2026 Spring Festival Gala highlights Chinese culture and technology

China Media Group's 2026 Spring Festival Gala aired globally via CGTN in 85 languages and combined traditional performances with advanced production tools including AI, AR, XR and humanoid robots.

The 2026 Spring Festival Gala, produced by China Media Group, was broadcast on Monday evening and reached audiences at home and abroad. The annual gala, known as Chunwan, has been a Chinese New Year Eve ritual for more than four decades that accompanies family reunions. This edition was distributed by CGTN across 85 languages and through partnerships with more than 3,500 media outlets in over 200 countries and regions. It is presented as part of a wider trend of the festival becoming more visible as an international celebration. Key details: - The program included a mix of music, comedy, traditional arts such as opera and martial arts, and spectacle acts like magic and acrobatics. - Cross-cultural segments featured an acrobatic piece blending Chinese techniques with international staging and a fusion performance that combined ballet with street dance. - Advanced technologies were integrated into many scenes, with AI, augmented reality (AR), extended reality (XR), VR glasses, Beidou navigation and drones used to create immersive stage effects. - Humanoid robots performed martial-arts moves; the article reports that China had more than 150 humanoid robot companies in 2025 and describes the sector as expanding rapidly, with a reported market scale projection of 100 billion yuan by 2030. - The gala was framed as a way for overseas Chinese and international audiences to share the New Year celebration and experience elements of Chinese cultural heritage. Summary: The 2026 gala presented traditional cultural forms alongside contemporary staging and digital tools, illustrating a blending of heritage and modern production techniques. It reached international viewers through wide multilingual distribution and highlighted developments in areas such as AI and robotics as part of the show's visual storytelling. Undetermined at this time.