DIGITIMES Asia news

Tuesday 20 January 2026

Alibaba's Qwen expansion links AI directly to consumer services

Alibaba is repositioning its Qwen artificial intelligence app as more than a chatbot, turning it into a gateway to the company's vast consumer ecosystem. The app now connects directly with core Alibaba services, including Taobao, Alipay, and Fliggy, enabling users to shop, make payments, and book travel all within one app

Supply chain shifts strategies as China tightens rare earth export controls

Tuesday 20 January 2026

Nvidia Alpamayo sparks VLA computing power race as South Korea preps for autonomous ecosystem

Tuesday 20 January 2026

Foxconn deepened its manufacturing presence in China with new joint venture

Tuesday 20 January 2026

China's rare earth prices rise for 6th consecutive quarter, inflation pressure returns to supply chain

Tuesday 20 January 2026

LATEST STORIES

Wednesday 21 January 2026

China's premier highlights AI large models in strategic development talks

On January 19, 2026. China's Premier Li Qiang hosted a forum including MiniMax founder Yan Junjie, marking increased recognition of AI large model enterprises in national policy. This reflects AI's evolving role from a tech topic to a core factor in China's economic and competitive strategy during the 15th Five-Year Plan

Wednesday 21 January 2026

Column: Japan bets on deep-sea rare earth mining to break China's supply grip

On January 12, 2026, Japan's scientific drilling vessel Chikyu slowly departed port, heading toward the waters near Minamitorishima Island, about 1,900km southeast of Honshu. This mission is not merely a scientific expedition but a critical test tied to Japan's national economic security and the restructuring of global critical mineral supply chains

Wednesday 21 January 2026

China tightens rare earth export controls to Japan, further fueling geopolitical tensions

Chinese authorities have increased scrutiny on rare earth exports bound for Japan, as export volumes declined in December 2025 compared to the previous month. The move reflects Beijing's intent to exert greater control over essential materials amid escalating tensions with Tokyo

Wednesday 21 January 2026

China's semiconductor equipment leaders push HBM autonomy as US tightens restrictions

US export restrictions on advanced semiconductor equipment to China have become the biggest obstacle to China's domestic production of high-bandwidth memory (HBM). It has been reported that Chinese companies have begun investing heavily in equipment localization. For example, ChangXin Memory Technologies (CXMT) is moving towards mass production of more advanced HBM in 2026, and other related equipment vendors are making all-out efforts to build an HBM equipment ecosystem

Wednesday 21 January 2026

China's AI industry reshapes as GPUs rise to be core strategic asset

As geopolitical tensions escalate, China's AI industry development is shifting from the application layer to underlying computing power and core chip technologies, with GPU- and AI chip-related companies becoming key focal points for both capital and policy resources. The Hurun Research Institute recently released the Hurun Global Unicorns Index 2025

Wednesday 21 January 2026

South Korea plans US talks as chip tariffs heighten risks for Samsung, SK Hynix

South Korea said it will seek negotiations with the US after Washington imposed a 25% tariff on selected semiconductor products, a move that has placed the country's leading chipmakers, Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix, on heightened alert over potential knock-on effects

Wednesday 21 January 2026

China races to catch up with memory chip leaders in LPDDR6

China's semiconductor supply chain is accelerating plans to bring sixth-generation low-power DRAM, known as LPDDR6, into commercial use in 2026, seeking to close a long-standing technology gap with global memory leaders as edge AI raises demand for higher bandwidth and lower power consumption

Tuesday 20 January 2026

Samsung foundry utilization reportedly nears 60% as losses narrow

Samsung Electronics' foundry business is showing signs of a gradual recovery, with fab utilization expected to average in the low-60% range in the first half of 2026, up from the 50% range in the second half of 2025, according to a report by ZDNet Korea

Tuesday 20 January 2026

Memory supply constraints and rising costs force China's smartphone brands to scale back 2026 shipment forecasts

China's major smartphone manufacturers are revising their 2026 shipment forecasts downward amid tightening memory supply and surging prices, according to Jiemian News. Xiaomi, Oppo, Vivo, and Transsion have reportedly reduced their full-year smartphone shipment forecasts amid escalating upstream material costs that are increasingly pressuring mid- to low-end device segments, particularly those targeting overseas markets

Tuesday 20 January 2026

Alibaba-backed PixVerse introduces real-time AI video tool with interactive control

PixVerse, a platform operated by Alibaba-backed Aishi Technology, has launched a real-time, interactive artificial intelligence (AI) video-generation tool that lets users control character actions during video creation. The new feature potentially enables novel business models by offering an unprecedented level of user engagement, according to reports from CNBC and Forbes

Tuesday 20 January 2026

Naver Cloud fails South Korea's AI foundation model selection

Based on the results of the first phase of South Korea's independent AI foundation model selection, LG AI Research, SK Telecom, and Upstage have advanced to the next stage. However, Naver Cloud and NC failed to pass the evaluation. Naver was judged as insufficiently autonomous because of controversy that it uses a Chinese-made vision encoder

Tuesday 20 January 2026

AUO turns Suzhou plant into 'Talent Lighthouse' with AI at the core

AUO Corporation has transformed its Suzhou manufacturing facility into what it calls a "Talent Lighthouse Factory," a first for the global display industry. The designation underscores how AI has become central not only to the company's digital transformation, but also to a parallel reinvention of how talent is recruited, managed, and retained

Tuesday 20 January 2026

Samsung Device Solutions eyes 47% bonuses after profit surge

Samsung Electronics on January 16 announced payout ratios for its 2025 excess profit performance incentive, with the Device Solutions (DS) division set to receive bonuses equivalent to 47% of annual base salary. The level represents a sharp rebound from 14% for 2024 and zero in 2023

Tuesday 20 January 2026

Memory price surge reshapes China's PC assembly market with renewed interest in older platforms

In early 2026, global memory prices continued their steep climb, intensifying cost pressures on the consumer electronics industry. This trend has sparked a notable shift in China's PC assembly sector, particularly in Shenzhen's Huaqiangbei district, where demand for older-generation systems using DDR3 memory and Intel's sixth- to ninth-generation Core processors has resurged

Monday 19 January 2026

Research Insight: The rising chip cost inside every car is forcing a rethink in China

As electric vehicles and autonomous driving technologies spread rapidly, and as automotive electrical and electronic (E/E) architectures grow more centralized, the value of semiconductors embedded in each vehicle is rising sharply. According to an analysis by DIGITIMES, the average semiconductor content per car is expected to increase from about US$759 in 2024 to US$1,332 by 2030

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BIZ FOCUS

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MSI Unveils Full Lineup of AI Products at CES 2026

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RESEARCH INSIGHTS

Weekly research roundup: Qualcomm's AI strategy, memory giants and updated 2026 smartphone outlook