If by AGI we mean AI systems that can continuously learn on the fly to do new tasks similarly to humans, then I definitely think that's what China is working on. And it's not really a conspiracy theory. This would be an obviously useful technology that will facilitate mass automation on unprecedented scale. However, if we're talking about AGI in the whole Vingean singularity sense, then I don't really think that's what they're focused on. There's actually a good interview with Alibaba Cloud founder where he explains the strategy in China. The idea is to get quick wins, integrate this tech into practical application, and iterate.