FUZHOU — China’s industrial output in the internet of things (IoT) exceeded 930 billion yuan ($140 billion) in 2016, an official from the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology said on Nov 9.

The value was almost six-times the level in 2009, when the sector saw 170 billion yuan of output, said Zhu Wan, deputy head of informatization and software service at the ministry, at the opening of a China internet of things conference in Fuzhou, capital of Fujian province.

“Industrial chains have been formed in chips, sensors, terminal devices, application software, system integration and communication networks, with over 100 million machine-to-machine terminals set up via the mobile communication network,” Zhu said.

In June, the ministry announced faster development of IoT infrastructure, and innovation in IoT pilot zones. The zones aim to promote IoT in public safety, healthcare, urban management and well-being services.

“Accomplishment has been primarily achieved at the pilot zones, such as Fuzhou economic and technical development zone, with the IoT integrated in fields of retail, transport, environmental protection, medical care and power grids,” she said.

Zhu said the ministry would help influential companies and industry leaders, as well as encourage the creation of small and medium-sized IoT startups.