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Tech Trends

Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang has admitted to an extramarital affair, amid reports he was targeted by a foreign intelligence operation. Photo: AFP
Semiconductors

‘Just personal matters’: Chinese GPU traders shrug off impact of Nvidia scandal

Prices for Nvidia graphics cards are falling in China’s biggest electronics market despite all the talk of tightening US export controls.

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Alibaba

China’s Singles’ Day turns 18: bye coupon math, hello AI tokens

Artificial intelligence

In Focus | ‘Absolutely terrifying’: China’s AI start-ups face funding chill amid tech rout

Semiconductors

Nvidia faces defining test as Jensen Huang probe adds to chip stock turbulence

The US chip giant faces an unprecedented valuation test, with the inquiry into CEO Huang coming amid wider concerns over AI headwinds.

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Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang faces an investigation amid allegations that he was targeted by a foreign intelligence operation. Photo: AFP
Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang faces an investigation amid allegations that he was targeted by a foreign intelligence operation. Photo: AFP
Artificial intelligence

Beyond LLMs? China forges new path for AI with focus on industrial systems

China’s “AI plus” strategy is taking industry in a new direction, with focus on collectively developed systems catering to industry needs.

DeepSeek

DeepSeek’s AI agent push gains speed as Harness tops 1.5 million daily users

Hangzhou-based start-up ramps up efforts to monetise its powerful foundation models as AI agent platform gains traction.

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Artificial intelligence

AI will soon master biology, unleashing new safety risks: Tencent AI chief

Frontier AI systems could soon be capable of accelerating drug discovery – but also creating new bioweapons and starting the next pandemic.

Vinces Yao Shunyu, chief AI scientist at Tencent Holdings, has warned that AI is close to mastering biology, creating new safety risks. Photo: Handout
Vinces Yao Shunyu, chief AI scientist at Tencent Holdings, has warned that AI is close to mastering biology, creating new safety risks. Photo: Handout
Robotics

Service robot leader Pudu pivots to humanoids to fuel global ambitions

The company opened its European headquarters in Germany last month, following the launch of a US base in Dallas in April.

China technology

China’s robotaxis aren’t perfect. But no awkward small-talk? Count me in

Road-testing China’s driverless taxis threw up some unexpected issues, but also helped me understand why they are becoming so popular.

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Artificial intelligence

China’s AI models, led by Kimi, rule open-source enterprise spending

Chinese systems account for 89 per cent of spending on open-source models, but the category is small compared with spending on proprietary models.

Use of open-source models like Moonshot AI's Kimi represents just 4 per cent of overall enterprise spending on AI. Photo: AFP
Elon Musk

As political bet fails, what happens now to Musk’s Tesla, SpaceX and China ties?

Billionaire may face congressional scrutiny over SpaceX’s government contracts and Tesla’s China links, analysts say.

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Elon Musk stands on the side as Donald Trump speaks to the media at the White House in September. Photo: AFP
Elon Musk stands on the side as Donald Trump speaks to the media at the White House in September. Photo: AFP
Semiconductors

Chinese chipmaker Hua Hong bets big on silicon photonics amid AI boom

China’s No 2 contract chipmaker is aggressively expanding into silicon photonics technology, as its net profits surge 147 per cent.

Huawei

No Intel, no Qualcomm: Huawei unveils its first ‘100% domestic’ desktop

Tech giant expands HarmonyOS beyond laptops and tablets as it accelerates efforts to replace US technology.

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Robotics

Powered by GPT-6, Unitree humanoid robots master painting without prior training

Unitree founder says the industry’s biggest hurdle is no longer digital reasoning or planning but closing a ‘last-millimetre’ mechanical gap.

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Unitree G1 robots perform at the company’s booth at the World Robot Conference in Beijing, August 20, 2026. Photo: Reuters
US-China tech war

How Democratic sweep could slow AI growth in US – and help China’s ambitions

Democrats’ congressional victory fuels expectations of tighter scrutiny of AI and the data centres that power it.

A field with a sign against the construction of data centers is seen in Kansas on election day. Photo: Reuters
A field with a sign against the construction of data centers is seen in Kansas on election day. Photo: Reuters
Artificial intelligence

DeepSeek engineer defends push for open-source AGI despite higher risks

Some AI pioneers have warned that technology smarter than humans may escape human control.

Tencent

Tencent launches Hy4 in bid to break into AI’s top tier of open-weight models

Tech giant says the new model introduces visual reasoning and powers a comprehensive update to its workplace AI tool WorkBuddy.

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Artificial intelligence

From cyclists to wild dogs: Baidu’s new AI preps robotaxis for rare road hazards

Baidu is using an AI-driven simulator to train its Apollo robotaxis to deal with hazards such as reckless cyclists running red lights.

Baidu hosts a test-ride event for its Apollo Go autonomous driving project in Hong Kong. Photo: Karma Lo
Baidu hosts a test-ride event for its Apollo Go autonomous driving project in Hong Kong. Photo: Karma Lo
Artificial intelligence

Open-source AI is the ‘only’ sustainable way forward, says Alibaba’s Joe Tsai

Alibaba co-founder says open-source systems are the ‘only’ way to build a sustainable, inclusive AI industry.

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Artificial intelligence

Video | SCMP Plus’ fireside chat about AI with Professor Alan Macfarlane

Watch British anthropologist and historian Alan Macfarlane’s exclusive conversation with SCMP Plus about the impact of AI on society.

Artificial intelligence

China’s ‘Lipstick King’ hawks tokens as AI gets Singles’ Day push

Li Jiaqi helps sell 100,000 AI subscriptions in 30 minutes amid push by AI developers to promote the technology as an everyday utility.

Li Jiaqi (left) and QwenWork CEO Chen Yusen during the live stream on Tuesday. Photo: Handout
Semiconductors

China’s top EDA firm buys start-up to boost tools, back Huawei’s Tau Scaling Law

Empyrean’s purchase of Easy-Logic highlights efforts by Chinese firms to reduce reliance on Western chip-design software providers.

Microchip development relies on EDA software, a market long dominated by Western players. Photo: Shutterstock
Microchip development relies on EDA software, a market long dominated by Western players. Photo: Shutterstock
Artificial intelligence

China’s AI milestone: models generate more tokens than used in training

Average daily token calls exceed 175 trillion, government-backed report says, indicating growing demand for AI services.

Artificial intelligence

Self-improving AI the key step towards AGI but safety is key: Z.ai founder

Tang says RSI represents a ‘new paradigm’ of R&D that will accelerate AI development even more than it has been.

Medicine

China joins global race to reawaken brain-injury patients through ultrasound therapy

Chinese researchers have reported early promising results, as scientists worldwide explore ways to restore consciousness without invasive surgery.

A new brain-computer interface technology developed by researchers in Shenzhen offers a non-invasive way to communicate with the brain. Photo: CCTV
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