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Chinese Eyewear Company Rokid Redefines Eyewear with AI Smart Glasses

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November 14, 2025

Chinese Eyewear Company Rokid Redefines Eyewear with AI Smart Glasses

Smart glasses are no longer futuristic experiments. Users can now complete payments with a glance, follow cycling routes through visual overlays, and read real-time translation subtitles during conversations—all through eyewear that resembles ordinary fashion accessories. This shift marks the evolution of smart glasses from technical prototypes into lifestyle products and signals a broader redefinition of human–machine interaction.

On November 13, Hangzhou-based AI company Rokid and fashion eyewear brand BOLON jointly unveiled the Rokid China Chic Series and the BOLON AI Smart Glasses. Their collaboration underscores a new direction for the industry: technology must be wearable, elegant, and seamlessly integrated into daily life.

The BOLON AI Smart Glasses adopt a screenless design with a strong emphasis on aesthetics and comfort. The initial offerings include sunglasses and prescription frames in Geek Gray and Onyx Black, priced at around €266. The prescription version features 1.56-index blue-light-blocking lenses, while BOLON’s introduces three photochromic lens options—Classic Gray, Graphite Green, and Amber Brown—capable of full darkening within 25 seconds and blocking over 99% of UVA and UVB rays. Despite their capabilities, the glasses weigh just 38.5 grams, reflecting BOLON’s optical engineering expertise. Internally, they run on a Qualcomm AR1 processor that supports multiple mainstream AI models and incorporate a Sony 12MP camera with dual directional speakers.

According to Yang Guang, Marketing General Manager of BOLON Eyewear, the product balances technological sophistication with practical usability. Rather than overloading features, the focus is on functions that make AI accessible and valuable in daily scenarios. The division of labor reflects each company’s strengths: BOLON leads structural and aesthetic design, while Rokid develops the circuitry, functional system architecture, and battery layout. Yang describes the collaboration as strategically important. For BOLON, it enables expansion into the 3C and digital consumer market while extending expertise in eyewear fitting and vision correction into the smart eyewear category. For Rokid, the partnership strengthens fashion appeal, softens its traditionally tech image, and offers access to premium optical materials and lens technologies.

Rokid’s recent market performance amplifies the significance of this partnership. The Rokid glasses, first unveiled in late 2024 and officially launched in September 2025, achieved remarkable early results. CEO Mingming Zhu reported that 40,000 units sold out within an hour, and the first five days matched the company’s initial monthly projection. Rokid users now average nearly eight hours of daily wear, with cumulative usage exceeding 15 million sessions.

Notably, 81% of users actively produce and share content using the glasses. The user demographic has also shifted: tech professionals, once nearly half of the user base, now comprise just 16%, while adoption among teachers, construction workers, service staff, and agricultural workers has increased significantly. Zhu views this as evidence that smart glasses have moved beyond niche early adopters into mainstream acceptance. As comfort, aesthetics, and utility converge, he expects more manufacturers to push the category toward mass penetration.

The company has accordingly revised its ambitions. From an initial sales target of 100,000 to 150,000 units this year, Rokid now forecasts one million units next year, two to three million the following year, and beyond ten million the year after. Zhu also confirmed that the collaboration with BOLON is the first step in a broader global strategy, with additional co-branded international models planned.

Zhu argues that smart glasses are approaching a defining moment similar to previous inflection points in computing. Graphical user interfaces once reduced the learning cost of computers; AI interactions will remove the operational layer entirely. During this year’s Double 11 festival, Rokid recorded a tenfold sales increase and average daily usage surpassed eight hours—metrics he cites as proof that AI glasses are evolving from gadgetry into a new computing platform. Zhu believes this transition may constitute the category’s “iPhone moment,” an era in which advanced technology becomes invisible through natural integration into everyday routines.

This trajectory is reinforced by broader consumer trends. Wearables—watches, earbuds, and now glasses—have become daily necessities rather than optional accessories. For Gen Z users, who grow up native to digital and AI environments, smart glasses are not technological novelties but extensions of identity. They gravitate toward products that are aesthetically distinctive, socially expressive, and shareable. On social platforms, first-person vlogs captured with Rokid glasses demonstrate how smart eyewear allows users to document life without interrupting the moment by reaching for a phone. Navigation, audio playback, calling, and photography occur passively in the background. In trend-driven circles, owning Rokid glasses has become a marker of being “tech-forward,” much like how Apple product launches once defined cultural taste.

Gen Z consumer psychology makes clear that products succeed when they are engaging, visually appealing, and capable of expressing individuality. This is why the crossover between fashion and technology has become a critical tipping point for the smart glasses category. Rokid’s collaboration with BOLON injects stylistic credibility into its next-generation products, giving them stronger social resonance and broader cultural relevance. The result is a device that signals personal style as much as technological sophistication.

Rokid is simultaneously expanding its ecosystem of partners to enrich everyday usage. Integrations with platforms such as AutoNavi Maps, QQ Music, DingTalk, iQIYI, bilibili, and Taobao broaden the range of services accessible through the glasses. At the launch event, Rokid also announced full integration with the Alipay ecosystem, enabling the world’s first built-in payment feature for smart glasses. Users can simply look at a QR code, speak the payment amount, and confirm verbally to complete the transaction—an interaction that bypasses screens entirely.

The smart glasses category itself has evolved significantly since earlier attempts like Google Glass. Google’s early design was technologically ahead of its time but socially intrusive, creating a psychological barrier between the wearer and their environment. Today, improvements in AI computing power, lightweight materials, and optical modules have made long-term wear practical, enabling products that feel natural rather than disruptive. Rokid’s guiding principle—that technology should blend seamlessly into daily life—aligns with this new reality.

This philosophy shapes the company’s continuous updates. The teleprompter feature, for example, was refined through extensive user research to support adjustable font sizes, display positions, and use cases ranging from conversations to presentations. Hardware upgrades include enhanced image clarity, improved night mode for better low-light performance, refined color and exposure processing, support for overseas electrical frequency standards, and upgraded stabilization for capturing motion. Audio performance has also improved through Rokid’s proprietary True Bass technology, offering richer depth and clearer separation across frequencies. Meanwhile, Rokid’s XR developer community continues to grow globally, creating a diverse and customizable software ecosystem.

Together, these developments point toward a hands-free future in which digital interactions integrate effortlessly into a first-person view of the world. As the boundary between physical experience and digital augmentation dissolves, daily life gains new expressive and functional dimensions. Smart glasses, shaped jointly by technology, fashion, and user-driven insights, are positioned to become the next major gateway to that future.

Source: Rokid, Bolon, stock 10jqka, Yicai Global, sina, VRtuolo

Terror Returns to South Asia? Twin Attacks Shake India and Pakistan

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November 12, 2025

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Terror Returns to South Asia? Twin Attacks Shake India and Pakistan

The evening of November 10 marked a violent turning point in New Delhi, when a car bomb exploded near the Lal Qila metro station, killing at least ten people and injuring twenty others. It was the first bomb attack in the Indian capital in thirteen years.

Indian authorities swiftly opened a case under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) and the National Investigation Agency launched a terrorism probe. Early findings suggest that the attack was orchestrated by a doctor, Mohammad Umar, who allegedly drove the explosive-laden vehicle to the site and detonated it prematurely after panicking, following the arrest of his associate, Dr. Muzamil Shakeel.

Behind Umar, investigators have traced an elite militant network active in Faridabad, Haryana, with operational links to militants in Jammu and Kashmir. Police had already disrupted part of this network on October 30, arresting several members and seizing nearly 2,900 kilograms of explosives along with detonators and AK-47 rifles. Authorities believe the group intended to execute a series of coordinated attacks in and around Delhi. Further inquiry revealed the involvement of Maulvi Irfan, a former imam at the Srinagar Government Medical College, who played a pivotal role in radicalizing the participants; his organization reportedly shares ideological ties with Jaish-e-Mohammed in Pakistan.

