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Start-ups

Start-ups
Articles about early-stage companies; pre-IPO, including those still being funded by angel investors, private equity or venture capitalists.
Chinese open-source AI models’ surge to the top of token usage on OpenRouter ended US labs’ reign on the platform’s leaderboard over the past year. Photo: Shutterstock
Artificial intelligence

China’s MiniMax, Moonshot top AI token use ranking, ending year of US dominance

AI hosting platform OpenRouter’s latest ranking shows high demand for Chinese open-source models following a series of new releases.

Artificial intelligence

Anthropic’s allegations against Chinese firms expose AI training grey area

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Robotics

From Doraemon to dexterous hands: LinkerBot equips robots with human skills

US-China relations

China’s extreme 996 work schedule meets US tech’s hustle culture

Why advocates believe 996, the controversial 9am to 9pm, six-day-a-week culture popularised in China, can give American firms decisive edge.

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China’s 996 work culture – a schedule of 9am-9pm, six days a week – has become a hot topic for the next generation of tech founders in the United States. However, such military-style management is not for everyone. Photo: Shutterstock
IPO

Will Chinese AI chip designer Enflame’s Shanghai IPO be another blockbuster?

Tencent-backed Enflame’s listing on the Star Market could follow successful recent flotations from peers Moore Threads, MetaX and Biren.

Artificial intelligence

DeepSeek boosts AI model with 10-fold token addition as Zhipu AI unveils GLM-5

The upgrade will allow DeepSeek’s AI model to remember and process more information in a single conversation or task.

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Artificial intelligence

Funding surge powers Chinese robotics firms as focus shifts to humanoid ‘brains’

State-backed funds, Big Tech drive fresh capital into robotics companies, betting on operating systems that underpin humanoid intelligence.

A humanoid robot at the Beijng World of Robots. A new wave of firms is emerging with capital directed towards robotic software and operating systems. Photo: Xinhua
Artificial intelligence

Compact AI model from China’s StepFun outshines rivals from DeepSeek, Moonshot

StepFun says its lightweight model Step 3.5 Flash aims to redefine efficiency and reasoning in China’s growing AI race.

Robotics

Video | World’s first ‘biomimetic AI robot’ debuts in Shanghai

The robot, which is able to replicate human micro-expressions and walking postures, will be priced at 1.2 million yuan (US$173,000).

Artificial intelligence

China’s AI labs race to debut latest models before Lunar New Year

More firms expected to follow Alibaba and Moonshot with model releases, as the festival becomes a key period to establish visibility.

A mobile phone’s screen shows the logo of China’s Zhipu AI in Beijing on January 21, 2026. Photo: AFP
Robotics

Forget soulless humanoid robots like Tesla’s Optimus. This one’s more Wall-E

Fauna Robotics’ humanoid robot Sprout is an attempt to start a focus on ‘approachable’ robots inspired by Wall-E and BB-8, not Terminator.

Fauna Robotics’ new humanoid robot Sprout shows off its dexterity while being operated remotely at the company’s headquarters in New York on January 14, 2026. Photo: AP
Icons and Influencers

Nadya Okamoto on challenging norms through menstrual care activism

With nearly 4.5 million TikTok followers, the entrepreneur – who also started a non-profit to combat period poverty – has clearly struck a chord.

Artificial intelligence

Moonshot’s newest release narrows US-China AI model development gap: analysts

Kimi K2.5 raises questions about the potency of US controls on advanced chips to constrain China’s AI efforts, Brookings’ Kyle Chan says.

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Banking & finance

Hong Kong’s US$8 billion wealth fund eyes fintech, aerospace and AI for growth

The Hong Kong Investment Corporation will use the city’s advantages amid global competition, geopolitical challenges, CEO Clara Chan says.

The Hong Kong Investment Corporation made HK$2.34 billion in investment income in 2024, according to its annual report released in December. Photo: Jonathan Wong
China technology

Opinion | How Hangzhou’s tech ecosystem nurtures dragons and rockets

It’s not one factor but a ‘rainforest’ of policy, capital, talent, universities and research institutions operating within clear boundaries.

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A mechanical horse dragon spits fire during a parade on December 16, 2023, in Hangzhou in China’s Zhejiang province. Photo: Getty Images
Artificial intelligence

Alibaba’s Qwen-3 becomes one of world’s first AI models to operate in orbit

The entire Qwen-3 process – from uploading queries to on-orbit inference and sending results back to Earth – took less than two minutes.

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Artificial intelligence

Geely-linked veteran Yin Qi joins Chinese AI start-up StepFun as chairman

StepFun closes US$690 million B+ funding round as the company doubles down on “physical AI”.

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Robotics

Chinese tech giants Tencent and Baidu join fight for Spring Festival spotlight

The two companies launch digital red packet campaigns following tie-up moves by ByteDance and Alibaba with CCTV’s Spring Festival Gala.

The Spring Festival Gala has become one of the most important promotional platforms for tech giants. Photo: Handout
Robotics

China’s Eyou opens world’s first automated line for humanoid robot joints

Manufacturer adds line in anticipation of surge in global demand for humanoid robots, with one estimate projecting 100,000 shipments by 2027.

Artificial intelligence

Next level: why China’s game makers are quietly bankrolling generative AI

From scripts and storylines to customer service and user-generated worlds, developers are deploying LLM tools across the gaming pipeline.

IPO

From labs to listings: capital markets are the next battleground in the AI race

Stock exchanges have become another barometer in the US-China tech rivalry as markets assess a wave of start-ups in real time.

Illustration: Henry Wong
Artificial intelligence

China’s ‘infrastructure first’ effort a major edge in AI arms race: Davos panel

A rapid energy buildout and strategic data centre expansion give China unique advantages in developing its AI industry.

China’s “AI Plus” panel discussion at the World Economic Forum on Wednesday included, from left, moderator Guan Xin, Tencent Holdings’ Dowson Tong, Moonshot AI’s Zhang Yutong and Nankai University’s Gong Ke. Photo: SCMP
Artificial intelligence

China-founded Shanda’s AI lab boosts Singapore operation, pulling China research

MiroMind asks some staff in Shanghai to relocate and continue their AI research work in Singapore, sources say.

Artificial intelligence

Beijing outlines tech push with focus on AI, 6G, humanoid robots

Tech ministry’s plan targets breakthroughs in AI models, agents and chips, as well as AI’s spread into diverse sectors.

HKEX

New energy, AI, EV and biotech to drive Hong Kong IPO growth: HKEX

11 companies raised US$4 billion in Hong Kong in the first three weeks of 2026, with hundreds more lining up to list, Bonnie Chan says.

HKEX will continue to help innovators access capital more efficiently, says Bonnie Chan. Photo: Edmond So
China technology

China’s nuclear fusion start-ups power up with record funding round

Startorus Fusion raised US$143 million, a record for a private firm, while Supermag New Energy received ‘several hundred million yuan’.

China has launched an association specifically tasked with accelerating funding for the commercialisation of nuclear fusion technology. Photo: Shutterstock
DeepSeek

DeepSeek a year on: how a Chinese start-up sparked a global AI arms race

DeepSeek’s meteoric rise propelled the growth of the open-source AI ecosystem by spurring its competitors to join the movement.

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Robotics

China’s Unitree ships over 5,500 humanoid robots in 2025, surpassing US peers

The Hangzhou-based firm’s output far outstripped the roughly 150 units each shipped by Tesla, Figure AI and Agility Robotics last year.

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