Optical communications firm Elite Advanced Laser (eLaser) held its earnings call on November 19th, during which company president Tien-tseng Sung pointed to inventory adjustments from major customers that negatively impacted gross margin and overall performance in the third quarter of 2025. However, although revenue from optical modules has dropped due to lower shipments, inventory adjustments are expected to end by year-end.
Global attention is currently fixated on the humanoid robots unveiled by upstart automakers: Tesla's Optimus and BMW-backed Figure 02. Behind the scenes, two of the industry's most powerful incumbents, Toyota and Volkswagen, are charting a markedly different course. Rather than staging high-profile demonstrations, the giants are pursuing what amounts to a quiet, deeply rooted "invisible front" in robotics.
Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. has formally entered the global consumer-facing AI market, announcing the public beta launch of the Qianwen App, a personal AI assistant built on the company's powerful Qwen large language model (LLM).
Alibaba has revamped its AI mobile application under the new name "Qwen," aiming to compete head-to-head with OpenAI's ChatGPT by combining shopping, maps, and other functionalities into a single platform. The public beta, formerly called the "Tongyi" app, is based on Alibaba's advanced open-source model Qwen3, with users able to switch to the Qwen3-Max model for tasks requiring deeper reasoning.
Consumer electronics distributor Weblink International is strengthening supply chain collaboration and enhancing its product portfolio, with an eye on the surging global demand for memory. As a key distributor for international memory brands, including Samsung Electronics, SanDisk, Western Digital (WD), and Transcend, Weblink will coordinate with manufacturers to secure prioritized supply quotas and ensure availability in Taiwan, and launch integrated memory and storage solutions targeted at AI server system integrators, cloud service providers, and enterprise customers.
The true service life of AI GPUs, the cornerstone of computing power, has become a new battleground in the heated debate surrounding AI investments. This question directly impacts tech giants' multibillion-dollar profits and the validity of the current AI valuation bubble.
Bengaluru-based electronics brand Wobble has debuted its first smartphone, the Wobble One, marking its entry into India's competitive mid-range smartphone market. The "Made in India" device focuses on performance, battery life, and camera capabilities while complementing Wobble's existing Smart TV and consumer electronics lineup, according to Business Today, Gadget 360, and the Indian Express.
Yann André LeCun, the prominent AI pioneer who leads one of Meta's core research labs and serves as its Chief AI Scientist, plans to leave the company to launch a new venture. A Meta spokesperson confirmed his departure, and LeCun wrote on Facebook, "As many of you have heard through rumors or recent media articles, I am planning to leave Meta after 12 fantastic years."
Roughly 20 automakers worldwide have now announced plans to enter the humanoid-robot arena—from Tesla and Germany's automotive trio of Mercedes-Benz, BMW, and Volkswagen to China's XPeng, BYD, and GAC—signaling a new industry consensus in the age of intelligent mobility.
The global race to deploy humanoid robots in the automotive industry has moved decisively from the laboratory into commercial reality in 2025. Yet behind high-profile demonstrations—from Tesla's Optimus to BMW's Figure 02 and BYD's Walker S—lie steep investment requirements and substantial risks, driven by technological and economic barriers that have yet to be cleared.
US President Donald Trump is reportedly preparing to sign an executive order on Nov. 24 to launch a national artificial intelligence (AI) initiative dubbed the "Genesis Mission," according to Department of Energy officials cited by Bloomberg. The effort is designed to boost US AI development and frame the technology race as a strategic contest on par with the Manhattan Project and the space race.
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