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China Future Tech

China Future Tech

Key Industries:
EVs
AI
Semiconductors
Aerospace
Robotics
Biomedicine
Live Q&A webinars

As China bets on tech and innovation to drive its growth, it has placed its chips on several industrial sectors that are expected to play increasingly important roles in development and trade, which will bring fresh opportunities and challenges for stakeholders. SCMP’s China Future Tech is your go-to destination for the latest news, insights, and opinions on these select industries. Explore in-depth coverage of EVs, AI, semiconductors, aerospace, robotics and biomedicine sectors. Follow us to stay ahead in China's evolving competitive landscape.

China’s AI sector is bracing for a monumental week, with a flurry of anticipated model releases. Photo: Shutterstock

China’s AI arms race sees sector brace for major flagship model launch week

A ‘stealth’ model has emerged, while advancements by Alibaba’s Qwen-3.5 and Zhipu’s GLM-5 aim to spur domestic competition following releases by US heavyweights.

Chinese cars now can’t be sold for less than it costs to make them

Hua Hong reports record Q4 revenue as AI-driven memory crunch fuels price hikes

Tech

China’s MiniMax releases AI model ‘designed for real-world productivity’

Company says it is ‘first frontier model … delivering on the promise of intelligence too cheap to meter’.

The logo of Chinese AI company MiniMax on a phone in Beijing last month. Photo: AFP
The logo of Chinese AI company MiniMax on a phone in Beijing last month. Photo: AFP

Tech

‘More than 600%’ memory price spike rattles China’s phone and broadband makers

China’s tech sector braces for a “memory winter”, with rising chip costs threatening handset output and slowing broadband rollouts.

Big Tech

China’s Lenovo warns of ‘prolonged’ memory crunch, looks to AI for rebound

Top PC maker posts a 21 per cent profit drop amid chip squeeze, but bets on AI-powered devices to sustain growth amid industry upheaval.

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Tech

Alibaba’s Qwen tops 120 million orders in 6 days amid China’s AI shopping battle

Campaign has sparked a behavioural shift towards AI-powered shopping, which Alibaba says is becoming a more popular lifestyle choice.

The number of orders signals growing acceptance of AI-powered shopping. Photo: Getty
The number of orders signals growing acceptance of AI-powered shopping. Photo: Getty

China Business

China’s efforts to control EV price war sees carmakers paying vendors quicker

Only a handful of the nearly 50 mainland China-based EV builders have been able to turn a profit amid the price wars.

Banking & Finance

Capital injection: China backs AI drug makers in self-reliance drive

A wave of government-linked investment is boosting Chinese AI drug makers, underscoring Beijing’s drive to build its own biotech ecosystem.

China Business

WuXi Biologics earnings jump as ‘follow and win the molecule’ strategy pays off

Chinese contract drug maker forecasts 46.3 per cent profit rise and signals continued growth despite US political scrutiny.

WuXi Biologics credits the performance to its “follow and win the molecule” strategy, which aims to secure work across the full lifecycle of client drugs. Photo: Shutterstock

Big Tech

China’s SMIC expects flat revenue as drop in low-end orders offsets AI growth

The contract chipmaker’s profit falls short of analyst estimates amid ‘challenges’ brought on by memory supply crunch.

The logo of Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corp appears outside the chipmaker’s facilities at Pudong district in Shanghai on March 15, 2024. Photo: AFP
The logo of Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corp appears outside the chipmaker’s facilities at Pudong district in Shanghai on March 15, 2024. Photo: AFP

China Business

Chinese healthcare firms expand overseas to support growing expat community

Privately owned Distinct Healthcare plans to open a clinic in Dubai, while TCM group Gushengtang eyes 50 centres in Southeast Asia.

Tech

Indonesia telco chief warns of digital colonisation, backs China open-source AI

Indonesian executives stress that localisation and sovereignty are key to AI adoption in the fast-growing Southeast Asian market.

Tech

Shanghai boosts chip fund 11-fold in China’s self-reliance push

Registered capital increases by US$794 million as country’s semiconductor hub strives to nurture local firms.

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The Shanghai IC Fund has invested in more than 20 local chip companies, including wafer foundries SMIC and HLMC. Photo: Reuters

Banking & Finance

Mainland China’s investors pour into Hong Kong-listed drug stocks

An index tracking Stock Connect buying of 40 mainland drug firms gains 9 per cent in a week as China’s industry heft grows.

An employee works on a drug production line at a pharmaceutical company in Meishan, China, on January 30, 2024. Photo: NurPhoto via Getty Images
An employee works on a drug production line at a pharmaceutical company in Meishan, China, on January 30, 2024. Photo: NurPhoto via Getty Images

Banking & Finance

China slashes wait times for loss-making tech firms seeking refinancing, fundraising

Three of China’s stock exchanges have relaxed fundraising time thresholds on listed tech companies as Beijing pushes for self-reliance.

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China EVs

Exclusive | CATL’s new innovation expands EV battery horizons in untapped cold regions

The Chinese giant pulls an ace from its sleeve amid fierce EV competition by bringing sodium-ion batteries to the mass-produced car market.

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China Business

Wuxi AppTec’s upbeat business update boosts stock despite US bill

A presentation persuaded investors that risk of a potential US blacklisting is low while growth in some business areas is ‘unprecedented’.

Shares in Chinese drug research and development group Wuxi AppTec closed up 23.9 per cent on Friday, the most since its listing in 2018. Photo: Reuters
Shares in Chinese drug research and development group Wuxi AppTec closed up 23.9 per cent on Friday, the most since its listing in 2018. Photo: Reuters

Big Tech

China Telecom say AI model with 1 trillion parameters trained with Chinese chips

The state-owned telecoms operator did not reveal what chips it used for its 1 trillion-parameter model, but it has a partnership with Huawei.

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Tech War

Huawei’s Meng Wanzhou back at the helm of firm ahead of next smartphone launch

In her latest tenure as rotating chairwoman, Meng is expected to oversee the launch of Huawei’s next flagship 5G smartphone series, the Mate 70.

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China Business

5 Chinese EV makers set monthly sales records as discounts draw buyers

BYD, Li Auto, Xpeng, Zeekr and Leapmotor posted new monthly delivery records in September as new models and promotions proved enticing.

Employees work on an EV production line at a Leapmotor factory in Jinhua, in China’s eastern Zhejiang province, on September 18, 2024. Photo: AFP
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China Future TechChina Future Tech
Oppo expects to roll out generative artificial intelligence functions to its 50 million smartphone users by the end of this year. Photo: Shutterstock

Oppo enters tech pact with top EV maker BYD, acquires AI start-up

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OPINION
Dominik Mierzejewski

Opinion | For clues to China’s next overcapacity cycle, watch the Spring Festival Gala

Dominik Mierzejewski
Ni Tao

Opinion | How Hangzhou’s tech ecosystem nurtures dragons and rockets

Ni Tao
Michael Han

Opinion | China’s new property pivot is coming. Expect full stabilisation ahead

Michael Han
4
Mark Andrews

Opinion | Innovation and exports will winnow China’s car industry in 2026

Mark Andrews
David Tingxuan Zhang

Opinion | Why China has moved to curb steel exports

David Tingxuan Zhang
Brian Y. S. Wong

Opinion | Protection of vulnerable workers must be part of China’s AI strategy

Brian Y. S. Wong
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