Beijing wants to portray today’s China as carrying forward Zhu Rongji’s era of growth, but for many Chinese, the optimism of that time has since faded.

China is exporting more than A.I. models. It wants its data to influence the world’s chatbots, raising fears that Beijing’s narratives will spread with the technology.

Tributes to the former premier recalled his spirited style and his efforts to integrate China into global commerce, in contrast with the rigidity of the Xi era.