Good day everybody! That is Ting-Fang from Taipei. This week, I had an opportunity to tune into main US chipmaker Nvidia’s annual know-how convention, the place it unveiled its newest chip platform for autonomous driving.
Nvidia described its Drive Thor, an automotive-grade system-on-chip, as able to offering degree 4 self-driving capabilities. Probably the most superior automobiles available on the market are nonetheless at degree 2 and degree 3, which means they’ll drive themselves solely beneath restricted circumstances.
However simply as attention-grabbing as Nvidia’s tech is its record of purchasers. The primary buyer for the Drive Thor will probably be Zeekr, the premium EV model of main Chinese language carmaker Geely. Executives from a number of different Chinese language EV makers roundly applauded the chip’s debut, with one hailing its “unprecedented degree” of AI capabilities.
Drive Thor’s enthusiastic reception underscores China’s starvation to maintain utilizing cutting-edge American chipsets in its self-driving automobiles and different merchandise, at the same time as Washington further restricts access to superior tech.
Huawei retains combating
Maybe no different firm in China is battling so urgently to decouple from the US. Previously a significant smartphone maker, Huawei is banned from utilizing American know-how with out particular approval, and it has misplaced entry to a few of its most necessary world companions, together with TSMC of Taiwan.
The Chinese language firm’s newest try to beat these headwinds is to place its personal chips for telecom gear back into production as early as this yr, Nikkei Asia’s Cheng Ting-Fang writes.
For that, Huawei has partnered with a number of chipmakers throughout China, with a deal with these which might be additionally blacklisted by the US. To hurry up the method, Huawei has even redesigned its core chips to be produced with older 28-nanometer course of know-how because it’s simpler to search out such manufacturing domestically.
The corporate can also be courting worldwide allies on its path to decoupling from the west. Huawei moved its annual tech showcase to Bangkok this yr, the place it was warmly welcomed by officers from Thailand, Indonesia, the Philippines and Bangladesh. All 4 international locations have allowed native cell community operators to supply 5G gear from Huawei, regardless of safety warnings and bans issued by the US and European governments.
China’s chip cool-down
China’s semiconductor sector, affected by a stuttering financial system and redirected industrial funding, is having to scale back its hiring plans regardless of a expertise scarcity, writes the Monetary Occasions’ Qianer Liu.
The shortfall within the variety of chip staff will exceed 250,000 this yr and attain 300,000 by 2025, based on the China Semiconductor Affiliation. Spurred by this large talent hole and help from Beijing, China’s chip corporations had been hiring staff switching careers however discovered that underqualified staff created extra issues than they solved.
Now, these corporations are chopping again on their hiring because the financial system deteriorates and financing turns into tougher to safe. Startups have been notably laborious hit, particularly in comparison with giant state-owned enterprises, and are hiring far fewer workers to make sure survival. Enterprise information supplier Qichacha revealed that greater than 3,400 Chinese language chip-related corporations have collapsed to this point this yr, surpassing the entire for all of 2021.
China has been making an attempt for years to speed up the event of its homegrown chip sector to lower its reliance on imports. However the chaotic and cooling job market needs to be alarming China’s management, because it seems to be extending the time it can take the nation to succeed in semiconductor self-sufficiency.
Auditing the audits
US inspectors are in Hong Kong to look into the audit records of chosen US-listed Chinese language corporations. Their arrival adopted a deal between Washington and Beijing to settle a long-running dispute over such corporations. The US insists its officers be given entry to their audit accounts, whereas China deems the information too delicate to be shared.
The just lately arrived inspectors might resolve to look into any of the 200 or so Chinese language corporations with American listings, together with prime tech corporations like Alibaba Group Holding and JD.com, Nikkei Asia’s Cissy Zhou writes. If they aren’t glad with what they see, pressured delisting of Chinese language corporations might comply with.
Given the tensions between Beijing and Washington, will the world’s greatest monetary market proceed to draw Chinese language listings? Final yr, 38 Chinese language corporations started buying and selling shares within the US, taking in over $13bn in mixed IPO proceeds. This yr, 10 have performed so, elevating a mere $400mn in whole.
Vietnam’s uphill battle
Vietnam has a tech manufacturing sector that many international locations could be pleased with. Excessive-tech items accounted for over 40 per cent of its exports in 2020, and the greater than 20 Apple suppliers working manufacturing amenities there play a significant function in producing AirPods and the Apple Watch. The nation can also be a key manufacturing base for Samsung Electronics’ smartphone enterprise.
But none of those amenities are operated by Vietnamese suppliers, highlighting the dilemma going through the nation, writes Nikkei Asia’s Lien Hoang. Whereas US-China tensions have helped gas a increase in native tech funding, Vietnam is struggling to foster a homegrown high-tech sector.
The south-east Asian nation is hoping to comply with within the footsteps of China. Its bigger neighbour, as soon as dubbed the world’s manufacturing facility, has leveraged its personal manufacturing may to create a thriving home tech sector. Chinese language-based corporations now make up the only largest group on Apple’s official record of suppliers, surpassing Taiwan and Japan.
The query is whether or not Vietnam can unleash its personal potential, or whether or not it can languish decrease down the ladder as an “meeting platform” valued primarily for its low-cost labour.
Steered reads
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Thailand and Vietnam emerge as Asean crypto trading hotspots (Nikkei Asia)
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China’s livestream king resurfaces after mystery disappearance (Nikkei Asia)
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Blockchain gaming groups try to lose ‘dodgy’ tag in Japan (FT)
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Taiwan’s Appier eyes US expansion with AI marketing software (Nikkei Asia)
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Philippines’ top payment app GCash to offer stock trading service (Nikkei Asia)
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Liz Truss plans last-ditch bid to persuade SoftBank to list Arm in London (FT)
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Fortress China: Xi Jinping’s plan for economic independence (FT)
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Toyota, Honda to pay connected-car patent fees to telecoms (Nikkei Asia)
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