Month: December 2025

The open source approach championed by some Chinese tech companies is preventing monopoly platforms from taking hold in artificial intelligence (AI). The massive investment in AI is justified in the case of repeat monopoly winners from previous waves of tech development, such as Microsoft, Intel, Qualcomm, Google and Meta. However, as China views proprietary systems and platforms as potential chokepoints, it is leveraging its market to develop open source substitutes. Users in the wider world are likely to prefer open source platforms that they can control. Open source platforms will…

The PLA Eastern Theatre Command said troops would conduct exercises simulating attacks on maritime targets and carry out anti-air and anti-submarine operations to the north and south of the island. PLA kicks off military exercises around Taiwan PLA kicks off military exercises around Taiwan The command on Monday said the drills – dubbed Justice Mission 2025 – were a warning to the “independence forces” and against external interference. Advertisement They come amid heightened tensions across the Taiwan Strait after Washington approved a record US$11.1 billion arms sale to Taiwan. Beijing…

US President Donald Trump on Monday described Beijing’s large-scale military exercises around Taiwan as routine activities that have occurred “for 20-25 years”, expressing no concern over the escalation and instead citing his personal rapport with Chinese President Xi Jinping. “I have a great relationship with President Xi, and he hasn’t told me anything about it,” Trump said in remarks to reporters during a press conference with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida. When pressed on whether the manoeuvres were a sign of impending conflict, Trump…

Nearly two months after Japan’s new prime minister enraged Beijing with her remarks on Taiwan, the issue is not going away. Sanae Takaichi set off a diplomatic firestorm in November when she suggested that Japan could justify a military response if Beijing attacked Taiwan. Beijing hit back with diplomatic, economic and military pressure in a campaign analysts said reflected concerns about Japan’s assertiveness on regional security and closer ties with the US and other allies. Advertisement Tensions are soaring, and there is no end in sight. But according to analysts,…

Venezuela criticised the United States on Monday over its decision to approve a large-scale arms sale to Taiwan, aligning itself with Beijing as tensions escalated around the island. In a statement issued by the foreign ministry, the Venezuelan government said the sale interfered in China’s internal affairs and breached international commitments undertaken by Washington. It reiterated its support for the one-China principle and said Taiwan is “an inalienable part of China’s territory”. Advertisement The comments followed Washington’s approval of an arms package to Taiwan valued at about US$11 billion, one…

Researchers in China have developed a fully modular, intelligent electric-drive heavy-duty vehicle that could be used as a mobile launcher for an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM). The researchers said the vehicle could “crab walk” through tight or obstructed terrain that would defeat conventional launchers and its near-silent operation improved its stealth abilities. A prototype was unveiled in Beijing on December 21, less than two years after the project was approved in January 2024 as a major initiative under the National Natural Science Foundation of China. Advertisement Led by Tsinghua University,…