Suspicion deepened when, less than a day later, at around 12:39 p.m. on November 11, a suicide bombing in Islamabad killed more than ten people. Pakistan attributed the attack to Jamaat-ul-Ahrar, a faction of the Pakistani Taliban, and accused India of supporting the group—an allegation New Delhi firmly rejected. Pakistani Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi hinted at the possibility of new military action. India, meanwhile, did not immediately draw a direct connection between the Islamabad bombing and the Lal Qila attack, adding a layer of ambiguity to the already tense atmosphere.

Although investigations are ongoing and many details remain uncertain, the available information already points to several troubling developments. The near-simultaneous bombings in the capitals of India and Pakistan may signal the beginning of a new cycle of terrorism in South Asia. Historically, terrorist activity in the region has fluctuated in waves, marked by periodic escalations.

The latest attacks carry clear signs of a shift: the chosen targets are rich in political symbolism, such as the Lal Qila; the timing suggests an effort to generate psychological shock across borders; and the involvement of professionals—especially doctors—reveals the emergence of a more sophisticated operational model. These patterns, coupled with the large stockpile of weapons seized in Faridabad and the network’s transnational ideological connections, indicate that extremist groups are reorganizing, adopting more precise, covert, and coordinated methods.

The evolution of terrorist networks toward a more elite, professional profile—long observed in Pakistan—is now visibly taking root in India. Educated middle-class individuals, often regarded as unlikely participants in militant activity, are becoming entangled in radicalization pipelines. This trend may be partly driven by increased counter-terrorism pressure, which pushes extremist groups to rely on recruits capable of evading detection, and partly by social or identity-based vulnerabilities within the middle class. The spread of encrypted communication tools further enables remote radicalization and facilitates “lone wolf” behavior, accelerating the shift from traditional militant structures to a more clandestine, technically adept model.

These developments also cast a shadow over India-Pakistan relations, already strained by past confrontations, including the Pahalgam attack earlier this year that escalated into an aerial clash. Although India’s initial restraint has left open the possibility of de-escalation, political pressures are mounting. The Congress Party has denounced the Lal Qila bombing as a catastrophic intelligence failure, urging the government to respond decisively. Public frustration on social media—where many users are calling for the resignation of Home Affairs Minister Amit Shah—may push New Delhi toward a harder line. Should investigators uncover links between the attackers and groups operating from Pakistan, or if domestic right-wing forces seize the moment to mobilize nationalist sentiment, the diplomatic relationship between the two nuclear-armed neighbors could deteriorate further.

The back-to-back bombings in New Delhi and Islamabad have revived longstanding anxieties about regional security in South Asia. As indigenous radical networks evolve and potential cross-border dynamics come into play, the region appears to be entering a period of renewed volatility. The full truth behind the attacks has yet to emerge, but the political pressures and diplomatic complications they have unleashed are already reshaping the landscape, suggesting that South Asia may once again be approaching a tense and uncertain era.

Source: Times of India, AI Jazeera, the Strategist, CNN

Foreign Food Service Giants Sell in China, How Local Capital Wins and Strengthens the Brands

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November 11, 2025

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Foreign Food Service Giants Sell in China, How Local Capital Wins and Strengthens the Brands

On November 4, Starbucks and Boyu Capital announced a strategic cooperation to form a joint venture that will take over Starbucks’ retail operations in China. Boyu will hold up to 60% of the new entity, while Starbucks retains 40% and continues to license its brand and intellectual property to the joint venture.

Based on an enterprise valuation of approximately $4 billion, Boyu will acquire its stake accordingly. Starbucks expects the total economic value of its China retail business to exceed $13 billion, including proceeds from the divestiture of its controlling stake, the residual value of its retained equity, and long-term licensing income. Both parties plan to expand the Starbucks China network to 20,000 stores, underscoring the strategic importance of the Chinese consumer market to global brands.

With over 150 disclosed deals spanning giants like Foshan Haitian Flavouring & Food, Midea, CATL, iQiyi, and Kuaishou, and with recent purchases such as a 42%–45% stake in Beijing SKP, Boyu Capital has demonstrated a long-standing appetite for high-quality consumer assets.

Only days later, on November 10, CPE Funds reached a similar partnership with Burger King, owned by Restaurant Brands International (RBI). The two sides will establish Burger King China, with CPE Funds injecting an initial $350 million to support expansion, marketing, menu innovation, and upgrades to operational capabilities.

After the transaction, CPE Funds will hold roughly 83%, while RBI retains about 17%. Burger King China will receive exclusive development rights for the next 20 years, and the long-term plan is to expand from the current 1,250 restaurants to over 4,000 by 2035. This arrangement mirrors the broader trend: foreign chains increasingly rely on Chinese capital not merely for financing, but for navigating a market whose scale, complexity, and speed require deep local knowledge.

CPE Funds’ aggressive posture makes clear it is not a passive investor but an operationally active player shaped by China’s consumption upgrading cycle. Established in 2008 as the former CITIC Industrial Investment, with CITIC Securities as its largest shareholder, CPE Funds now manages more than €18.17 billion and has invested in over 300 companies, more than 10 billion of which has gone into consumer services.

Its portfolio stretches from Mixue Ice Cream & Tea and Pop Mart to CATL, Laopu Gold, Yonghe Hair Transplant, and Beauty Farm — touching nearly every aspect of daily life. What sets CPE Funds apart is not breadth but depth: it invests with the intention of reshaping operations, refining strategy, improving management structures, optimizing supply chains, and enhancing marketing execution. Over nearly two decades, it has accumulated resources that are decisive in running large restaurant chains in China — priority access to commercial real estate, sophisticated supply-chain capabilities, and fluency in digital ecosystems such as Meituan, Ele.me, and RedNote.

A wave of foreign food service brand transactions is sweeping through the Chinese market, revealing not only shifting competitive dynamics but also the deepening influence of local capital in the global food and beverage sector.

The trend is neither new nor isolated: in 2016, Primavera Capital and Ant Financial invested $460 million in Yum China, which subsequently became the largest franchisee and publicly listed entity operating KFC, Pizza Hut, and Taco Bell in China. One year later, CITIC Limited, CITIC Capital, and Carlyle jointly acquired a majority stake in McDonald’s China.

These transactions are driven by structural changes in the performance of foreign food-service giants. McDonald’s, which operated over 2,400 restaurants in mainland China and more than 240 in Hong Kong before its 2017 sale, had already begun experiencing slowed growth after 2013. Although McDonald’s does not separately disclose China numbers, its financial reports show profits in high-growth markets — including China — declined 5.5% in 2013 and nearly 10% in 2015. Yum China underwent a similar trajectory: after achieving record revenue and profit in 2012, its net profit plummeted by 81% in 2013 and even turned negative in 2014. Though profitability gradually recovered, it never returned to its peak, marking the end of a two-decade expansion cycle.

Since then, the pace of China-focused expansion has accelerated dramatically through localized management. McDonald’s China, which took 27 years to open its first 2,000 stores, opened another 5,000 in just eight years, now operating over 7,100 stores and opening two to three new locations daily. Yet this growth highlights how the rules of the game in China have changed. The country’s vast consumer base — with 2024 catering revenue surpassing €665 billion — creates opportunity, but also fierce competition.

Domestic brands in China enjoy advantages that foreign companies struggle to replicate, including China’s uniquely integrated supply chain. Many local chains, such as Kudi Coffee, have already internalized production for nearly all raw materials, drastically reducing costs. Mixue’s vertically integrated supply chain alone produces more than 1.6 million tons of ingredients annually and is expanding into categories like dairy. These capabilities enable local brands to differentiate through pricing, format innovation, and operational efficiency.

