China’s drive for chip manufacturing equipment self-sufficiency advanced so rapidly in 2025 that even the country’s planners were caught by surprise, as the ratio of domestically developed semiconductor equipment surged to 35 per cent by the year’s end, up from 25 per cent in 2024. The ratio was higher than Beijing’s target of 30 per cent, set in early 2025 to encourage China’s semiconductor industry to favour local suppliers over US rivals such as Applied Materials, Lam Research and KLA,...

Cainiao, the logistics arm of Alibaba Group Holding, is stepping up its overseas push with a new service crossing the US-Mexico border. The cross-border logistics service, a first for Cainiao in the Americas, was designed to handle parcel flow between the two countries, which was one of the region’s high-traffic corridors, the Alibaba unit said on Friday. Alibaba owns the South China Morning Post. The service was expected to reach 99 per cent of the Mexico market and would be priced at around 60...

Influential Chinese semiconductor expert Wei Shaojun urged caution for mainland companies that place orders for Nvidia’s H200 artificial intelligence chips, as it remained a puzzle why the US government would make these advanced integrated circuits available to the country. “The US’ inconsistent stance on advanced chips – alternating between limited easing and renewed pressure – has left users struggling to discern its true strategic intent,” Wei, vice-president at the China Semiconductor...

China’s Ministry of Commerce says it will conduct a review and investigation into Meta Platforms’ US$2.5 billion acquisition of Manus, examining whether the deal complies with export controls and technology transfer rules, underscoring Beijing’s determination to assert oversight over cross-border technology transactions. Spokesperson He Yadong said at a briefing on Thursday that the ministry would work with other Chinese regulators to assess whether the deal, announced by Meta and Manus a week...

China’s state-backed lithography champion Shanghai Micro Electronics Equipment (SMEE) has reshuffled its business, divesting a manufacturing arm as it sharpens its focus on research in Beijing’s push for chip self-sufficiency. SMEE – widely seen as China’s best chance of closing the gap with Dutch lithography giant ASML – had transferred 100 per cent of its subsidiary Shanghai Weiyao Industrial to AMIES Technology, according to updates on corporate database Qichacha. The deal was priced at 228.5...

Chinese short video giant ByteDance is setting up a “second headquarters” for its flagship Douyin business in Shenzhen, less than a year after its first regional headquarters in the city began operations. Once completed, the new base will support “research and development of core products such as Douyin and Jinri Toutiao, and new business areas such as digital payments”, as well as house “new AI research and SaaS [software-as-a-service] platform service centres to support the buildout of a...

Amap, the mapping and navigation platform of Alibaba Group Holding, has launched new features powered by its top-ranking world model, as the tech giant doubles down on artificial intelligence to upgrade its massive consumer ecosystem. “Flying Street View”, a new feature on the Amap app based on the unit’s self-developed system designed to simulate real-world environments, allowed users to take 3D virtual tours of restaurants and other offline venues, the company said at a launch event in...