Beijing authorities have reportedly imposed strict restrictions on high-end semiconductor imports, prohibiting ByteDance, the parent company of TikTok, from deploying Nvidia GPUs in newly built data centers. Nationally funded infrastructure projects must now utilize domestically produced AI chips, signaling a significant policy shift towards semiconductor self-reliance

China's leading tech giants, Baidu, Alibaba, and Tencent, known collectively as "BAT", have committed massive capital expenditures totaling hundreds of billions of CNY to expand AI infrastructure amid strong market demand. Alibaba's CEO dismissed the AI bubble theory, predicting supply shortages will persist for at least three years

China is set to roll out what industry players call the strictest-ever safety standard for power banks. Reports from Sina and China National Radio say the new "Safety Technical Specification for Power Banks" will reshape the sector by removing non-compliant legacy capacity and lifting safety requirements to unprecedented levels

India announced four consolidated labour codes from 21 November 2025, marking one of the biggest overhauls of its labour regulations since Independence. The Code on Wages (2019), Industrial Relations Code (2020), Code on Social Security (2020), and Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions Code (2020) will replace 29 central labour laws, many of which date back several decades

BOE Technology has advanced its 8.6-generation OLED production line after South Korea's Sunic System passed BOE's highest-level stability assessment for its deposition equipment, prompting BOE to proceed with Phase Two expansion for Lines 3 and 4

The Office of the US Trade Representative (USTR) has announced the extension of 178 product exclusions from additional tariffs on Chinese goods, originally imposed under the Section 301 investigation of China's technology transfer, intellectual property, and innovation practices. The exclusions, previously set to expire on November 29, 2025, will now remain in effect until November 9, 2026

South Korea successfully launched its domestically developed Nuri rocket for the third time early Thursday morning, sending a multi-mission satellite into low Earth orbit and marking a major step toward cultivating a commercial space industry. The launch, Korea's first conducted late at night, was timed to minimize solar interference for the mission's main payload, the Compact Advanced Satellite 500-3, which will study auroras and atmospheric light

TSMC's plan to reactivate its 6-inch and 8-inch fabs at Hsinchu Science Park has drawn strong attention from the semiconductor supply chain, according to industry sources. Although the TSMC-certified tools are old, they still meet stable quality standards and represent major orders in the second-hand equipment market

Google's push to expand its in-house Tensor Processing Unit (TPU) platform is drawing fresh attention across the semiconductor sector, and analysts say Samsung Electronics could emerge as one of the biggest beneficiaries. If Google succeeds in building a broader AI ecosystem anchored by TPUs, Samsung stands to gain in both memory shipments and contract chipmaking

Huawei has launched the Mate 80 flagship series, with the Kirin 9030 once again capturing domestic and international attention. As the United States continues restricting China’s access to sub-14nm tools, industry debate now centres on how the Kirin 9030 reaches “near-7nm” performance and what this means for China’s broader push toward semiconductor self-reliance

The Pentagon has concluded that Alibaba Group Holding Ltd., Baidu Inc., and BYD Co. should be added to its Section 1260H list of companies that aid the Chinese military, according to a letter sent to Congress on October 7, according to Bloomberg, Reuters, and Cryptopolitan

Foxconn Industrial Internet (FII) plans to double its revenue in Vietnam to US$20 billion in 2026, driven largely by surging demand for AI server systems and components purchased by cloud giants, including Amazon, Google, and Oracle

Apple has taken the unusual step of mounting a constitutional challenge against India's revised antitrust penalty framework, arguing that a new rule allowing penalties based on a company's global turnover exposes it to disproportionate fines and violates basic principles of fairness. The dispute, first reported by Reuters, marks the most significant pushback to date against India's tougher competition regime and underscores growing tension between global tech giants and New Delhi's regulators

India has announced a major push to localize production of rare earth permanent magnets (REPM), unveiling an INR72.80 billion (US$820 million) scheme aimed at reducing import dependence, building an end-to-end supply chain, and positioning the country as a competitive global manufacturer

Samsung Electronics approved 161 promotions in its 2026 reshuffle — 51 vice presidents, 93 managing directors, 1 Fellow, and 16 Masters — marking its largest wave since 2021. After dropping from 214 promotions in 2021 to 137 in 2025, the rebound reflects Samsung's preparations for renewed momentum in semiconductors, AI, and robotics