The rise of Luckin Coffee illustrates this point. Its shift from large stores to smaller, high-density outlets radically changed the cost structure of the coffee business. Kudi Coffee, founded by Luckin’s original team, now operates over 14,000 stores. With average transaction values around €1.21 to €1.7, compared to Starbucks’ roughly €4.36, domestic brands in China have reshaped consumer expectations. Starbucks has been forced to adopt localized pricing strategies, offering frequent discounts and partnering with platforms to lower effective prices. These changes signal not merely competition, but a fundamental redefinition of the value proposition in China’s coffee market.

Analysts note that foreign brands’ market challenges reflect structural issues rather than cultural barriers. After years of relying on premium locations and higher price points, many international chains saw same-store growth stagnate post-2012 as menus aged, delivery channels disrupted foot traffic, and real estate dividends disappeared. For these companies, introducing Chinese partners means exchanging “future growth options” for “present cash flow.”

Local capital, on the other hand, gains assets it believes it can reposition or scale more efficiently, especially in lower-tier markets where its operational strength is unmatched. Instead of a narrative of “foreign brands failing,” the reality is closer to a mutual risk rebalancing: foreign companies lighten asset-heavy burdens, while Chinese investors take on operational responsibility in exchange for long-term upside.

Local capital taking over foreign restaurant operations generally falls into two categories: real-estate-linked groups which possess powerful property negotiation advantages but lack flagship brands, and private equity firms which seek stable cash-flow stories to support fund operations. Both types leverage China’s regulatory environment, financing mechanisms, and government relationships in ways foreign operators typically cannot. Their ability to package restaurant assets into urban commercial projects or negotiate favorable loan terms gives them a competitive edge in scaling these businesses.

Industry observers also point out that many multinational corporations struggle with China because of centralized global management models. Long decision cycles, rigid procurement standards, and insufficient regional flexibility hinder their ability to respond to China’s fast-paced consumer environment. After localization, McDonald’s China’s management team began reporting to a local board, half of whose members reside in China, enabling faster decision-making. This shift illustrates why many foreign brands now prefer to entrust operations to localized partners who understand policy dynamics, supply-chain structures, and digital ecosystems.

Viewed from a broader perspective, the sale of a foreign brand in China is not the end of its story but the beginning of a new operating model. The future of the Chinese food service market will not be dominated solely by foreign names or purely by domestic brands, but by hybrid structures where international brands provide the global brand power and product systems, and local capital and operators provide the executional muscle and localized strategy.

In the world’s largest consumer market, advantage no longer belongs to whoever has the strongest global brand, but to whoever understands the market’s rules and can move in sync with its pace. Ultimately, doing business in China has never been about what you bring in from the outside, but about what you learn once you are inside.

Source: digitaling, the paper, 36kr, sina finance, ckgsb, thelowdown, yicai

How DJI’s Pocket Camera Evolved from Product to Phenomenon

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November 9, 2025

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How DJI’s Pocket Camera Evolved from Product to Phenomenon

If there is one product in China’s technology landscape that has transcended industry cycles, it is DJI’s Osmo Pocket 3. Since its release at the end of 2023, this tiny gimbal camera has ignited a global buying frenzy reminiscent of the AirPods Pro launch years earlier. For months, it remained sold out across official channels, with resale prices climbing more than 30 percent. Online, users joked that “buying one at retail price is already a victory.”

But the Pocket 3’s popularity goes far beyond sales figures. It has captured the imagination of professionals and ordinary users alike—from journalists and top-tier video creators to travelers, lifestyle enthusiasts, and parents documenting family trips. In many ways, it has become a symbol of “creative equality” in the age of universal video creation: a tool that allows anyone, not just professionals, to capture cinematic images effortlessly.

The phenomenon surrounding the Pocket 3 reflects a deeper shift in the consumer electronics market. DJI’s success in ground-based imaging has created a new growth segment that smartphone giants can no longer ignore. According to industry sources, leading Chinese smartphone makers including OPPO, vivo, Xiaomi, and Honor have all initiated internal projects to develop Pocket-style imaging devices, with commercial releases expected as early as mid-2026. A new race to challenge the Pocket 3 has quietly begun.

At the same time, questions persist. In an age when smartphone cameras boast advanced stabilization and computational photography, why does a separate handheld camera even need to exist? To answer that, one must look beyond the Pocket 3 itself and trace the seven-year evolution of the series, from its experimental beginnings to its current status as a cultural icon.

When DJI launched its first Osmo in 2015, the company’s reputation rested on drones, not handheld devices. Yet the idea of ground-based stabilization came from users rather than engineers. Enthusiasts had begun removing the Zenmuse gimbal cameras from DJI’s Inspire drones and attaching them to improvised 3D-printed grips to capture stable shots on the ground. The results were crude but revealing. They demonstrated that the same technology that stabilized aerial footage could revolutionize handheld shooting.

DJI’s product team quickly recognized the opportunity. The first-generation Osmo combined the company’s three-axis gimbal technology with a camera into a single handheld device. It offered a groundbreaking promise: the ability to shoot drone-quality stabilized footage on land. The product impressed professionals and filmmakers, but its high price and bulky design limited its audience. It was a technical milestone but not yet a mass-market success.

The team realized that what users truly needed was not just stable footage, but stability that fits in a pocket. That insight led to the birth of the Pocket series.

The first Osmo Pocket, released in 2018, arrived just before the global explosion of vlogging. The concept of Vlog was still new in China; few users even knew the term. But DJI sensed a coming shift. Leveraging its miniaturization breakthroughs from drone projects like the Spark, the company created a gimbal camera small enough to fit in one hand and intuitive enough for anyone to use.

The original Pocket condensed a three-axis stabilizer, a camera, and a tiny screen into a lipstick-sized body. It directly addressed the unsolved contradiction between video quality, stability, and portability that smartphones of the time could not overcome. When it launched, it became an instant favorite among early vloggers and tech enthusiasts. Though imperfect—its fixed-focus lens made selfies blurry and its audio quality was poor—it validated a new product category. It wasn’t just a gadget; it was a foundation on which a new content ecosystem would grow.

Two years later, in 2020, DJI released the Pocket 2. By then, the short-video and vlog boom had exploded in the wake of the pandemic. Platforms like Bilibili saw record surges in creators, and high-quality video tools became essential. DJI, staying true to its philosophy of patient iteration, refined the Pocket 2 into a true all-round creative tool. It added a wider 20mm lens for better framing, a four-microphone array for clearer audio, and an optional creator combo kit that included a wireless mic and mini tripod. For the first time, users could film, record, and share professional-quality vlogs using a device that fit in the palm of their hand. The Pocket 2 elevated the series from “usable” to “delightful,” winning widespread adoption among professional and amateur creators alike.

Then came a three-year silence—a period that DJI’s engineers later described as one of “grinding through three great mountains.” The first was image quality. Earlier models, with their 1/2.3-inch and 1/1.7-inch sensors, were easily surpassed by smartphones within a year or two. Users demanded a leap, not an upgrade. The team realized that the only way forward was to use a 1-inch CMOS sensor—an industry benchmark for premium imaging. Yet power consumption, heat, and space constraints made integration nearly impossible. DJI waited patiently for the right component: a new-generation, low-power 1-inch stacked CMOS developed through smartphone supply chains. Once available, it became the heart of the Pocket 3, giving the camera a decisive edge that phones could not match.

The second mountain was usability. Earlier Pocket models had been praised for engineering brilliance but criticized for their tiny screens. The Pocket 3 team refused to accept that limitation. Instead of enlarging the body, they designed a rotating two-inch touchscreen that switched instantly between vertical and horizontal orientation, expanding viewability fourfold. The mechanism turned a functional adjustment into a tactile pleasure—an act as satisfying as flicking open a Zippo lighter.

The third mountain was aesthetics—specifically, color science tuned for people, not landscapes. For the first time, DJI made skin tone rendering the top priority in color calibration. Engineers studied the tonal preferences of creators, particularly women, who favored Canon’s rosy white color palette. The team conducted blind tests and concluded that perception, not metrics, defined good skin tone. They developed a proprietary color algorithm that gave subjects a natural yet cinematic look. The impact was immediate. Across TikTok, Red Note, and Meitu, users began adopting Pocket 3 filters to emulate its color profile—a sign that the device had reshaped the aesthetics of a generation.

