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CBI

China's Tech Giants Wage Billion-Dollar AI Battle Over Lunar New Year, With No Clear Victor

China's largest technology companies turned the 2026 Lunar New Year holiday into the country's first large-scale, premeditated AI application war, collectively pouring close to RMB 10 billion yuan (approximately US$1.38 billion) into subsidies, advertising and infrastructure to drive adoption of their artificial intelligence

China's Tech Giants Wage War Over AI-Animated Short Drama Apps

China's internet majors are racing to claim territory in a fast-emerging content format that blends animation aesthetics with short-drama storytelling, as advances in generative AI slash production costs and ignite a new battleground for user attention and platform dominance. Tencent launched its dedicated animated short drama

MiniMax Surges as M2.5 Model Unlocks Pent-Up AI Agent Demand

MiniMax, the Shanghai-based artificial intelligence developer, experienced a dramatic market surge after its latest M2.5 model broke through critical cost and performance thresholds, triggering an explosion of previously suppressed demand for AI agent applications. The company’s Hong Kong-listed shares surged 14.52% on Feb. 20, the

China Smartphone Price War Diverges as Memory Costs Reshape Industry Dynamics

China's smartphone market is experiencing an unusual split this Chinese New Year, with major manufacturers adopting starkly different pricing strategies as memory cost pressures force a fundamental industry realignment. While some brands slashed prices by as much as 4,000 yuan, others maintained pricing discipline, signaling a deeper

Ant Group's AI Strategy Gains Ground as Rivals Battle for General-Purpose Dominance

Ant Group has emerged as an unexpected winner in China's Spring Festival AI battle, with its specialized health and payment applications each surpassing 100 million users while competitors poured billions into marketing campaigns for general-purpose AI assistants. The financial technology giant disclosed on Feb. 23 that its

China's Passenger Vehicle Prices Surge in January as Sales Volume Declines

China's passenger vehicle market experienced a sharp reversal in pricing trends at the start of 2026, with average prices climbing 15,000 yuan (US$2,100) to 186,000 yuan (US$26,000) in January as sales volumes contracted, signaling mounting pressure on the market and a structural

China's First 10 Billion Yuan Embodied Intelligence Unicorn Emerges in Shenzhen

AI² Robotics has completed a Series B funding round exceeding 1 billion yuan (US$138 million), pushing its valuation past 10 billion yuan (US$1.38 billion) and establishing itself as Shenzhen's first embodied intelligence unicorn of this magnitude. The company, founded just two years ago, has now

Chinese Robotics Startup Spirit AI Raises US$280 Million, Valuation Tops US$1.4 Billion

Spirit AI, a two-year-old embodied intelligence company, has completed two consecutive financing rounds totaling nearly 2 billion yuan (US$280 million), pushing its valuation past 10 billion yuan (US$1.4 billion), the company announced recently. The funding represents one of the largest capital injections in China'

Xiaomi Devices Receive Battery Optimization Through Google Play System Update

Xiaomi smartphone and tablet users are receiving battery performance improvements through Google's February 2026 Play System update, marking an unusual route for device optimization that bypasses the company's own HyperOS software update channel. Google has rolled out its February 2026 Play System update with enhancements targeting

China's Passenger Car Market Shows Divergent Trends in January Amid Policy Adjustments

China's passenger vehicle market entered 2026 with a mixed performance, as the expiration of the new energy vehicle (NEV) purchase tax exemption and adjustments to trade-in subsidies created a bifurcated market where entry-level segments weakened sharply while premium models demonstrated resilience. January retail sales fell 14%