Toyota VC invests in AI startups; China’s increasing spending on R&D

#Japan #funding - Toyota, the world’s largest automaker by vehicle sales, and many car companies such as Volkswagen AG are funnelling money into startups to help gain an edge in AI as investor interest shifts to self-driving cars. (Economic Times)

#China #R&D - China’s R&D spending will increase by more than 7% per year between 2021 and 2025, Premier Li Keqiang said. R&D will account for a higher percentage of gross domestic product (GDP) than in the previous 5 years. (CNBC)

#China #R&D - China is looking to boost research into what it calls “frontier technology” including quantum computing and semiconductors, as it competes with the U.S. for supremacy in the latest innovations. In its five-year development plan, the 14th of its kind, Beijing said it would make “science and technology self-reliance and self-improvement a strategic pillar for national development,” (CNBC)

#India #robotics - Addverb Technologies inaugurated its Bot-Valley, a robot manufacturing facility in Noida. Spread over 2.5 acres of land, this new manufacturing unit is equipped with the best-in-class electronics and mechanical machines and has a capacity to manufacture more than 50,000 Robots of varied types in a year. (DQ India)

#Japan #AVs - Starting this month, the Honda Legend EX with the so-called Honda Sensing Elite will be available for lease sales in Japan. The semi-autonomous driving system upgrades the existing Honda Sensing family of systems, available for models of the brand in Europe and the United States. (Motor1)

#China #MadeinChina - In barely 40 years, China has dramatically opened up its economy and become one of the world’s primary growth engines. Now, President Xi Jinping is making ambitious plans to pull ahead of rivals by turning his country into a digital powerhouse. But Xi’s drive toward tech dominance is being threatened by an unexpected speed bump: China’s forceful crackdown on Jack Ma’s business empire. (NDTV)

#China #India #defence - The Chinese armed forces are as prepared in cyber warfare as they are in fighting pitched battles on the ground. This is a reality that the Indian government is grappling with after the Galwan valley clash last year. Reports that Chinese hackers had attacked India’s power grid immediately after the clash are an indication of how the nature of war is changing, say experts. (Times of India)

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