With these breakthroughs, the Pocket 3 became a phenomenon. Within months of its launch in late 2023, it was nearly impossible to find in stock anywhere in the world. The media dubbed it the “Moutai of electronics”—a nod to China’s most coveted liquor—capturing its symbolic status as a premium yet populist product.

Its success stemmed from its perfect balance of three core qualities: stability, image quality, and ease of use. It was sophisticated enough for national broadcasters and professional filmmakers, yet accessible enough for travelers and parents. For millions, it redefined what “recording life” could look like. The Pocket 3 became not just a product but an expression of cultural aspiration—a convergence of technology, creativity, and self-expression.

Competitors have since entered the race. GoPro, once dominant in the action-camera market, long dismissed the Pocket as a niche gadget for vloggers. Its focus on extreme sports made it blind to the growing demand for lightweight lifestyle recording. When the Pocket 3 exploded in popularity, GoPro realized that it had lost users who wanted professional stability without bulk. Similarly, Sony’s ZV1, once the go-to vlog camera, found itself overshadowed by DJI’s mechanical gimbal advantage.

Now, as smartphone brands prepare to release their own Pocket-like devices, DJI faces a new wave of competition. But as the series’ engineers point out, imitation does not equal parity. Beneath the Pocket’s sleek exterior lies a moat built over years of technical and experiential accumulation.

The first barrier is gimbal algorithm know-how. DJI’s expertise stems from its Ronin professional stabilizer line and drone technology. The challenge lies not in stabilization alone, but in predicting user intent—distinguishing a deliberate camera movement from an accidental shake within milliseconds. Achieving this requires millions of hours of motion data and continuous model optimization. It is a skill that cannot be reverse-engineered quickly.

The second barrier is video-centric experience. Smartphone companies devote most of their imaging resources to photography, optimizing for snapshots, not long-form video. In contrast, DJI’s DNA is video first. Its deep mastery of dynamic range, color grading, and codecs such as D-Log M gives the Pocket series a consistent cinematic look that smartphones struggle to reproduce.

The third barrier is physics. The Pocket’s three-axis gimbal isolates the sensor from body movement, maintaining true mechanical stability. A smartphone, no matter how advanced its sensor or software, cannot escape the physical vibration of handheld movement. Electronic stabilization may reduce blur, but it cannot eliminate the micro-jitters and rolling distortions that occur during walking or running. The Pocket’s stability is thus not just a feature but a physical advantage—one rooted in engineering rather than algorithms.

Finally, DJI’s ecosystem forms an invisible moat. Years of hardware development have produced a suite of accessories and integration tools, from wireless microphones to creator kits. The seamless pairing of the Pocket 3 with the DJI Mic system has redefined audio standards for content creation.

By 2025, the Pocket 3 stands not merely as a bestseller but as a manifestation of DJI’s long-term philosophy: to create tools that empower creativity rather than chase trends. Its evolution from Osmo to Pocket mirrors the company’s broader shift from defining technologies to defining cultural habits.

Source: DJI, Geekpark, Helico Micro, Flying Eye

The car of the future is a robot on four wheels: How XPENG Is Driving China’s Next Technological Revolution

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November 7, 2025

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The car of the future is a robot on four wheels: How XPENG Is Driving China’s Next Technological Revolution

As the competition in the global automotive industry intensifies in 2025, intelligent driving has become the defining battleground. After years of progress in electrification, with the three-electric systems—battery, motor, and control—now mature and standardized, the focus has shifted from electric power to artificial intelligence.

The history of technological revolutions has always followed a pattern of breakthroughs. In the 2000s, Microsoft and Intel built the digital foundations of the Internet era. In the 2010s, Apple redefined human interaction through the mobile internet. By the 2020s, OpenAI opened the frontier of digital cognition. Now, as AI begins to merge with physical space, the next great transformation is unfolding. Around the world, leading tech companies are racing to bridge the gap between the digital and the physical. Apple is developing desktop robots capable of autonomous navigation, Amazon has introduced its Astro home robot, and Google’s DeepMind continues to invest in large-scale robot control models. Across this global shift, the consensus is clear: the era of “Physical AI” has arrived. Among the first to embrace this vision in China is XPENG.

From its founding days, XPENG made AI its core research direction. Even when in-vehicle computing power was limited to a fraction of today’s levels, Chairman and CEO of XPENG, He Xiaopeng firmly believed that intelligent driving would be the ultimate expression of artificial intelligence. Guided by that conviction, XPENG became one of China’s earliest carmakers to build its own AI architecture, advancing almost in parallel with Tesla in its adoption of end-to-end autonomous driving technology. This early investment laid the groundwork for XPENG’s steady rise from a start-up to a leader in intelligent mobility.

By 2024, XPENG’s R&D team achieved a pivotal breakthrough in large-model training. The company’s VLA model, originally designed for visual perception and action, began to autonomously understand physical laws. This represented a fundamental leap—from perceiving and imitating the world to comprehending it. The next-generation VLA model, unveiled at XPENG’s 2025 Technology Day, integrates AI cognition with real-world physics. This fusion marks the dawn of XPENG’s Physical AI, an evolution that connects vehicles, robots, and aerial mobility under a unified intelligence framework.

At the event, XPENG showcased a range of technologies powered by this new model, including the upgraded Xiao Lu NGP driving system, the humanoid robot IRON, and mass-production-ready Robotaxi platforms. These breakthroughs highlight both XPENG’s technological strength and the rapid progress of China’s AI ecosystem. The theme of the event—“Emergence”—carried dual significance: the moment when quantitative accumulation transforms into qualitative change, and the simultaneous eruption of multiple technologies converging around one unified model. The wave of spatial intelligence, long anticipated by industry observers, is finally taking shape.

XPENG’s long-term vision is to become not just an automaker but a global embodied-intelligence company. This philosophy resonates with Tesla’s own trajectory, which has shifted focus from cars to humanoid robots and integrated software-hardware ecosystems. Yet XPENG’s approach reflects distinctly Chinese characteristics: building a comprehensive system that unites intelligent software, industrial hardware, and large-scale manufacturing—a combination few companies in the world can match.

Behind this ambition is a deep technological foundation. XPENG has invested billions of yuan in computing infrastructure, creating Nebula, China’s first 10,000-card automotive intelligent-computing cluster, and a 30,000-GPU cloud platform built with Alibaba Cloud. This cluster trains XPENG’s 72-billion-parameter foundation model for autonomous driving, allowing full iterations every five days. By comparison, while conventional automotive AI systems rely on tens of millions of parameters, XPENG’s second-generation VLA processes hundreds of millions and absorbs up to 270,000 hours of video data every week—equivalent to 30 years of human driving experience in just seven days.

Such immense data and computing capabilities enable XPENG to deploy Physical AI across its entire ecosystem. Automobiles remain the company’s core business, but they now serve as data-collecting intelligent nodes within a larger network that includes flying cars, robots, and Robotaxis. XPENG has established four strategic business lines: automobiles, Robotaxis, robotics, and flying cars—each reinforcing the others through shared algorithms, chips, and model architecture. This synergy allows the company to achieve economies of scale, reducing development costs while accelerating iteration speed.

In the automotive field, XPENG’s second-generation VLA intelligent-driving system will enter trial use by the end of 2025 and begin large-scale rollout in early 2026. The company’s Robotaxi division is preparing to launch three purpose-built models with five-, six-, and seven-seat configurations, all equipped with XPENG’s high-performance Turing AI chips delivering 3,000 TOPS of computing power. By relying on pure-vision solutions and eliminating high-definition map dependence, XPENG’s Robotaxis can operate across cities and even countries, providing a viable pathway toward global commercialization.

