Baidu stock makes a flat HKSE debut; Britain's awkward balancing act

#China #HongKong #Baidu - Baidu started trading in Hong Kong with a HK$2 or a 0.8 per cent premium, paling in comparison with Kuaishou’s red-hot debut last month. The dominant Chinese search-engine company sold 95 million shares at HK$252 each, or 15 per cent below its high-end target. (SCMP)

#China #HongKong #Baidu - Listing Shares of China’s search engine giant Baidu opened slightly above their list price following their Asian launch on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. The launch is disappointing compared to some other recent “homecomings” from Chinese tech debuting on HKSE. (BBC)

#SouthKorea #funding - South Korea said Monday it plans to raise 400 billion won ($354 million) through 2024 to support businesses seeking to innovate their products and services by utilizing high-end technologies. The first batch of the digital technology innovation fund, amounting to 102 billion won, will be rolled out throughout this year. (Yonhap)

#China #Alibaba - In November, on the eve of another commercial success, the outspoken billionaire suddenly went missing. Ma’s company Alibaba has risen from an online store run from his apartment, to one of the world’s largest tech giants. (BBC)

#China #AVs - Five-year-old Chinese autonomous driving startup, Momenta recently closed another massive round, which nears $500 million and lifts its total funding to more than $700 million. The investment marks an important step toward the firm’s international expansion. (TechCrunch)

#China #EVs #AVs - As a way to promote the enhanced capabilities of its latest autonomous driving hardware and software, Chinese electric vehicle firm Xpeng is embarking on a 7-day road trip through China. The trip will cover a distance of 3,675 km (2,283 miles) across six provinces in China. The journey will be the longest autonomous driving expedition by mass-produced vehicles in China, Xpeng said. (Future Car)

#Japan #healthcare - BakeryScan is used in Japan to recognize different pastries at retail shops, but has been revised for the medical world to identify cancer by measuring the nucleus of a urinary cell. (Daily Mail)

#China #Japan #robotics - Japanese industrial robot maker Fanuc will make its largest investment in China to date, pouring 26 billion yen ($240 million) into fortifying its Shanghai plant. The outlay will be made through a joint venture operated with local player Shanghai Electric Group. (Asia Nikkei)

#SouthKorea #robotics - Hyundai Motors and Woowa Brothers are partnering to develop last-mile food delivery robots. Woowa Brothers, which operates the popular Baedal Minjok food delivery service in South Korea, launched its robot program last summer. (The Spoon)

#China #education - The China’s Ministry of Education launched a five-year AI talent training program on 3 April to meet the growing demand for AI experts. As part of the plan, China will train at least 500 teachers and 5,000 students in artificial intelligence at top universities over the next five years. (OpenGovAsia)

#China #education - Aurora Mobile Limited, a leading mobile developer service provider, has entered into a partnership agreement with leading online education company, Koolearn Technology Holding Limited. Aurora Mobile will provide push notification services and smart operational analytics to help Koolearn use the latest AI-technology to empower its online education resources and provide high-quality services to millions of students. (Global Newswire)

#China #Japan #techstrategy - China’s new five-year plan is causing consternation in Tokyo as officials realize the breadth of Xi Jinping’s ambitions. Yet Japan’s past should, in turn, be generating consternation in Beijing. (Asia Times)

#China #investment - The Beijing Economic and Technological Development Area, also known as ‘Beijing E-Town’, recently rolled out a package of preferential policies to boost the high-end industries in its pilot free trade zone (FTZ). Consisting of 30 specific measures, the policy package will provide financial support of RMB 10 million to RMB 100 million (US$1.54 million to US$15.4 million) for project implementation in the area’s leading industries. (China Brief)

#Singapore #SmartCities - Six months after opening the OpenBlue Innovation Center, the National University of Singapore (NUS) and Johnson Controls further deepens their over decade-long partnership by launching a S$5-million smart building research programme, with the latter shouldering the financial commitment. (Future IO Tech)

#China #UK #US #tradewar - The UK is attempting to juggle economic and security interests while adapting to a new global power struggle for tech dominance. As the competition between Chinese and US tech intensifies, a “new tech cold war” is being expressed as the countries trade insults over each other’s companies. (The Telegraph)

#China #US #Xinjiang - The Biden administration on Monday sanctioned two Chinese officials, citing their roles in serious human rights abuses against ethnic minorities in Xinjiang. Beijing has previously rejected U.S. charges that it has committed genocide against the Uyghurs, a Muslim population indigenous to the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region. (CNBC)

#China #US #tradewar - The failure of this week’s U.S.-China meeting to build strategic trust has heightened the need for Beijing and Washington to improve crisis management regime, a senior Chinese military scholar and adviser told a Beijing forum on Saturday. (Reuters)

#Singapore #UAE #AIdiplomacy - Singapore and the United Arab Emirates have reaffirmed their strong bilateral economic ties, and will be looking into further areas of collaboration. These include partnerships in technology, innovation, AI, spacetech and the public sector.  (Straits Times)

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