16 h. ago Baidu signs deal with Uber to deploy Apollo Go robotaxis in Asia, Middle East

Chinese search engine and AI giant Baidu and global taxi-hailing firm Uber Technologies have agreed to work together to deploy thousands of Baidu Apollo Go robotaxis in markets outside the US and mainland China, a move that comes as Tesla seeks to expand its robotaxis in the US. The multi-year deal will see robotaxis deployed in Asia and the Middle East later this year, according to a joint statement. It was unclear whether the partnership would include Hong Kong, where Baidu’s Apollo Go...

Economics

37 h. ago Chinese humanoid robot maker Unitree sees significant delivery growth in 2025

Unitree Robotics’ founder and CEO Wang Xingxing on Tuesday said that China’s humanoid robots have seized the attention of “people from around the world” who are now willing to buy them. The 35-year-old Wang shared his assessment of the industry at a government-hosted press conference in Beijing, where he forecast China’s robotics sector would expand at a rapid pace this year. He added that Unitree – one of the six “Little Dragons” from tech hub Hangzhou, capital of eastern Zhejiang province –...

Politics

39 h. ago What if Chinese, US firms make humanoid robots together? CEO calls for a collab

The founder of a prominent Chinese robotics start-up sees great value in working with American peers to advance the global development of humanoid robots – and his call for stronger collaboration between the fractious trade partners comes as China’s private sector is playing an increasingly larger role in innovation. “China has a deep foundation in manufacturing and hardware, while the United States possesses a rich AI software ecosystem,” said Wang Xingxing, founder and CEO of Hangzhou-based...

Economics

41 h. ago Chinese firms rush to buy Nvidia AI chips as sales set to resume

Chinese firms rush to buy Nvidia AI chips as sales set to resume  Reuters

Economics

42 h. ago Chinese firms’ H stocks trade at smallest discount to onshore shares in 5 years

The Hong Kong shares of dual-listed Chinese companies are trading at the smallest discount to their onshore peers in nearly five years, as a weaker US dollar spurs inflows and mainland investors snap up these stocks. The H shares of 160 firms, including Industrial and Commercial Bank of China and BYD, are trading 22 per cent below their mainland-listed A shares, according to a Hang Seng gauge tracking the disparity between the two markets. That marked the smallest gap since June 2020, as trading...

Politics

42 h. ago Chinese firms scramble to buy Nvidia AI chips as it plans to resume sales

Chinese firms scramble to buy Nvidia AI chips as it plans to resume sales  Reuters

Economics

47 h. ago Live: The energy transfer event of the 2025 World Humanoid Robot Games kicks off in Beijing

Live: The energy transfer event of the 2025 World Humanoid Robot Games kicks off in Beijing  news.cgtn.com

Sport

62 h. ago Robot makers AgiBot, Unitree, UBTech land more orders from Chinese enterprises

China’s fast-developing humanoid robot market segment is seeing demand from enterprises gather speed, as prominent start-ups AgiBot and Unitree Robotics have landed orders totalling 124 million yuan (US$17.3 million) from state-owned China Mobile, the world’s largest telecommunications firm by number of subscribers. That order from China Mobile’s subsidiary in Hangzhou, capital of eastern Zhejiang province, involves the supply of 78 million yuan worth of full-size humanoid robots from AgiBot and...

Politics

68 h. ago ‘Black Mirror’: Argentine tourist amazed by Japan hotel staffed by humanoid robots

A hi-tech Japanese hotel has left an influencer from Argentina stunned by its fully robot-staffed reception. The influencer said the hotel scene resembled the setting of the famous television series Black Mirror. The self-service hotel chain features humanoid robots in uniforms handling everything from check-in to checkout. An Argentine influencer identified as manuenalemania who has over 46,000 followers on social media, brought the hotel set-up to the public spotlight. On June 25, she told...

Society

3 d. ago Opinion | For Chinese firms going out, global success requires truly ‘going in’

Opinion | For Chinese firms going out, global success requires truly ‘going in’  South China Morning Post

Politics

4 d. ago Chinese law firms in ‘pivotal moment’ as they answer the call to go global

Chinese lawyers are making inroads into the global legal services market in response to growing demand from their compatriots abroad and a push from Beijing. They say that as more Chinese companies expand their footprint overseas many prefer to get legal support from Chinese lawyers and have more trust in them, but winning over clients from elsewhere is a challenge at a time of rising geopolitical tensions. Beijing has been pressing for more legal professionals to offer their services abroad to...