In robotics, XPENG unveiled the humanoid robot IRON, whose lifelike movement and control stunned audiences. Built with a biomimetic spine, bio-inspired muscles, and flexible artificial skin, IRON can perform precise, human-like motions with 82 degrees of freedom. XPENG plans to begin deploying the robot in service scenarios such as tour guiding, sales assistance, and patrol operations, with mass production targeted for late 2026.

Meanwhile, the company’s flying-car division, XPENG Huitian, continues to push the boundaries of low-altitude mobility. Its land aircraft carrier hybrid vehicle, capable of both road and air travel, has already garnered over 7,000 pre-orders and will enter mass production in 2026. The tilt-rotor A868 flying car for multi-passenger travel has also begun flight verification, marking another step toward realizing XPENG’s vision of three-dimensional transportation.

These developments collectively represent the essence of Physical AI—the seamless integration of intelligent software with diverse hardware platforms. Data collected from cars, robots, and flying vehicles feed into a shared base model, forming a multidimensional understanding of the physical world. As the model refines its comprehension of physical laws, all product lines benefit simultaneously, creating a self-reinforcing innovation loop. Through this unified architecture, XPENG demonstrates the advantage of China’s comprehensive industrial system, where AI research, hardware manufacturing, and large-scale application coexist within a single ecosystem.

Beyond the technological spectacle, XPENG’s progress mirrors China’s broader transformation from an engineering-driven manufacturing powerhouse to an intelligence-driven innovation leader. National strategies such as the 14th and 15th Five-Year Plans emphasize the deep integration of AI into physical industries, promoting autonomous and self-iterating production systems. XPENG’s achievements embody this vision: cars are no longer just products assembled from blueprints but evolving intelligent entities capable of learning from the world around them. Factories are becoming data hubs for continuous optimization, and China’s manufacturing logic is shifting from replication and efficiency toward independent innovation and digital self-growth.

At the close of Technology Day, He Xiaopeng reflected, “Those once-fanciful technological visions are gradually becoming reality.” Over seven consecutive years of Tech Days, XPENG’s trajectory has traced the rise of China’s intelligent manufacturing—from autonomous driving to flying cars, from robotic exploration to the development of its second-generation VLA large model. Each breakthrough reflects the country’s determination to redefine its position in global technology through self-reliance and creativity.

Behind the numbers lies a larger story. XPENG’s 10,000-strong team of engineers, its in-house chips, algorithms, and software-hardware integration, all point to a new model of competition—one rooted in comprehensive capability rather than isolated innovation. In this new global race toward embodied intelligence, Chinese enterprises are no longer followers; they are shaping the rules.

XPENG’s Physical AI is more than a concept—it is a demonstration of what China’s technological rise truly means: embedding intelligence into the physical world, transforming imagination into mass-produced reality, and leading humanity toward a new era where the boundary between the virtual and the real is no longer fixed, but fluid, adaptive, and profoundly intelligent.

Source: XPENG, CnEVPost, KMJ, CGTN, Sina

How China Stands Apart: The Civilizational Logic Behind Its Absence of Large Religious Wars

KULTUR

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November 5, 2025

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How China Stands Apart: The Civilizational Logic Behind Its Absence of Large Religious Wars

Although humanity has entered the 21st century, wars and conflicts continue to smolder in various regions. Behind many hotspots lie religious entanglements that have endured for millennia. Every explosion echoes an old question: why does peace remain elusive?

Across world history, religion has frequently served as a catalyst for conflict. At the end of the 11th century, Crusader armies marched eastward and drenched Jerusalem in blood. In the 13th century, the papacy launched ferocious inquisitions that reduced countless so-called heretics to ashes. The 16th-century French Wars of Religion led to rivers of Protestant blood flowing down the Seine. Even today, in the Balkans, the Persian Gulf, and the Indian subcontinent, religious divides remain embedded in many confrontations.

Yet when the lens of history shifts eastward to China, a markedly different picture emerges. Although the Yellow Turban uprising invoked apocalyptic prophecy and the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom bore the banner of the God Worshipping Society, the underlying drivers of these upheavals were not religious doctrine but land concentration, socioeconomic inequality, and systemic oppression. Faith served as an idiom, not a cause.

The contrast begins with fundamentally different social and political structures. Early Chinese society, like many ancient civilizations, revered natural phenomena as divine forces and practiced harsh sacrificial rites. However, as shamanistic authority grew dangerously unrestrained—when anyone could claim to speak for the gods—Chinese rulers undertook a civilizational reform that altered the trajectory of political development. Ancient texts record the deliberate “severing of the connection between Heaven and humanity,” a governance innovation that centralized the right to interpret divine will. Communication with Heaven became the exclusive prerogative of the ruler and state-sanctioned ritual experts, curbing religious privatization and preventing charismatic individuals from mobilizing divine authority for rebellion.

This early institutional arrangement, consolidated in the Zhou dynasty’s rites-and-music system, gradually transformed Chinese society into one governed by secular ethics rather than priestly theocracy. While other civilizations still relied on sacrificial violence to secure divine favor, the Zhou political order placed social hierarchy, ritual propriety, and moral governance at its core. The ruler derived legitimacy not from divine command alone but from the ethical requirement to “match Heaven’s virtue.” Divine will become a moral criterion rather than an instrument of domination.

This shift marked a profound divergence from the West. Western intellectual history evolved under the towering influence of theology; Chinese thought moved toward ethical humanism. Confucius’s famous admonition—If one cannot yet serve humans, how can one serve spirits?—encapsulates this transformation. Religious life persisted, but its authority was subordinated to moral cultivation, social relations, and political order. Over time, this human-centered orientation solidified into a stable civilizational pattern: rulers upheld Confucianism as the ideological orthodoxy, while diverse beliefs—Buddhism, Daoism, folk religions, and foreign faiths—were allowed to coexist within a secular state framework.

This orientation was reinforced by China’s social structure. Genealogical networks and ancestral halls created deeply rooted kinship order long before temples and churches emerged. In the Mediterranean world, the mobility of traders and the fragmentation of communities gave religions a unique bridging function; in China, lineage-based order endowed society with cohesiveness, reducing the need for religious authority to manage social bonds.

Religion in China was also shaped by the distinctive conception of “Heaven.” Unlike monotheistic traditions centered on a single, exclusive deity, Chinese culture envisioned an abstract, transcendent, and impersonal Heaven—omnipresent yet formless, moral rather than dogmatic. Numerous deities existed in popular worship, but none eclipsed Heaven as the supreme moral order. This nonexclusive, nonanthropomorphic Heaven served as a universal reference point that could accommodate multiple faith traditions without generating doctrinal conflict.

This worldview intertwined naturally with ancestral reverence, extending ethical relationships outward from family to society. Concepts such as ruler and subject, father and son, teacher and student, and sworn brothers functioned as quasi-kinship ties, binding unrelated individuals within a shared moral framework. Philosophers such as Cheng Hao and Wang Yangming later expanded this ethic of kinship into cosmological humanism, proposing the unity of humanity with nature and all beings. In such a worldview, religious difference rarely escalated into existential confrontation, because ethical integration overrides metaphysical exclusivity.

Thus, when Buddhism, Islam, and later Christianity entered China, they encountered a civilizational logic predisposed toward accommodation rather than confrontation. Foreign religions were transformed—Sinicized—in ways that allowed them to coexist with Confucian norms, and in turn contributed new philosophical elements to Chinese thought. The result was an evolving ecosystem of beliefs rather than a battlefield of competing dogmas.

At the civilizational level, this inclusiveness was reinforced by the Chinese conception of “all under heaven” (tianxia), a political and cultural imagination that transcended geography. Unlike the Western concept of the “world” as a collection of rival polities, the Chinese tianxia referred to a moral and cultural sphere unified by shared norms—something larger than territory but more cohesive than mere geography. It formed the ideological foundation for repeated historical unifications across a landmass comparable to Europe, where no analogous unifying concept existed.

