systems, thereby leveraging the trillion-level market of electricity support, as well as upstream and downstream fields such as green electricity and nuclear power, forming new growth momentum. Zhou Hongyi stated that artificial intelligence is moving from point breakthroughs to systematic reconstruction, and intelligent agents will become an important carrier connecting technological innovation and industrial upgrading. In the future, 360 will continue to increase its investment in the artificial intelligence sector of Zhongguancun, deeply layout research and development of humanoid robots and artificial intelligence services, and promote the deep integration of technology and industry. With an open and win-win mindset, it will cultivate an innovative ecosystem, fully empower individuals and organizations, and work together to incubate more super enterprises of the intelligent era, driving a new wave of unicorns to emerge rapidly