Technology News
Latest technology news and updates
Total: 301
Tencent Revives QQ Show — A Nostalgia-Fueled Play for the Avatar Economy
Tencent announced the return of QQ Show, its legacy avatar and virtual-goods feature, on January 24. The move leverages nostalgia and the growing avatar economy, but success will depend on design updates, monetization choices and navigating China’s regulatory landscape.
Musk’s $0.20-a‑Mile Robotaxi: Tesla’s Cybercab Stakes a Claim to Crush Ride‑Hailing Costs
Elon Musk has announced that Tesla’s Cybercab robotaxi could operate for as little as $0.20 per mile — about half the projected cost of Waymo’s next‑gen vehicles and far below current ride‑hailing and private‑car costs. The target rests on energy efficiency gains, an ‘unboxed’ manufacturing approach that trims parts, and the elimination of driver labour, but faces production, regulatory and safety hurdles before it can reshape urban mobility.
Chinese Materials Firm Says Its Low‑Dielectric Glass Fiber Is Being Used in High‑End 5G Phones and RF Parts
International Composite Materials told investors that its domestically developed low‑dielectric glass fibre for 5G has found use in high‑end phones and wave‑transparent parts for high‑frequency communications. The product, part of the firm's electronic cloth range used in PCBs, underscores China's push to domesticate advanced materials for RF hardware, though the company did not disclose scale or customer names.
China’s Humanoid-Robot Race Enters a Reality Check as Shipment Figures Spark Debate
A public clash over 2025 shipment figures between Chinese humanoid-robot maker Yush Technology and independent research firms highlights a sector moving from prototype to production. Discrepancies stem from differing definitions and data sources, but both industry reports and company statements point to rapid volume growth and a critical 2026 inflection point focused on real-world deployment, paying customers and robot ‘brains’.
IMF Chief: AI a 'Tsunami' for Jobs — Young and Entry-Level Workers Face the Brunt
IMF chief Kristalina Georgieva warned at Davos that AI will act like a ‘tsunami’ for labour markets, affecting an estimated 60% of jobs in advanced economies and 40% globally. She said young people face the greatest disruption because many entry-level roles are being eliminated, and stressed that governance has not kept pace with technological change.
TikTok’s U.S. Deal: ByteDance Keeps the Algorithm, Washington Gets Oversight
TikTok unveiled a two-company U.S. structure that places data and content oversight in a new joint venture controlled by U.S. managers, while ByteDance retains control of the high‑value parts of the business and ownership of the recommendation algorithm. The arrangement aims to balance U.S. security concerns with ByteDance’s desire to keep its core technology and revenue streams, but it will face continued regulatory and political scrutiny.
Chinese Portable Battery Maker Says Its Units Powered Multiple Domestic Rocket Launches — A Sign of Maturing Support Industry
Huabao Xinneng says its Dian Xiao Er portable power units have supplied off‑grid electricity for multiple Chinese rocket launches and related operations and are compatible with Starlink‑type satellite terminals. The announcement underlines the growing importance of specialised ground‑support equipment as China’s commercial space activity expands, though the claim is promotional and not independently verified.
vLLM Founders’ New Startup Raises $150m Seed at an $800m Valuation — A Big Bet on LLM Infrastructure
Inferact, founded by the vLLM core team, raised $150 million in a seed round led by Andreessen Horowitz and Lightspeed at an $800 million valuation. The deal highlights investor enthusiasm for LLM inference and deployment infrastructure, but sets high expectations for rapid commercialisation amid fierce competition and regulatory questions.
vLLM Team's Inferact Secures $150m Seed at $800m Valuation, Signalling Fresh Bet on AI Inference Infrastructure
Inferact, founded by the creators of open‑source vLLM, raised $150 million in a seed round at an $800 million valuation led by Andreessen Horowitz and Lightspeed. The deal signals strong investor conviction in companies that can commercialize efficient LLM inference, but Inferact will face competition from cloud providers and specialized rivals as it seeks to translate open‑source credibility into enterprise revenue.
LandSpace Plans 2026 Push to Validate Zhuque-3 First‑Stage Reuse Across Flight Data, Recovery Tests and Routine Operations
LandSpace will pursue a three‑pronged 2026 programme to validate first‑stage recovery and reuse for its Zhuque‑3 rocket: flight‑data analysis on re‑entry aerothermal and structural issues, another recovery flight test tied to constellation launches, and work to normalise post‑recovery maintenance and reliability. Success would advance China’s private space sector toward higher cadence, lower‑cost launches, but scaling reuse into routine operations remains the critical challenge.
Young Tech Manager’s Sudden Death Reignites Scrutiny of China’s High‑pressure Start‑up Culture
A 32‑year‑old Guangzhou software manager collapsed and died after prolonged periods of excessive work following departmental reshuffles and understaffing. The company has applied for a work‑injury determination; local authorities are investigating as the case revives debate about long‑hours culture and labour protections in China’s tech sector.
Feeding the Machine: How AI’s Rise Depends on Low‑paid Labor and Vast Natural Resources
James Muldoon’s reporting reframes generative AI as a large‑scale extraction system that depends on low‑paid labour, unconsented creative material and vast energy and water resources. The phenomenon deepens global labour competition, concentrates managerial control, and risks reproducing Western cultural biases unless regulated.