When dynasties collapsed or foreign powers conquered the Central Plains, tianxia consciousness enabled re-integration. Ethnic differences, religious diversity, and regional particularities were subsumed into a broader civilizational identity. Buddhist bells, Daoist rituals, Confucian ceremonies, steppe traditions, and frontier customs coexisted within a common cultural framework that emphasized harmony over domination.

Over thousands of years, this cultural logic prevented large-scale religious wars in China and discouraged missionary conquest or cultural extermination. Instead, Chinese civilization absorbed and transformed external influences, generating a historically rare model of cultural continuity without theocratic conflict or colonial expansion.

The wisdom embedded in this tradition carries contemporary relevance. In an era of geopolitical tension and global fragmentation, the Chinese ethos of harmony, inclusiveness, and cultural symbiosis offers an alternative to zero-sum confrontation. As modern Chinese leaders emphasize, the ideals of “all under heaven as one family” and “harmony among all nations” derive from deep historical roots and reflect a worldview committed to coexistence rather than domination.

A genuine global perspective does not demand uniformity or erasure; it requires the capacity for different civilizations, ethnicities, and faiths to share the same sky peacefully. The inclusive and humanistic foundations of Chinese civilization, formed over millennia, continue to offer valuable insight for building a shared future for humanity.

Source: neac gov, scmp, sohu, zhihu, cuhk

The Future of Europe — A Conversation between Chinese Professor Zhang Weiwei and Former Foreign Minister of Serbia Vuk Jeremić

Interview

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November 3, 2025

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The Future of Europe — A Conversation between Chinese Professor Zhang Weiwei and Former Foreign Minister of Serbia Vuk Jeremić

On China Dragon TV’s China Now program, Professor Zhang Weiwei, Director of Fudan University’s China Institute, and Mr. Vuk Jeremić, former Serbian Foreign Minister and President of the UN General Assembly, recently discussed the future of Europe together.

Vuk Jeremić believes the European Union, born from the devastation of World War II and founded on reconciliation and shared prosperity, now stands at a critical crossroads. Once united by the vision of peace between France and Germany and supported by the United States during the Cold War, the EU became a model of integration and cooperation after 1991. However, Jeremić argues that a sense of complacency and arrogance emerged after the Cold War, as the EU assumed history had ended.

He sees the crises of the 21st century—the financial crash, the 2015 refugee crisis, Brexit, and deteriorating relations with Russia—as evidence of deep structural weaknesses within Europe. Today, he believes the EU faces major challenges: economic stagnation, demographic decline, social division, and uncertainty in its relationships with major global powers, including the U.S., Russia, and China.

Despite these difficulties, Jeremić maintains that the EU remains the most successful example of regional integration in modern history and that its founding ideals of unity and shared destiny still hold the key to Europe’s future.

What is the most urgent challenge facing the EU and Europe today?

Vuk Jeremić: The most pressing issue is that Serbia’s EU accession process, which began in 2001, has effectively stalled. While Serbia formally remains a candidate and is expected to implement reforms to meet EU standards, progress is blocked by powerful EU countries demanding it compromise its sovereignty over Kosovo—a condition Serbia considers both constitutionally and morally unacceptable. No country could accept such terms. As a result, Serbia remains outside the EU, despite being geographically surrounded by member states, and there is little chance this situation will change in the near future. This, in my view, is the core challenge facing Serbia’s European integration.

Zhang Weiwei: Years ago, I spoke with a Serbian ambassador to Geneva about Yugoslavia and its relations with Europe. He suggested that if Tito had lived longer, Yugoslavia might have joined the European Community, which could have helped prevent its fragmentation, as membership in an international organization supports unity and protects collective interests. Later, I asked Vuk whether he thought this was a real possibility.

Vuk Jeremić: It’s impossible to know for certain what might have happened if Tito had lived longer. Perhaps, had Yugoslavia implemented reforms similar to China’s in the 1970s and 1980s, the country might have avoided disintegration. Instead, Yugoslavia split into six sovereign states, leaving unresolved issues like Kosovo. Today, these historical realities, combined with the EU’s internal challenges—such as each member state’s veto under the Treaty of Lisbon—make it difficult for a country like Serbia to join. Ultimately, we can only speculate about what might have been if Yugoslavia had remained united.

What challenges are ordinary Europeans facing today? Are issues like unemployment, the refugee crisis, or the decline in industrial and technological leadership among them?

Vuk Jeremić: Most EU countries face a complex mix of crises. Illegal migration, weak economic growth, and long-term demographic decline create deep uncertainty, while the media often exaggerates security threats from Russia. In this climate, many Europeans turn to political figures offering simple, immediate solutions, fueling support for populist movements. These dynamics contribute to the severe political instability and upheaval seen across multiple EU states today.

Zhang Weiwei: Europe’s biggest challenge today is missing the Fourth Industrial Revolution driven by the internet and digital economy. None of the world’s top 20 internet companies are European, leaving big data and platforms dominated by the U.S. Even Germany’s Industry 4.0 initiative, once a model for industrial intelligence, has faded into obscurity. Energy is another critical issue: the phase-out of nuclear and coal, combined with insufficient green alternatives, has created a significant power shortage—estimates suggest Germany’s industrial sector faces a 30% deficit—undermining economic competitiveness.

Why did Europe miss the information revolution, and how did it fail to seize these key opportunities for growth?

Vuk Jeremić: This issue stems from several factors. First, Europe’s energy landscape shifted dramatically: Germany phased out nuclear power after Fukushima, and strained relations with Russia cut off cheap energy, driving production costs up. Second, heavy bureaucracy, regulation, and high taxes have pushed innovators and tech talent abroad, leaving Europe’s internal innovation ecosystem underdeveloped. Third, Europe’s reliance on imports—especially from China—for key technologies revealed vulnerabilities when geopolitical and national security concerns limited access. Together, these factors explain Europe’s current economic and technological challenges.

Why does Europe seem reluctant to deepen cooperation with China?

Vuk Jeremić: I come from Serbia, a European country with distinct differences from mainstream EU states, and I currently teach at Sciences Po Paris and the University of Salzburg. I believe Europe and China share substantial long-term interests, but current political factors, especially the war in Ukraine, complicate cooperation. European media portrays Russia as an imminent threat, which I do not believe is accurate. Yet as long as Europeans perceive this threat, they rely on U.S. protection, which carries conditions—particularly regarding China. This dynamic creates a short-term obstacle to Europe-China cooperation, even though the long-term shared interests remain significant.

Source: China Dragon TV

China’s Greater Bay Area’s 1,997 km² Aviation Powerhouse: 4 Hours to Southeast Asia, 12 Hours to the World

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November 1, 2025

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China’s Greater Bay Area’s 1,997 km² Aviation Powerhouse: 4 Hours to Southeast Asia, 12 Hours to the World

On October 30, after more than five years of construction, Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport’s Terminal 3 officially entered operation together with its fifth runway. This marks a major leap in capacity: the airport’s near-term annual passenger throughput now reaches 120 million, with cargo throughput at 3.8 million tons, and its ultimate terminal capacity is planned to reach 140 million passengers and 6 million tons. The opening of this new terminal represents not only a physical expansion, but also a strategic elevation of Baiyun Airport’s role in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area’s aviation ecosystem.

The Greater Bay Area currently hosts 11 civil transport airports, seven of which lie within its core region. These airports jointly handled more than 227.94 million passengers and over 9.3573 million tons of cargo in 2024. As global economic activity becomes increasingly time-sensitive, airports—by virtue of their unmatched speed and wide transit radius—are assuming a central role in drawing international resources.

Wang Guowen, director of the Institute of Logistics and Supply Chain Management of the China (Shenzhen) Institute for Comprehensive Development, emphasized that the 21st century is an era shaped by aviation, in which airports increasingly function as engines of urban development. He noted that the commissioning of Terminal 3 will further strengthen Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport’s position as a world-class hub and reinforce the Greater Bay Area’s standing as an international aviation gateway.

