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Thursday 25 June 2026
Anthropic accuses Alibaba of largest distillation attack on Claude, escalating the US-China AI fight
Anthropic's claim that Alibaba "illicitly" harvested its Claude model marks the biggest alleged case yet of a Chinese firm copying a top US lab, sharpening a national-security debate in Washington over AI intellectual property — even as Anthropic, valued at US$965 billion and eyeing an IPO, feuds with the White House over its own export limits.
Thursday 25 June 2026
China wafer champion turns to US$1.6B overhaul to stop losses
National Silicon Industry Group, China's leading 12-inch silicon wafer maker, has announced a CNY11.45 billion (US$1.6 billion) capital injection into its core subsidiary Shanghai Xinsheng Semiconductor Technology, in a restructuring aimed at easing losses in its wafer business.
Thursday 25 June 2026
China PC shipments fall as Huawei gains ground in weakening market
China's personal computer market weakened in the first quarter of 2026, with shipments down 2% from a year earlier, according to Omdia. The decline reflects softer consumer demand, economic uncertainty, and rising component costs, trends that may affect global PC supply, pricing, and vendor strategy throughout the year.
Wednesday 24 June 2026
Imoo overtakes Samsung to become No. 4 smartwatch brand
Imoo beat Samsung Electronics, Oppo, and Garmin to rank as the world's No. 4 smartwatch brand in global smartwatch sales in the first quarter of 2026. In fact, imoo's global smartwatch shipments have matched Samsung's in recent years, according to Counterpoint.
Wednesday 24 June 2026
SoftBank to build domestic AI server base as Japan pushes for sovereign compute
SoftBank, the telecom arm of SoftBank Group (SBG), is moving to localize a larger part of Japan's AI infrastructure stack, with plans to begin domestic AI server production in fiscal 2027 at the former Sharp Sakai plant in Osaka.
Wednesday 24 June 2026
China's LineShine supercomputer tops TOP500, but AI lead remains unclear

China's LineShine supercomputer debuted at No. 1 on the June 2026 TOP500 list, announced at the ISC 2026 conference in Hamburg, becoming the first system to sustain more than two exaflops on the standard HPL benchmark using CPUs only. The result marks the first time since 2017 that a China-based system has led the TOP500 ranking, and reflects Beijing's effort to present a frontier computing system built around domestic processors, interconnects, and software.

Wednesday 24 June 2026
CATL's HIMA exclusivity fades in China EV battery shake-up
Harmony Intelligent Mobility Alliance (HIMA) is reducing its reliance on CATL and broadening its EV battery supply chain, a pragmatic reset driven by cost pressure, delivery targets, and supply risk in China's electric vehicle market.
Wednesday 24 June 2026
Samsung, SK Hynix weigh new Korean chip belt as concerns mount for Yongin cluster

South Korea's government is in talks with Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix over a potential new phase of large-scale semiconductor investments, as the two chipmakers review plans that could include front-end fabrication plants and packaging facilities across the country's Honam and Chungcheong regions. Both companies say no final decisions have been made.

Wednesday 24 June 2026
Samsung eyes Galaxy Ultra for 2nm Exynos 2700

Samsung Electronics' System LSI division is pressing its mobile business to expand adoption of the in-house Exynos 2700 processor beyond the standard Galaxy S27 and S27 Plus models and into the premium Galaxy S27 Ultra and Galaxy Z Fold 8, according to The Bell.

Wednesday 24 June 2026
CATL turns sodium-ion batteries into grid storage contender with TENER Sodium launch
CATL has launched CATL TENER Sodium, a utility-scale sodium-ion energy storage system aimed at moving the technology from pilot projects into commercial grid infrastructure.
Wednesday 24 June 2026
China's idle EVs could become AI token factories, says CATL chairman
CATL chairman Robin Zeng said on June 23 at the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Dalian that many electric vehicles (EVs) in China could be turned into computing infrastructure for the large-scale production of AI tokens by using their onboard batteries and AI chips.
Wednesday 24 June 2026
Former SMIC CEO targets China photomask IPO after 12-inch wafer bet
Former SMIC CEO Tzu-yin Chiu is extending his semiconductor materials strategy into photomasks, one of the most critical upstream links in chip manufacturing. Guangzhou Xinrui Photomask Technology, also known as New Ray Mask, where Chiu serves as chairman, has begun IPO listing guidance, marking another step in his shift from foundry operations to China's chip materials supply chain.
Wednesday 24 June 2026
Alibaba sues US Defense Department over military company label, raising contract and free-speech concerns
Alibaba Group Holding and its US subsidiary filed a suit on June 23, 2026, in federal court in California, seeking to overturn the Department of Defense's designation of Alibaba as a "Chinese military company." The case could affect the company's access to US government contracts and its standing in broader US supply chains.
Wednesday 24 June 2026
China's autonomous driving crackdown targets overpromised smart vehicle tech
China has announced its first mandatory national safety standard for Level 3 (L3) and Level 4 (L4) autonomous driving, with implementation set for July 2027.
Wednesday 24 June 2026
China's chip-equipment push starts to weigh on Japanese suppliers

China's push to build a domestic semiconductor equipment industry is beginning to cut into revenue at major Japanese toolmakers, with five major Japanese suppliers posting a combined 12% drop in China sales for the fiscal year ended March 2026, Nikkei reported.