Asia's Tech News, Weekly: August 30th 2025
Indonesia-China nickel & recycling, Taiwan's startup milestones, Startup ASEAN Summit, Japan's India tech investments, Pacific Islands cables, Korean chips for Saudi Arabia, Apple joins Douyin...
• Taiwan: "The National Science and Technology Council said Friday that its incubator Taiwan Tech Arena has jump-started 1,069 startups since 2018, generating nearly US$1.3 billion..." / full item
• 'Vietnam unveils national innovation networks in quantum, cybersecurity, and UAVs, aiming to boost its global technology influence and economic strength.' / full item
• 'Apple taps into TikTok's sibling app Douyin to sell iPhones in China' / full item
• Sony Semiconductor Solutions preps to showcase how its AI-powered cameras are helping US cities of Lakewood and San José improve road safety and traffic management / full item
• China's GEM battery materials major inks agreement with Indonesia's sovereign wealth fund, Danantara, to build a nickel & recycling hub, seen as a step towards 'circular industrial links' / full item
"Just over a year after... BYD invested nearly half a billion dollars in a new plant in Thailand’s Rayong province, the company has shipped its first 900 made-in-Thailand Dolphin models to Europe" / full item
• Australia: Akula Tech successfully launched its AI-powered satellite, Nexus-01, aboard SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket via Dhruva Space LEAP-1 mission / full item
• South Korea's LG Energy Solution and Vietnam's Kim Long Motors auto firm in MoU to develop battery cells for electric buses / full item
• Rocket Lab Corp successfully launched its 70th Electron mission from New Zealand, establishing the Electron as the world's most frequently launched small orbital rocket / full item
• Malaysia: A quick overview of the Gig Workers Bill, aiming to provide stronger protection for the estimated 1.2 million gig workers in the country / full item
• Pacific Islands: Kosrae-Nauru-Kiribati subsea cable preps to start operating by November, jointly funded by the US, Australia and Japan / full item
• Malaysia: Ryt Bank launches, claiming to be the world's first AI-powered bank created in Malaysia 'with the values, languages, and lifestyles that define Malaysia' / full item
• Vietnam: Danang approves Basal Pay 'crypto asset conversion project' for operation in the city's fintech sandbox / full item
• "Japan to pour US$68bn into AI, chips and start-ups in India" / full item
• Mark your calendar: Startup ASEAN Summit 2025 is set for November 3-5 in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia / full item
• Malaysia's semicon talent gap: "The country is needing around 50,000 skilled engineers, yet universities are producing barely 5,000 graduates annually." / full item
• Cambodia: Vietnam's Viettel IDC data center and cloud computing provider launches Vcloudia brand in Cambodia, its first step towards creating an SEA infrastructure network / full item
"Taipei City council has come under fire after admitting that a robot dog it bought to help patrol city streets... was made by a Chinese company linked to the Chinese military." / full item
• Malaysia: "SD Guthrie Bhd, the world’s biggest oil palm planter by acreage, is positioning itself to tap into the data-center boom as it looks to develop a green-energy powered industrial park..." / full item
• South Korea: LG's IT services arm unveils 2 employee-efficiency agentic AIs geared to analyze workflows, coordinate multi-system tasks, and boost decision-making / full item
• Myanmar: TrueMoney Myanmar partners AYA Pay Mobile Wallet, operated by AYA Bank, for remittance service facilitating 'cost-free' money transfers from Thailand to Myanmar / full item
• Laos will launch a trial version of its proposed Digital Arrival Registration system for all foreign passport holders / full item
• India: Olee Space secures $3M with focus on photonics and defense, working in quantum-encrypted communications, and directed energy weapons / full item
• "KuCoin has announced that it will be the first global crypto exchange to support Thailand's G-Token program, a government initiative to issue tokenised sovereign bonds." / full item
• Digital payments in Indonesia: "...total digital transactions, including internet and mobile banking, reached 4.44 billion transactions, marking a 45 percent annual increase..." / full item
• South Korea's Rebellions chipmaker to establish a Saudi Arabia subsidiary, targeting the Middle East sovereign AI market / full item
• Vietnam's tech growth challenges: "We cannot compete head-to-head in ultra-advanced semiconductors, which require tens of billions of dollars and decades of R&D..." / full item
• Cambodia: Government inks MoU with China's Huawei for energy sector technology / full item
• Australia: 'BYD among five Chinese EV brands not complying with repair laws' / full item
• Vietnam: A quick look at the National Science, Technology, and Digital Innovation Exhibition in Hanoi, showcasing Vietnam's humanoid robots, unmanned aerial vehicles and other tech / full item
• Malaysia: 400 arrested during a scam call centre raid, with police scouring five floors of a commercial building / full item
• Japan's Mitsubishi Corp'n is dropping plans for three sea-based wind projects 'due to material changes in the macroeconomic environment' / full item
• Japan's SBI Holdings enters JV with Singapore's Startale crypto infra provider, aiming to launch a comprehensive on-chain trading platform for tokenized stocks and real-world assets / full item
• "...TSMC is removing Chinese chipmaking equipment from its leading-edge 2nm fabs to guard against potential U.S. restrictions that could disrupt production...." / full item
"...officials are worried a Vietnamese tungsten mine and refinery may come under Chinese control, potentially hampering access to a major source of the critical mineral..." / full item
In wider-world technology news:
» 'US whistleblower alleges Dep't of Gov't Efficiency - DOGE - uploaded 'a live copy of the country’s Social Security information in a cloud environment that circumvents oversight' / full item
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And here's the link to the LinkedIn edition of Asia's Tech News, Weekly to August 30th:
https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/asias-tech-news-weekly-august-30th-2025-startup-news-asia-5l8fc/