China's leading AI developers are scaling revenue rapidly, but the gap with their US rivals remains substantial — and the cost of keeping pace is rising even faster. Rhodium Group estimates that seven major Chinese AI companies had combined annualized recurring revenue (ARR) of about US$10.7 billion, based on estimates dated between March and August 2026, roughly one-tenth of the more than US$100 billion attributed to OpenAI and Anthropic combined.
Vivo unveiled its new X500 series imaging flagship phones in Shanghai on September 21, 2026, aiming to build a stronger moat in mobile imaging and break through more aggressively in the premium smartphone market. As rising memory prices force handset makers to lift retail prices, IDC expects worldwide smartphone shipments to fall 16.7% in 2026 to just over 1 billion units.
China is preparing a business delegation for President Xi Jinping's Washington visit as Beijing pursues more predictable trade relations and opportunities for companies facing US market-access barriers. The preparations combine official economic talks with a proposed corporate entourage, although the sources reviewed have not publicly confirmed the individual executives attending.
DeepSeek CEO Liang Wenfeng said during a call with investors that he aims to rely on Huawei chips to train the startup's models in the future, and that a batch of training chips from Huawei are set to begin arriving at his company as early as the fourth quarter of 2026.
As Li Auto, NIO, Xiaomi, Geely, GAC, GWM, Chongqing Changan Automobile, and Chery step up efforts to develop and manufacture batteries in-house, the tug-of-war between China's automakers and battery leader CATL over self-production versus outsourcing is intensifying.
China's silicon carbide (SiC) end-market demand is expanding rapidly, driven by high-voltage charging infrastructure and AI servers. The surge in orders has tightened SiC wafer capacity in China, and some offshore companies seeking foundry partners there have reportedly been turned away, pushing spillover business toward Taiwan, where Episil, HYS, and Diodes are among the names cited as potential beneficiaries.
