Year: 2025

Chinese researchers have taken a major step in the global race to build practical quantum computers, becoming the first team outside the United States – and the second in the world after Google – to cross a key threshold that determines whether these machines can work reliably at scale. A team led by Pan Jianwei at the University of Science and Technology of China said their superconducting quantum computer, Zuchongzhi 3.2, had reached the fault-tolerant threshold – a point where fixing errors made the system more stable rather than less,…

US President Donald Trump’s new battleship plan, apparently aimed at deterring China, faces huge implementation hurdles and could cause Beijing to double down on its anti-ship weapons, according to analysts. Trump unveiled a new class of navy battleships on Monday. These “Trump-class” ships will be larger, faster and “100 times more powerful” than any previously built, according to the American leader, forming the centrepiece of what he called an expanded “Golden Fleet” aimed at cementing US naval dominance. In an announcement from his Mar-a-Lago estate, Trump declared that the new…

As 2025 draws to a close, Wall Street’s love affair with Chinese equities is in full swing. While the relationship between global investors and China has been a rocky one, market sentiment is now about varying degrees of bullishness. In a panel discussion moderated by JPMorgan at the annual meeting of the Emerging Markets Trading Association earlier this month, some of the speakers said China’s stock market had undergone a shift from “uninvestable” to “irresistible”, especially in the all-important technology sector. This is a far cry from the extreme bearishness…

Xiaomi on Thursday unveiled the 17 Ultra, its latest premium smartphone model that features improved night photography and mobile imaging capabilities on the back of the firm’s enhanced partnership with German camera maker Leica. “We work together to build future-proof optical technology … and completely reshape the mobile photography experience,” Xiaomi president Lu Weibing said at the handset’s launch. In a side-by-side comparison of dimly lit photos taken in Hong Kong with Xiaomi’s 17 Ultra and Apple’s high-end iPhone 17 Pro Max, Lu claimed that the set of Xiaomi images…

Researchers at China’s National University of Defence Technology have successfully accelerated a tonne-class vehicle to a record speed of 700 km/h (435mph) within just two seconds on a 400 metre (1,310-foot) magnetic levitation test line, and brought it safely to a stop. The test speed has set a new global benchmark, making it the world’s fastest superconducting electric maglev to date. This same force that flung a sledge down a short track could fling a rocket into the sky. It could even revolutionise hyperloop travel – with vacuum-sealed tubes linking…

Chinese humanoid robot maker UBTech Robotics is moving to lock down key manufacturing capacity, agreeing to pay nearly 1.7 billion yuan (US$237 million) in cash to take control of Shenzhen-listed mechanical component maker Zhejiang Fenglong as it pushes to scale up humanoid robot production. The two-stage deal will begin with UBTech acquiring a 29.99 per cent stake in Fenglong from existing shareholders for 1.16 billion yuan, followed by a voluntary partial offer to buy a further 13.02 per cent for about 504 million yuan, according to a filing to the…

More than six centuries ago, roughly 80 years ahead of Portuguese explorer Vasco da Gama, Chinese admiral Zheng He reached the eastern coast of Africa with a massive fleet and a crew of more than 20,000 under his command. The Ming dynasty ships braved formidable waves and traversed vast distances on seven epic maritime expeditions to reach the shores of Southeast Asia, South Asia, West Asia and finally the eastern coast of Africa. Despite his achievements, Zheng He remains largely absent from Kenya’s history curriculum. In an effort to raise…

China is taking steps to reshape the direction of its foreign investment, unveiling a revised catalogue of encouraged industries that steers overseas capital towards the advanced and technologically complex sectors Beijing’s policymakers view as future growth drivers. The revised catalogue, which takes effect in February 2026, covers 1,679 industries – 205 more than the current version, which was released in 2022. In a statement on Wednesday, the Ministry of Commerce said the changes are aimed at “strengthening China’s appeal to foreign investors, improving support services for foreign-funded firms and creating…

Chinese state media have escalated criticism of what they characterise as Japan’s growing “neo-militarism”, warning that Beijing has sufficient policy tools in reserve to respond should Tokyo endanger China’s core interests. People’s Daily, a Communist Party mouthpiece, said that “neo-militarism” – the resurgence of Japanese militarism after the end of the second world war – had dealt a serious blow to bilateral relations and undermined regional peace and stability. “Post-war Japan has failed to carry out a thorough reckoning with militarism … This ‘neo-militarism’, cloaked in the guise of a…