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Society

Lai Ka-ying is Hong Kong’s first astronaut. Her mentor saw her talent years ago

Lai is meticulous and skilled in explaining complex ideas to others, says academic who guided her through her postgraduate studies.

Lai Ka-ying is set to become Hong Kong’s first astronaut when she joins a mission launching this Sunday to dock with the Tiangong space station. Photo: CCTV

World

UN event on nuclear non-proliferation treaty stumbles, US and Iran clash

There was no consensus among the 191 parties to the NPT, the third failure in a row at a conference reviewing the treaty.

A plenary session of the review conference for the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty held on Friday at the UN headquarters in New York. Photo: Kyodo

Other Sport

Olympic champion Russell overcomes mental hurdles to inch closer to world record

Karsten Warholm, Cordell Tinch, Alison dos Santos and Ryan Crouser are all part of an elite field at the Diamond League event in Xiamen.

Masai Russell (centre), here competing in Zhejiang Province in May, is hoping to break the 100m hurdles world record in Saturday’s Xiamen Diamond League event. Photo: Xinhua

Science

Chinese scientists grow heart’s ‘master conductor’ that could replace pacemaker

Shanghai researchers engineer biological pacemaker that could offer a new way to control abnormal heart rhythms.

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The findings of Chinese scientists may offer possibilities for future biological pacemaker strategies, according to their paper. Image: Shutterstock

World

27 countries seek access to World Bank funds since Iran war

An analyst says countries are more willing to seek the World Bank’s help than from the IMF due to the IMF’s austerity conditions.

A man sits among buildings destroyed in Tehran in a joint attack by Israel and the United States on April 6. Photo: Getty Images
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People

Japanese female prison’s rehabilitation goal faces health, language barriers

A human rights group says Japan’s penal system still fails to treat prison inmates ‘like human beings’.

Inmates in Tochigi Prison’s factory in Japan sew flags and banners. Photo: Julian Ryall

World Opinion

Opinion | Investors in AI-driven bubble risk forgetting painful lessons

AI-driven stock market hype is not independent of what is happening in the rest of the economy.

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A man walks past a digital stock display in Tokyo on May 7. Photo: EPA

China Business

SpaceX share sale won’t drain Hong Kong IPO boom, JPMorgan says

Bank sees strong demand for Chinese AI, robotics and healthcare listings despite SpaceX’s projected record-breaking IPO in the US.

A SpaceX rocket lifts off at Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Photo: Reuters

China Opinion

As I see it | How China wins by avoiding war

Trump, Putin and Netanyahu have all gone to war to prove how strong and powerful they are. The results should give any strongman pause.

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Fu Cong, China’s Permanent Representative to the UN, addresses the Security Council during a meeting on the Middle East, at the UN headquarters in New York City, on February 18. Photo: Reuters

Science

Developing | Hong Kong’s first astronaut Lai Ka-ying picked for space station mission

The former police officer will become China’s fourth woman in space, taking part in the Shenzhou-23 mission as a payload specialist.

Lai Ka-ying (left) will join the Shenzhou-23 mission as a payload specialist, alongside astronauts Zhu Yangzhu (centre) and Zhang Zhiyuan (right). Photo: Xinhua
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Tech War

A cloud above the clouds: US, China jockey for position in computing space race

China could be a leading player in the new technological battlefield, but the US has a substantial lead in essential tools such as reusable rockets.

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Illustration: Henry Wong

Trending in China

Ancient Chinese texts show ‘immortal mirror’ linking to early notion of robots

Imagination and folk legend in imperial China came up with objects that could display people’s internal organs and a flying wooden magpie.

China ancient texts depict magical mirrors akin to a CT scan, vivid wooden puppets and early notions of robots. Photo: Baidu

Hong Kong economy

Video | Many companies seeking spot in Hong Kong’s Northern Metropolis industry park, new chairman says

The head of the new company set up by the government to accelerate development of the megaproject reveals demand for space is strong.

Jeffrey Lam
10:31

China

Chinese ‘fighting doctor’ Shi set for UFC foe – with ‘half the world’ watching

The MMA fighter, who faces India’s first female UFC fighter in Macau on Friday, also explains why being a doctor ‘is like rowing upstream’.

Shi Ming practices MMA at a club in her spare time. Photo: Shi Ming’s Weibo

Society

Graduates of top vocational school spared brunt of AI impact, new chairman says

Jeffrey Lam explains how he will steer Vocational Training Council as job market changes rapidly and reveals plans for Northern Metropolis campus.

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The VTC offers programmes across multiple academic levels, ranging from secondary school qualifications and associate degrees to full bachelor’s degrees provided by member institutions. Photo: Felix Wong
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Lifestyle & Culture

Southeast Asia is chasing the AI boom, but at what cost?

A regional dash for digital dominance risks running headlong into an energy crunch and an existential threat to jobs.

