China's AI development heats up as tech firms race to release new models

Hi everyone. I’m Stephanie LI.Coming up on today’s programBaidu launched two new models to join China's latest push of AI development;Henderson Land Development's founder Lee Shau-kee passes away at 97.Here’s what you need to know about China in the past 24 hoursChina's tech companies are ramping up efforts in artificial intelligence (AI) development, launching a growing number of new models following DeepSeek's R1 release earlier this year that gained international fame. Baidu’s stock jumped today after launching its latest foundation models - ERNIE 4.5 and ERNIE X1 - on Sunday, which claim to be able to outperform OpenAI's GPT4.5 at only 1 percent of the price. Baidu is not alone in launching new AI models. Previously, Alibaba Cloud released and open-sourced its new inference model, Tongyi Qianwen QwQ-32B. Another Chinese tech giant, Tencent, introduced Hunyuan Turbo S last month. This model provides near-instant responses, doubling text output speed and reducing initial delay by 44 percent.China's development of large AI models benefits from several key advantages compared with international markets, including strong original research capabilities and a flourishing open-source ecosystem, analysts said.China has introduced various policies to support and regulate AI growth, with the country's 2025 Government Work Report also emphasizing large AI model adoption."Under the AI Plus initiative, we will work to effectively combine digital technologies with China's manufacturing and market strengths. We will support the extensive application of large-scale AI models and vigorously develop new-generation intelligent terminals and smart manufacturing equipment, including intelligent connected new-energy vehicles, AI-enabled phones and computers, and intelligent robots," the report said.Chinese localities like Beijing, Shanghai and Guangdong are also making efforts to build AI industry hubs.Shanghai plans to strengthen AI development with an open and collaborative innovation framework. At the 2025 Global Developer Conference, Shanghai is committed to expanding AI cooperation, fostering open-source development, and promoting innovation and data-sharing, the report said.Guangdong has rolled out 12 AI and robotics related policies to accelerate industrial digitalization. Under the new policy, Guangdong will fund up to 10 AI and robotics projects annually, offering subsidies of up to 8 million yuan per project.GBA expressLee Shau-kee, founder of Hong Kong’s Henderson Land Development and one of the city’s most successful property businesspeople and philanthropists, died on Monday at the age of 97. Lee passed away peacefully at dusk, surrounded by his family, according to a statement by Henderson. Born to a merchant family in Shunde, Guangdong province in 1928, Lee started his business in Hong Kong in his twenties and established Henderson in 1976. Lee’s decades-long success in real estate development and investment made him one of the wealthiest people in the world. Lee’s charity foundations have generously supported students and universities throughout Hong Kong and the Chinese mainland. Hong Kong Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu on Monday night expressed his condolences on Lee’s passing, and spoke highly of Lee's contribution in economic development, education and social service sectors. Lee was awarded the Grand Bauhinia Medal by the SAR government in 2007 in recognition of his contributions.Chinese robot maker Shenzhen Dobot has launched the world’s first full-sized intelligent humanoid robot, Dobot Atom, featuring both dexterous manipulation and straight-leg walking, at a starting price of 199,000 yuan.JD.Com's founder and CEO Richard Liu visited the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology to examine multiple AI projects, including the Cheng Kar-Shun Robotics Institute and the drone aeroacoustics test platform, media reported.The Global Investment Summit 2025 in Hong Kong is set to take place next Tuesday to Thursday. With the theme of new networks connecting the global economy, the event's sessions will focus on China's role in the world economic landscape. The summit will feature a lineup of speakers, including Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu, former president of the European Central Bank Mario Draghi and Alibaba chairman Joseph Tsai Chung-Hsin.Industry and Company newsChina's digital industry profit climbed 3.5 percent to 2.7 trillion yuan last year from the year before, while revenue rose 5.5 percent to 35 trillion yuan, the MIIT said yesterday. The software sector's income jumped 10 percent to 13.7 trillion yuan.China will allocate about 66.74 billion yuan in employment subsidies as part of efforts to support local governments in assisting businesses to create more jobs, an official of the Ministry of Finance said on Monday.Chinese Commerce Minister Wang Wentao met with Airbus Group CEO Guillaume Faury yesterday to discuss cooperation, the ministry said on its website today. Airbus is optimistic about the Chinese market and will continue to expand its investment in the country, Faury was cited as saying.Nio surged today after the Chinese NEV startup said it joined hands with CATL to form a world-leading battery swapping network for passenger vehicles. CATL will invest up to 2.5 billion yuan in Nio Power.BYD issued its employee stock ownership plan for this year, with the Chinese EV giant to distribute no more than 4.1 billion of its shares for a subscription price of 1 yuan per share, according to an announcement from the Chinese EV giant. The firm also released the 10C megawatt charging stations with a ultra-high voltage of 1,000 V yesterday. This technology enables EVs to charge for a 400 km range in just five minutes.Tesla raised the starting price of the long-range version of the revamped ModelY by 3 percent to 313,500 yuan in China, according to its website today. Meanwhile, Tesla China yesterday launched a free one-month trial for its Full Self-Driving feature with the latest hardware and software for select owners. The China Association of Automobile Manufacturers today urged automakers to stop publishing weekly sales charts because of unclear data sources that may mislead public opinion and intensify unhealthy competition. Chinese home appliance giant Midea Group today unveiled its first humanoid robot prototype, showcasing abilities like shaking hands, passing water, dancing, and screwing screws. VP and CTO Wei Chang revealed that Midea has set up a humanoid robot innovation center to accelerate R&D in the field.AMD's Chair and CEO Lisa Su embarked on her first business trip to China this year, visiting Lenovo's HQ in Beijing yesterday to meet with the world's largest PC maker's executive VP and China President Liu Jun. AMD will hold the Advancing AI 2025 event today.Asia-Pacific highlightsThailand’s Deputy Prime Minister said Monday that after the  implementation of Thai government’s intensified crackdown measures, including the suspension of electricity, fuel supplies, and internet connections along the border areas, where scam compounds are concentrated, the number of cybercrime cases in Thailand has so far decreased by 20 percent since Feb 5. Cases of call-center fraud have seen a substantial 67 percent drop.