Technology News
Latest technology news and updates
Total: 510
Samsung’s HBM4 Push Could Reset the High‑Bandwidth Memory Race — and Tighten Supply for AI Chips
Samsung plans to begin HBM4 production in February and has passed validation for Nvidia and AMD, signalling a sharper contest with SK Hynix for AI‑grade memory. The move could ease supply constraints for next‑generation GPUs, affect pricing and market share, and has contributed to a notable re‑rating of Samsung’s financial outlook.
Red-Envelope Arms Race: China’s Tech Giants Make Lunar New Year the Battleground for AI Entrypoints
Chinese tech giants are using traditional Lunar New Year red‑envelope campaigns to fight for dominance over consumer AI entry points, with Baidu and Tencent pledging hundreds of millions to a billion yuan in giveaways. These promotions aim to convert festival virality into long‑term control of AI interfaces and datasets, but they also carry high cost, regulatory and competition risks.
Tencent and Baidu Spray RMB1bn and RMB500m in Lunar-New-Year Red Packets to Push AI Adoption
Tencent has pledged RMB1 billion in Lunar-New-Year cash red packets via its Yuanbao app, and Baidu followed with a RMB500 million giveaway tied to its Wenxin AI assistant. The promotions are designed to drive engagement, accelerate AI adoption and cement payment and app ecosystems, but they carry costs and regulatory and long-term monetization risks.
Old Guard Returns: Yin Qi’s Dual Chairmanship and a RMB5bn Vote of Confidence Reshape China’s AGI Race
Yin Qi has been appointed chairman of StepFun while retaining the chairmanship of Qianli Technology, as StepFun closes a B+ round exceeding RMB5 billion. The move pairs deep foundation-model R&D with a hardware-centred commercialization strategy — notably automotive — and signals a new phase of consolidation and specialization in China’s AI landscape.
Samsung Doubles NAND Prices as AI‑Fueled Storage Supercycle Tightens Supply
Samsung has raised NAND flash prices by over 100% in Q1 2026 as AI‑driven demand for high‑performance storage outstrips supply. Analysts say the industry has entered a storage‑chip "supercycle," with tight capacity likely to persist until at least 2027 and meaningful new supply not expected until 2028.
Chinese AI Firm Defends Restaurant‑booking Calls as Machine, Not Human — But Skepticism Lingers
Qianwen has denied claims that its restaurant‑reservation calling feature is operated by humans, asserting the service uses a fast emotion and intent recognition engine to produce humanlike speech. The response underscores tensions between the operational benefits of voice automation and concerns about deception, privacy and regulatory oversight.
Veteran Investor Behind Shanghai’s Semiconductor Push, Zhu Xudong, Dies at 62
Zhu Xudong, founder and investment committee chair of a Shanghai industrial investment firm focused on semiconductor equipment and materials, died on 25 January 2026 at 62. His career bridged Pudong’s early development and China’s recent drive to build domestic semiconductor capability, and his death removes an experienced investor at a pivotal moment for the industry.
China’s Commercial Space Race Eyes 2026 as the Year of Reusable Rockets
At a Beijing forum, chief engineers from three leading Chinese commercial space firms unveiled competing plans to prove reusable rocket technology in 2026. Their strategies differ—batch production and engine upgrades, large kerolox modular rockets, and a dual small/large vehicle path—yet all target lower costs and higher cadence to serve satellite‑internet constellations.
China Puts an Embodied AI on Its Biggest Stage: Galaxy General to Supply Robots for the 2026 Spring Gala
Galaxy General has been designated to provide embodied large-model robots for China’s 2026 Spring Festival Gala, signalling a shift of advanced robotics from labs into mass cultural exposure. The move offers a high-profile marketing and technical proving ground while raising safety, governance and societal-acceptance questions.
China’s Big Tech Turns Lunar New Year Into an AI‑Fueled Cash War: Baidu and Tencent Pour Billions into Red‑Packet Promotions
Baidu and Tencent have launched multi‑hundred‑million‑yuan Spring Festival cash campaigns, coupling traditional digital red packets with AI demonstrations and ecosystem plays. The promotions highlight an emerging pattern: China’s tech giants are using culturally resonant incentives and AI showpieces to drive short‑term transactions and long‑term platform engagement, with implications for competition and regulation.
Baidu Throws Its Hat Into the New Year AI Bonanza with a RMB 500m Red‑Envelope Push
Baidu is offering users a share of RMB 500 million in cash rewards via its Wenxin assistant from Jan 26 to Mar 12, with individual prizes up to RMB 10,000, and has been named chief AI partner for the 2026 Beijing Spring Festival Gala. The promotion is a marketing gambit to boost engagement and legitimacy amid intense competition among Chinese tech firms for AI users, but it carries economic and regulatory risks.
LEO Satellite Boom Sparks High‑End PCB Arms Race in China
China's PCB industry is racing to capture a rising share of the booming low‑Earth‑orbit satellite market by investing in high‑frequency, high‑reliability boards and scaling production. Domestic firms have manufacturing scale and supply‑chain advantages, but still face certification and materials hurdles before they can fully capitalise on mass deployments.