Since beginning operations in 2004, Baiyun Airport has processed more than 950 million passengers and over 28 million tons of cargo and mail. Today, the first group of domestic flights from China Eastern Airlines (including Shanghai Airlines and China United Airlines), Juneyao Airlines, and Okay Airways have already moved into Terminal 3.

By January 2026, Air China, Shenzhen Airlines, Kunming Airlines, Shandong Airlines, Hainan Airlines, Capital Airlines, West Air, Tianjin Airlines, Lucky Air, Urumqi Air, Spring Airlines, as well as foreign carriers operating out of Terminal 1, are expected to join them. With Terminal 3 in operation, Baiyun Airport will be capable of handling up to 150 flights per hour during peak periods, averaging about 2,100 flights per day. Operational capacity in the near term will support 120 million passengers and 3.8 million tons of cargo annually, a sharp rise compared to the airport’s 2024 figures of 76.369 million passengers and 2.3819 million tons of cargo.

The doubling of capacity from 70 million to 140 million passengers may seem bold, but demand trends fully justify such ambition. In 2018, when Terminal 2 opened with a design capacity of 45 million passengers, Baiyun Airport aimed to raise total throughput to 80 million. Yet only one year later, the airport had already surpassed 73 million passengers, nearing 80% of its designed limit. As Guangzhou’s economy has expanded and the Greater Bay Area has grown more tightly integrated, air-transport demand has accelerated sharply. In October alone, Baiyun Airport handled more than 7.6 million passengers, an 11% year-on-year increase and a new monthly record.

Terminal 3’s design reflects a shift toward integrated, multimodal transport. As an air-land transportation hub, T3 incorporates 6 platforms and 14 tracks, enabling high-efficiency air-rail transfers. Wang Guowen highlighted that T3 enables vertical connections between high-speed rail and air travel, which shorten transfer distances, improve overall efficiency, and enhance user experience compared with the more common horizontal transfer models. Baiyun Airport is therefore no longer a stand-alone aviation node; it has become a “transportation heart” that drives the rapid circulation of people, goods, and capital throughout the Greater Bay Area. This integration strengthens Guangdong’s ability to allocate global resources and deepens the region’s participation in international industrial-chain networks.

Behind the opening of Terminal 3 is the emergence of a world-class airport cluster. Among the seven civil transport airports within the Greater Bay Area, Guangzhou Baiyun Airport, Shenzhen Bao’an International Airport, and Hong Kong International Airport have each surpassed the 50-million-passenger threshold, forming the core triad of the region’s aviation network.

In 2024, Baiyun Airport reached 76.369 million passengers, up 20.89% year-on-year and setting a new record; Shenzhen Bao’an Airport handled 61.477 million passengers, making it the fourth airport in mainland China to exceed 60 million; and Hong Kong International Airport processed 53.1 million passengers and more than 363,000 aircraft movements, representing increases of 34.3% and 31.6% respectively compared with 2023. Hong Kong also handled 4.9 million tons of cargo, a 14% rise year-on-year, reaffirming its position as a leading international air-cargo hub.

Each of these airports plays a distinct role. Hong Kong Airport offers the highest level of internationalization with extensive global connectivity and strong passenger and cargo flows. Macau Airport maintains close links with Portuguese-speaking countries. Shenzhen Airport has built its development strategy around serving high-tech industries and strengthening ties with Southeast Asia. Guangzhou Baiyun Airport, meanwhile, is positioned as a world-class hub serving the entire country, supported by a dense network of intercontinental routes.

With the coordination of these major facilities, the Greater Bay Area has achieved 4-hour coverage of Southeast Asia and 12-hour access to most major global destinations. Yet experts believe that the region still has significant room for growth. Unlike Beijing, Shanghai, and Chengdu—cities that have already entered an era of dual-airport systems—the Greater Bay Area’s aviation layout, though extensive, has not yet fully matched the region’s economic scale, population base, and industrial strength. As industrial upgrading accelerates and population continues to concentrate within the region, both passenger and cargo aviation demand are expected to grow substantially.

Major airports across the region are already advancing their next phase of development. The Guangzhou New Airport project has been approved, and preliminary supporting works are underway. Shenzhen Bao’an Airport’s third runway has completed flight calibration and will soon begin operations. Macau Airport began its expansion and reclamation project last year, while the three-runway system at Hong Kong International Airport has already been fully commissioned. Together, these developments signify a collective upgrade of the region’s aviation infrastructure.

Looking ahead to the 15th Five-Year Plan period, the Greater Bay Area’s airport cluster will need to focus on improving connectivity, strengthening network resilience, and addressing structural shortcomings. According to Wang Guowen, seamless integration between different modes of transportation is essential for both development efficiency and risk resistance. He suggests that the region should deepen coordination among airports, high-speed railways, urban transit, and port systems, build additional interconnection corridors, and enhance the overall robustness of the transportation network. By reducing system vulnerability and improving transfer convenience, the Greater Bay Area will be better positioned to support global supply-chain flows and capture future opportunities in aviation.

As Terminal 3 comes into operation and major airports across the region move forward with expansion, the Greater Bay Area’s world-class airport cluster is entering a new stage of high-quality, high-efficiency growth. Together, these coordinated advancements will help the region strengthen its international competitiveness and continue shaping its role as a major global transportation gateway.

Source: ycwb, sina finance, cnbayarea org, sfccn

China’s Ocean Economy Surpasses €1.28 Trillion as Growth Accelerates

East Asia

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October 31, 2025

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China’s Ocean Economy Surpasses €1.28 Trillion as Growth Accelerates

China’s National Development and Reform Commission and the Ministry of Natural Resources of China recently released the China Marine Economy Development Report 2025. The Report reviews the progress of China’s marine economy at both national and regional levels in 2024, highlighting steady expansion, industrial restructuring, and technological innovation across the sector.

In 2024, China’s marine gross domestic product (GDP) reached around €1.28 trillion , reflecting continuous growth in scale. Over the past year, the restructuring of marine industries accelerated, marine science and technology innovation capabilities were significantly strengthened, and the efficient utilization of marine resources continued to improve. Efforts in marine ecological protection, restoration, early warning, and monitoring produced positive outcomes, while openness and cooperation in the marine economy deepened further.

Coastal regions actively explored marine resource potential, maintained strong economic vitality, and accelerated the development of regional marine economies, achieving notable progress in establishing key growth poles. The three major marine economic zones—Northern, Eastern, and Southern—continued to expand their capacity.

The Northern Marine Economic Zone advanced the transformation from old to new growth drivers, the Eastern Zone achieved initial success in integrated marine economic development, and the Southern Zone made new progress in deep-sea development and conservation. In 2024, the marine GDP of the three zones reached €387.8 billion, €405.7 billion, and €459.3 billion respectively, representing nominal growth rates of 33.1%, 37.7%, and 33.3% compared with 2020.

Marine power provinces and modern maritime cities also accelerated their development. Shandong strengthened its marine science and technology leadership and launched the world’s fastest supercomputer, Sunway Ocean Light. Zhejiang’s port integration reform unleashed new growth potential, with Ningbo-Zhoushan Port recording its highest container throughput growth in seven years.

Meishan Port Area surpassed 10 million TEUs for the first time, joining Chuanshan Port Area to form the world’s only dual ten-million-TEU-class container terminal cluster. Guangdong began forming large-scale industrial clusters worth hundreds of billions of yuan in offshore engineering equipment and offshore wind power. Major projects such as the Shenzhen-Zhongshan Bridge opening, the commissioning of the ocean-going drilling vessel Dream in Guangzhou, and the successful trial operation of the world’s first megawatt-scale seawater electrolysis hydrogen production facility further strengthened the province’s marine industrial base.

