Amid intensifying geopolitical tensions and an escalating tech war, China's tech sector is undergoing a sweeping pivot. Companies like Xiaomi, Lenovo, and Huawei are accelerating the shift to in-house chips and operating systems in a bid to establish technological sovereignty

While reporters gathered at Taipei's Songshan Airport on May 12 hoping to spot Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang, he was already in the Middle East, accompanying US President Donald Trump on a high-profile state visit to Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Huang's presence marked a strategic move, as he was welcomed by regional royalty during a tour focused on AI partnerships

In recent years, the US government has tightened AI chip export restrictions targeting China, prompting Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang to repeatedly warn that restricting Nvidia's AI chip exports to China actually accelerates the rapid rise of domestic chipmakers like Huawei. At Computex 2025, Huang told global media that Nvidia's market share in China has sharply declined, which will drive Chinese customers to support local chip companies such as Huawei

According to iNews24 and SE Daily, SK Hynix System IC, the 8-inch foundry subsidiary of SK Hynix, is urging employees in both South Korea and China to transfer to its joint venture unit in Wuxi, China, as part of a business optimization effort. The company recently held briefings for staff, offering an incentive of 3,000% of the base salary for those who accept the transfer to SK Hynix System IC (Wuxi)

As OpenAI CEO Sam Altman toured the Middle East with Donald Trump, promoting a regional "Stargate Project," a quieter but equally profound AI revolution was unfolding in China. At its center is not a headline-chasing and media-hungry founder, but a reclusive, soft-spoken engineer: Liang Wenfeng

The Financial Times recently reported, citing informed sources, that Nvidia plans to establish a new R&D center in Shanghai to strengthen its strategic presence in the Chinese market. The initiative not only responds to China's persistent strong demand for high-end chips but also underscores a pragmatic strategy by the US chip firm to find balance amid rising geopolitical tensions

Japan's push to revive its semiconductor manufacturing is hitting speed bumps as major manufacturers expressed cautiousness over operation or expansion amid weak demand outside of AI

China has rapidly emerged as a global powerhouse in hydrogen energy, demonstrating strong capabilities across the entire supply chain—from production and storage to transport and fuel cell vehicle manufacturing. However, industry observers warn that the sector could soon face the same overcapacity and cutthroat price competition that once plagued the solar and wind industries

Xiaomi's XRing O1 will debut in the 15S Pro smartphone and Pad 7 Ultra, reportedly built on TSMC's second-gen 3nm (N3E) process. With around 19 billion transistors, the chip ranks alongside Apple's A17 Pro and other flagship SoCs, according to National Business Daily and Zol.com.cn

On the evening of May 22, Xiaomi is expected to launch its self-developed 3nm mobile system-on-chip (SoC), the XRing O1, in a move that underscores both the company's technological maturity and China's broader drive toward semiconductor independence amid tightening US export restrictions. The chip has already entered mass production and is set to power Xiaomi's upcoming mobile device lineup, according to chairman and founder Lei Jun

Xiaomi is set to unveil its latest slate of strategic products at 7 pm CST on May 22, headlined by the long-awaited debut of its in-house smartphone SoC, the XRing O1—a bold play that marks a new chapter in the company's semiconductor ambitions. Xiaomi chairman Lei Jun quickly followed up with technical disclosures, noting that the XRing O1 is built on a second-generation 3nm process and packs 19 billion transistors, putting it in the same league as Apple's A17 Pro from a specification standpoint

The US Commerce Department set the stage for anti-subsidy duties on imports of key battery components from China after concluding materials had been unfairly subsidized

Samsung Electronics has sharply reduced its memory chip production—by more than 100 billion units in a year—raising eyebrows across South Korea's tech industry. The unexpected drop, revealed in the company's latest quarterly report, signals a strategic pivot amid intensifying price competition from Chinese rivals

More than two years ago, on the outskirts of a medieval German town, China's biggest EV battery company placed a EUR1.8 billion (US$2 billion) bet on the future of global trade

Chinese shipments of Apple Inc.'s iPhone and other mobile devices to the US dived to their lowest levels since 2011 in April, underscoring how the threat of US tariffs choked off the flow of big-ticket goods between the world's two largest economies