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Illustration: Huy Truong

Food & Drink

Our cheat sheet for the best things to do in Hong Kong, May 24–30

Enjoy a seasonal mango menu at Gaylord Indian Restaurant, try The Green Door’s new drinks, be dazzled by Chow Tai Fook’s Gold Ginkgo Tree and enjoy art with a side of charity on Shin Hing Street.

The Green Door's Coco cocktail mixes gin and rum with mushroom, elderflower and brine. Photo: courtesy The Green Door

United States & Canada

SpaceX launches its biggest, most beefed-up Starship yet on test flight

CEO Musk hopes the rocket will get people to Mars one day, but he must first beat Bezos’ Blue Origin to help Nasa put astronauts on the moon.

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SpaceX’s Starship makes a test flight from Starbase, Texas, on Friday. Photo: AP

United States & Canada

US judge tosses case against wrongly deported Salvadorean man Abrego Garcia

The indictment was ‘an abuse of prosecuting power’ against a man at the centre of a row over Trump’s migrant crackdown, the judge ruled.

Kilmar Abrego Garcia attends a rally in his honour at the ICE field office in Baltimore in August 2025. Photo: AP

Opinion

Editorial | Prosperity summit showcases Hong Kong’s intellectual leadership

The Global Prosperity Summit underlined the city’s strength in bringing diverse stakeholders together to tackle issues of international importance.

From the left, Stratos Pourzitakis, vice-chair of the European Chamber of Commerce in Hong Kong; Regina Ip, convenor of the non-official members of Hong Kong’s Executive Council and founder of the Savantas Policy Institute; Han Zhiqiang, vice-president of the China Public Diplomacy Association; and Professor Li Kaisheng, vice-president of the Shanghai Institutes for International Studies, attend the Global Prosperity Summit at The Fullerton Ocean Park Hotel in Aberdeen on May 19. Photo: Edmond So
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Health & Wellness

How GLP-1s are more than just weight-loss wonders – but not without risk

Research suggests GLP-1s like Ozempic may help with more than just weight loss and type 2 diabetes, but experts warn of risks from abuse.

GLP-1 drugs offer broader health benefits beyond weight loss, but they carry serious risks requiring medical oversight, experts say. Illustration: Cameira

China

How can China and the US escape ‘history as usual’? Xi has a message

Prominent Harvard scholar says the Chinese leader sees rivalry with Washington as a path to catastrophic war unless both sides rethink their ties.

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Chinese President Xi Jinping (left) and US President Donald Trump visit the Zhongnanhai Garden in Beijing on May 15. Photo: AP

Opinion

Editorial | First severe storm of the year shows city’s response can be improved

There were no serious injuries as the government response kicked in, but too many structural gaps remain.

Heavy rain in Fanling on May 20, hours before the Observatory issued a red rainstorm warning. Photo: Handout

Global Economy

Putin left China, with no pipeline deal. Why is the valve still closed?

Though this week’s China-Russia summit featured many agreements, none progressed the long-delayed Power of Siberia 2 natural gas pipeline.

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Illustration: Lau Ka-kuen

Celebrities

Meet Jai Courtney, who plays Rob-Will in Yellowstone sequel Dutton Ranch

The Aussie actor was previously in Suicide Squad, Divergent and A Good Day to Die Hard with Bruce Willis.

Jai Courtney plays Rob-Will in Dutton Ranch. Photo: @jaicourtney/Instagram
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Celebrity Style

How to style like Oprah Winfrey in her joyous return to Paris Fashion Week

Everyone’s favourite media mogul wowed at fashion week in Chanel, Chloé and Stella McCartney.

Everyone’s favourite media mogul Oprah Winfrey donned boho-chic at Paris Fashion Week in March. Photo: Chloé

United States & Canada

Trump won’t attend eldest son’s wedding: ‘I have a thing called Iran’

‘I have a thing called Iran,’ the US president had earlier said on why the timing of the event was bad for him.

Donald Trump Jnr and Bettina Anderson attend an event in Miami, Florida in April. Photo: Reuters

United States & Canada

Trump to force foreigners seeking US green cards to go home first

The change could affect hundreds of thousands of people a year and potentially reduce legal immigration further.

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The US awards about 1 million green cards a year, though roughly half of those are for foreign relatives being sponsored by an American citizen. Photo: Shutterstock

Diplomacy

Rubio expected to brief New Delhi on Xi-Trump summit during India trip

US Secretary of State arrives on Saturday for four-day visit, with relations between the two countries strained and continuing to fluctuate.

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US United States Secretary of State Marco Rubio arrives in India on Saturday for a four-day visit that will include Kolkata, Agra, Jaipur and New Delhi. Photo: AFP

United States & Canada

Warsh takes US Fed’s helm with inflation dilemma already unfolding

Trump’s pick to lead the central bank must contend with an economy roiled by the AI boom, as well as oil price and tariff shocks.

US President Donald Trump shakes hands with new Federal Reserve Chair Kevin Warsh (left) at the White House on Friday. Photo: AFP