Modern maritime cities leveraged their unique advantages to build new centers for marine economic growth. Shanghai, Shenzhen, and Qingdao enhanced their international maritime competitiveness, while Tianjin, Dalian, Ningbo, and Xiamen deepened their strengths in marine industries, achieving breakthroughs in port-industry-city integration, marine fisheries, modern shipping services, and marine pharmaceuticals. Cities such as Qinhuangdao, Lianyungang, Beihai, and Sanya promoted distinctive marine development by building high-quality marine tourism destinations and showcasing harmonious coexistence between people and the sea.

Demonstration zones for marine economic development also advanced innovative practices. Sixteen such zones achieved remarkable results through key demonstration projects. Tianjin established China’s first domestically produced seawater desalination production line, and Weihai’s Shawo Island National Offshore Fisheries Base achieved a return rate of over 90% for self-caught aquatic products.

Rizhao operated 38 sea-rail intermodal freight trains, while Qingdao Blue Valley released the “Hanhai Xingyun” large model with parameters reaching the hundred-billion level. Lianyungang launched 911 China-Europe freight trains, up 13% year-on-year, and Yancheng was recognized as a Biodiversity 100+ Global Special Recommendation Case.

Shanghai’s Chongming District delivered the world’s first 14,000m³ river-sea direct LNG bunkering vessel, independently constructed in China. Ningbo completed China’s first blue carbon auction, and Wenzhou guided private capital into strategic sectors such as deep-sea energy development and high-end marine equipment.

Fuzhou built the nation’s first county-level marine carbon sink trading service platform, and Xiamen established the world’s largest deep-sea microbial strain repository. Shenzhen’s marine enterprises secured more than 82,000 invention patents, while Zhanjiang developed a modern port-based industrial system focusing on green steel, petrochemicals, and energy.

Beihai promoted the development of border port industrial parks and the China-ASEAN Industrial Cooperation Zone, and Lingshui advanced projects highlighting the cultural and tourism charm of the Tanka fishing community. Hunchun maintained stable operations of the “Hunchun-Europe” freight train service, contributing to cross-border marine economic connectivity.

Source: ycwb, xinhua, sina finance, gov cn

China Becomes the World’s Third 600 km/h Maglev Power

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October 30, 2025

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China Becomes the World’s Third 600 km/h Maglev Power

Since the advent of rail transit, the pursuit of higher operating speeds has remained a constant human aspiration. Maglev transportation, emerging a century after the development of traditional railways, reshapes the fundamental relationship between train and track by replacing physical contact with electromagnetic interaction. Suspended and propelled solely through magnetic forces, maglev systems overcome the mechanical limitations of wheel–rail friction and open a new frontier of ultra-high-speed ground transportation.

China’s systematic push in this field began in 2016, when the Ministry of Science and Technology launched the Program of Building National Strength in Transportation. Among its priorities was the development of a 600 km/h high-speed maglev system—identified in the national transportation strategy as a core technological reserve alongside 400 km/h wheel–rail trains and low-vacuum tube high-speed systems.

In the decades prior, Germany and Japan had already invested heavily in maglev research, the former focusing on conventional electromagnetic suspension (EMS) using attraction forces and closed-loop controls, and the latter on superconducting electrodynamic suspension (EDS), which relies on the powerful magnetic fields produced by superconductors. China began exploring both maglev and wheel–rail options in the 1990s during planning for the Beijing–Shanghai high-speed railway, laying the foundation for later breakthroughs.

In 2021, China’s first 600 km/h high-speed maglev transportation system was officially released in Qingdao, signaling a major step forward in independent technological capability. On May 27, 2024, China Railway Construction Corporation (CRCC) completed its major research undertaking on the construction technologies for 600 km/h conventional-conductor high-speed maglev systems. This achievement made China the world’s third country to master the complete set of technologies for a 600 km/h maglev system and filled longstanding gaps in independent intellectual property, industrial chain integration, and practical engineering methods. Over four years, the project team carried out research across seven key fields—including bridge engineering, tunnel engineering, and infrastructure-vehicle interaction—resulting in 70 patents, multiple new processes and specifications, several newly developed products, and engineering software that has already been applied in real-world projects.

CRCC’s engagement with maglev research dates back to the 1990s, and its subsidiaries later became deeply involved in the Ministry of Science and Technology’s “Maglev Transportation Systems” program. As one of the principal contributors, the institute helped develop the national “Maglev Railway Technical Standards,” which took effect in 2020. With major urban clusters such as the Guangdong–Hong Kong–Macao Greater Bay Area and the Yangtze River Delta now planning high-speed maglev corridors, the demand for long-distance, high-capacity, ultra-fast ground transportation offers broad prospects for engineering application.

The completion of CRCC’s latest project indicates that China has fundamentally mastered the engineering construction technologies necessary for 600 km/h conventional-guide maglev lines, establishing both a complete system of independent intellectual property and clear design principles for future implementation.

But how fast is 600 km/h? A large commercial aircraft typically cruises at 800 to 1000 km/h, while regional jets operate at around 500 km/h. A 600 km/h maglev runs almost like a “zero-altitude aircraft,” traveling at aviation speeds while remaining grounded. Maglev trains themselves, however, are not limited to high speeds alone. Depending on their suspension technology, materials, and rail structure, they can serve varied transportation needs: high-speed maglev reaching 400–600 km/h, medium-speed systems around 200 km/h, and low-to-medium-speed systems at approximately 100 km/h. The latter are technologically simpler and more economical, suited for urban and suburban transit. China currently operates three such low-to-medium-speed lines: Changsha Maglev Express (2016), Beijing’s S1 line (2017), and the Fenghuang Maglev Sightseeing Express (2022).

The target of 600 km/h is not arbitrary. China’s vast geography requires strong, efficient connections between major regional clusters such as the Yangtze River Delta, the Pearl River Delta, the Beijing–Tianjin–Hebei region, the Middle Yangtze River area, and the Chengdu–Chongqing economic circle. Many core cities—Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou—lie over a thousand kilometers apart. High-speed rail takes more than four and a half hours for some of these journeys, while flights are fast but costly and subject to weather and airport logistics. To maximize time efficiency, transportation scholars argue that intercity trips between major metropolitan areas should ideally be completed within about three hours, including intermediate stops. A commercial operating speed of 600 km/h is the practical threshold at which this goal becomes feasible.

At the 17th China International Modern Railway Technology and Equipment Exhibition in July 2025, three major maglev prototypes—conventional high-speed maglev, superconducting high-speed maglev, and conventional medium-low-speed maglev—were unveiled together for the first time. Among them, the superconducting electric high-speed maglev attracted particular attention. Its levitation relies on electromagnetic induction between onboard high-temperature superconducting magnets and coils embedded in the track. These superconducting poles generate magnetic fields exceeding 5 tesla, producing strong, stable forces for levitation and propulsion.

The train integrates cryogenic thermostats, refrigeration units, and advanced thermal management systems to ensure reliable operation of the superconducting components. Lightweight aluminum alloys and carbon-fiber composites form the vehicle body, while an aerodynamically optimized nose reduces drag at high speeds. The system is designed for GoA4 fully autonomous operation, incorporating 5G communication, AI-based monitoring, multilayer redundancy, and comprehensive electromagnetic shielding to balance efficiency, safety, intelligence, and ride comfort. As CRRC senior engineer Shao Nan noted, the independent completion of materials, coils, cryogenic systems, and other core components represents not only a technological milestone but also a catalyst for broader industrial advancement across superconductivity, advanced manufacturing, and high-end rail equipment.

High-speed maglev is an ultra-complex, large-scale systems engineering endeavor that must follow rigorous R&D, validation, and testing procedures before reaching commercial readiness. While China’s conventional high-speed maglev technologies have now reached engineering implementation standards, true commercial operation will require building a dedicated high-speed maglev test line to verify running speeds, operational stability, and long-term safety. Only after these validations can the system officially welcome passengers and open a new chapter in ultra-fast ground transportation.

Source: wuhan gov, xinhua, cjrb, news bjd