Technology

Nexperia China eyes new wafer suppliers in 6 months amid legal fight with Dutch chipmaker

Nexperia China, the estranged unit of the Dutch chipmaker, is pushing forward with efforts to secure new wafer suppliers in six months, as the firm’s Netherlands head office and mainland Chinese owner Wingtech Technology started direct talks last week. In its shareholders meeting in Shanghai on Friday, Wingtech said Nexperia China’s plant in Dongguan, in southern Guangdong province, continued to operate amid “a significant gap in wafer supply”, reports from several state-backed media...

Chinese chipmaker CXMT in crosshairs of South Korean prosecutors over Samsung tech leak

Prosecutors in South Korea have indicted 10 people, including former Samsung Electronics executives, for allegedly leaking the company’s technology to Chinese chipmaker ChangXin Memory Technologies (CXMT). The Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Office on Tuesday said five people had been arrested, including a former Samsung executive who allegedly recruited key personnel and leaked the company’s proprietary technology to CXMT, according to a report by Yonhap News Agency. They face charges for...

China’s Zhipu AI ramps up push towards human-level AI, reiterates open source pledge

Chinese AI start-up Zhipu AI said it would step up efforts next year in the pursuit of artificial general intelligence (AGI) while continuing to open source its AI models after its initial public offering. In 2026 “we’re going to contribute more substantially to the AGI journey,” Zheng Qinkai, a researcher at the company, which markets itself internationally as Z.ai, said in an Ask Me Anything (AMA) session hosted on US social media site Reddit. AGI, referring to technology that matches human...

Chinese EV battery giant CATL and Guoxin Micro set up new automotive chip firm

Contemporary Amperex Technology (CATL), the world’s largest maker of electric vehicle batteries, has partnered with semiconductor developer Unigroup Guoxin Microelectronics to form a new automotive chip firm in Beijing. CATL-owned Wending Investment, Guoxin Micro subsidiary Tongxin Micro and five affiliates have agreed to establish Tongxin Micro Technology with a registered capital of 300 million yuan (US$43 million), according to a Thursday filing to the Shenzhen Stock Exchange. With its 153...

China’s stance on TikTok deal ‘not a green light with no strings attached’, analysts say

The Chinese commerce ministry’s latest remarks on the TikTok deal in the US signalled acceptance rather than approval, as Beijing “hopes” the arrangement will comply with Chinese laws and strike a balance between rival interests, analysts say. The Chinese Ministry of Commerce, which oversees trade and export controls, declared its position a week after TikTok announced the formation of a joint venture, controlled by a consortium of American investors, that would take over its operations in the...

Tech giants go prime time in the fight for China’s biggest audience

China’s biggest tech companies and a clutch of fast-rising consumer electronics brands are battling for coveted sponsorship slots at the Spring Festival Gala, as intensifying competition in artificial intelligence turns the country’s most watched television broadcast into a rare nationwide marketing battleground. Major players including ByteDance, Tencent Holdings and Alibaba Group Holding had all held discussions with state broadcaster China Central Television (CCTV) over high-stakes...

Xiaomi’s 17 Ultra, backed by Leica, challenges Apple’s iPhone Pro Max in mobile imaging

Xiaomi on Thursday unveiled the 17 Ultra, its latest premium smartphone model that features improved night photography and mobile imaging capabilities on the back of the firm’s enhanced partnership with German camera maker Leica. “We work together to build future-proof optical technology … and completely reshape the mobile photography experience,” Xiaomi president Lu Weibing said at the handset’s launch. In a side-by-side comparison of dimly lit photos taken in Hong Kong with Xiaomi’s 17 Ultra...