Issue #29 | Huawei's chip breakthrough, GPS rival Beidou goes global, WeChat buy now, pay later, Space-X rival sea launch, Ernie bot launches

Welcome to Serica’s weekly tech brief, where we bring you the latest news from one of the world's most dynamic and rapidly evolving tech scenes.

??Huawei launches phone with advanced chip despite US sanctions

Huawei Technologies and China's top chipmaker SMIC have built an advanced 7-nanometer processor to power its latest smartphone, according to a teardown report by analysis firm TechInsights.

Huawei started selling its Mate 60 Pro phone last week. The specifications provided advertised its ability to make satellite calls, but offered no information on the power of the chipset inside. The processor is the first to utilize SMIC's most advanced 7nm technology and suggests the Chinese government is making some headway in attempts to build a domestic chip ecosystem as US restrictions on the critical technoloogy intensify.

SOURCE: Reuters

?? Alibaba’s Amap, supported by China’s GPS rival Beidou, significantly expands global coverage

Amap, a maps app operated by Alibaba, has expanded its coverage to overseas territories using China’s home-grown Beidou satellite navigation system, touting its service as “a world atlas for Chinese people”. Known locally as Gaode Map, the digital map supports route planning and navigation in more than 200 countries and regions.

Powered by China's answer to the United States’ GPS satellite system Beidou, Amap users can use the app to search and view nearby attractions and services, such as restaurants and hotels, in countries that are part of Belt and Road initative – China’s ambitious plan to connect more than 70 countries across Asia, Europe and Africa via a “New Silk Road” of railways, highways and ports.

SOURCE: SCMP

?? WeChat pilots new buy now, pay-later product

WeChat is poised to launch a new a new consumer credit product called Fen Qi that will allow users to make partial payments for the money they spend through WeChat Pay in a billing cycle. The amount of each partial payment is based on users’ installment plans, which can be one, three, six, or twelve months,

The service will be jointly supported by WeChat and its affiliated entities, covering institutions responsible for customer acquisition, risk assessment, and loans and finance. WeChat is currently testing on a small scale and no official release date has been released. Its last similar product named Fen Fu began testing in 2020 and was never released to the general product so it is uncertain if this new offering will ever see the light of the day.

SOURCE: Leishe Caijing (in Chinese)

?? Space-X rival Galattic Energy launches 4 satellites from sea

Chinese rocket maker Galactic Energy successfully launched 4 satellites from the from the waters surrounding the Haiyang, becoming the first private Chinese company to achieve this feat.

Compared with a land-based launch, the sea launch is a new mode, having more flexibility, better adaptability, and more cost-effective services. Aboard the CERES-1 rocket were four satellites Tianqi 21-24, developed by Guodian Gaoke, a Beijing-based commercial sci-tech firm, which are part of the Tianqi low-Earth orbit Internet of Things constellation. The 38-satellite constellation will go into operation in 2024.

SOURCE: People's Daily

?? China's Baidu makes AI chatbot Ernie Bot publicly available

Chinese search engine and AI giant Baidu has made its ChatGPT-equivalent language model, Ernie Bot, fully available to the public last week after receiving approval from regulators.

Ernie Bot, which generates text and images in response to questions and prompts provided by users, was launched to the general public last Thursday to much fan fare and became the number one app on Apple's Chinese iOS store within 24 hours. Two other AI companies, Baichuan and Zhipu AI, also launched their AI language models last Thursday and with clarity in AI regulation many more LLM-powerered products are expected to hit the market by the end of the year.

SOURCE: CNBC

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