Politics

5 d. ago Chinese biotech firms eye foreign pharma’s fat profits in weight loss drug market

When Hong Kong office worker W.K. Chan began putting on weight as a teenager, her doctor said it was due to hormonal imbalances that slowed her metabolism. She reached a peak weight of 100kg about a year ago, but has since lost 25kg. The secret to losing a quarter of her weight? Chan, who asked not to be identified by her full name, was one of the city’s first 200 chronic obesity patients to receive access to a new weight loss drug, originally developed for diabetes. At a cost of HK$2,700...

Economics

5 d. ago Barking up wrong tree? Indonesian police’s robot use criticised for wrong focus

A hi-tech display of humanoid robots and robotic dogs by Indonesian police has drawn criticism for their desire to project a tech-savvy image and not focusing on tackling broader problems, ranging from a “culture of impunity” to reform inertia. At the national police’s 79th anniversary parade on July 1 in Jakarta, the force unveiled 25 new machines – including RoboCop-style robots, robot tanks and robodogs – in the presence of Indonesia’s President Prabowo Subianto. Their spokesman, Inspector...

Events

6 d. ago Robot maker AgiBot seeks stake in Shanghai firm in potential back

Tencent Holdings-backed AgiBot plans to acquire a controlling stake in a Shanghai-listed company for roughly 2 billion yuan (US$279 million), sparking speculation that the humanoid robot maker could pursue a back-door listing less than three years after it was founded. Agibot, the start-up also known as Zhiyuan Robotics, has offered to buy at least 63.62 per cent of Swancor Advanced Materials through affiliates Shanghai Zhiyuan Hengyue Technology Partnership and Shanghai Zhiyuan Xinchuang...

Politics

6 d. ago China’s military mouthpiece warns of ‘moral pitfalls’ of humanoid fighters

The official newspaper of the Chinese military has warned of potential ethical concerns associated with the use of humanoid fighters. On Thursday, an analysis in the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) Daily said that the military should conduct “ethical and legal research” on humanoid robots to “avoid moral pitfalls”. “Military humanoid robots are the most humanlike weapons to date, and their large-scale, normalised use could lead to indiscriminate killings and accidental deaths, which would...

Events

6 d. ago Why dozens of Chinese firms are joining the weight loss drugs fray

Sales of weight-loss drugs in the West have soared in recent years, driven by the approval of a new class of more effective medication, the rapid growth in obese populations owing to poor diet and lack of exercise, and endorsements by celebrities and social media influencers. In China, over 60 late-stage drugs are undergoing clinical trials. In the coming years, these may compete with the products of incumbents such as Denmark’s Novo Nordisk and US-based Eli Lilly, Boston-based global...

Economics

7 d. ago ‘EV moment’ for humanoid robots may be 5 years away, UBS says

Humanoid robots are unlikely to deliver significant productivity gains or be disruptive to household routines within the next five years, due to major barriers in artificial intelligence (AI), data collection and inadequate regulatory frameworks, according to UBS. “The ‘EV moment’ [for humanoid robotics] may not happen within five years,” Phyllis Wang, China industrials analyst at UBS Securities, said at a briefing on Monday. Wang defined an “EV moment” as the pivotal breakthrough when...

Politics

8 d. ago Humanoid robot 'graduates' from Chinese high school in bizarre ceremony: report

Humanoid robot 'graduates' from Chinese high school in bizarre ceremony: report  Fox Business

Politics

8 d. ago Beijing 'firmly' opposes arrest of Chinese citizen in Italy at US request

Beijing 'firmly' opposes arrest of Chinese citizen in Italy at US request  Anadolu Ajansı

Events

9 d. ago Chinese design firm converts swimming pool into office, triggers safety probe

A Chinese decoration company has sparked online controversy and amusement after it converted a drained swimming pool into a temporary office. Staff get down to business in the “deep end” before exiting the office using the original poolside ladders. The quirky set-up came to light after an employee from Luban Decoration Group, based in Chengdu, Sichuan province, southwestern China, posted a video online entitled “Swimming Pool Transformed into Office Space”. The clip quickly went...

Politics