Asia's tech news, weekly: June 27th 2023
Semiconductors in India, Alibaba in Europe, Australian cybersecurity, SpaceX & Indonesia, Singapore and digital assets, Taiwan's Digital Minister, China and lithium...
• Japan adopts its first space security blueprint, aiming to better utilize the frontier for defense purposes over the next 10 years, responding to increasing military use of space by China and Russia
• Indonesia: Musk's SpaceX launched the country's largest telecoms satellite from US in $540M project to connect remote corners of the archipelago's population of 280 million to the internet
• China: JD e-commerce giant sets 20-year plan for multiple new businesses to net $140BN revenue and $10BN profit
India: "...3 investment decisions will create a minimum of 80K jobs directly...and indirectly the numbers could be much higher...it will be a catalyst to the overall electronics and semiconductor ecosystem..."
• Japan Post Bank unveils plans to invest $7BN into the country's startups, using nationwide postal network of 24000 outlets to scout for promising businesses
• Australia: Gov't has published the Critical Minerals Strategy 2023–2030, setting out a vision for growing Australia's critical minerals sector
• Alibaba Group to make Europe top priority in bid to grow platforms and presence outside China, with European version of TMall e-commerce marketplace in the pipeline
• Taiwan's Industrial Technology Research Institute's moves towards becoming a partner to the United Kingdom on advanced tech and their supply chains, including those for semiconductors
• China: CATL to invest $1.4BN in building 2 lithium plants in Bolivia, aiming for 200K tons annually and with investment rising to near $10BN
• Australia: Air Force Commander to lead federal government cybersecurity incident response efforts as inaugural national cybersecurity coordinator, commencing in July
"While buying or selling high-end US chips is not illegal in China, US export restrictions have created a de facto underground market with vendors keen not to draw scrutiny from either US or Chinese authorities."
• India: US chipmaker Micron to establish $2.75BN semiconductor testing and assembly facility in Gujarat, with ground to be broken later this year
• Thailand: GHL, major SEA payments service, partners China's Alipay+ to enable cross-border e-payments, initially looking at payments from tourists visiting from China, Malaysia, South Korea and Malaysia
• South Korea: Seoul to build 'Seoul Unicorn Startup Hub' by 2030, set to be world-largest startup campus, with $1.3M assigned under Seoul Startup Policy 2030 for construction and investments
• South Korea's KakaoBank inks MOU with Thailand's SCBX on acquiring a license for internet-only bank services in Thailand
• Australia: ElectraLith unveils lithium extraction system using brine, allowing extraction from salt lakes, mine tailings and more without chemicals, delivering cleaner, cheaper EV batteries
• Indonesia: Amartha peer-to-peer lending platform gains $100M from US-based debt provider, Community Investment Management, focusing on MSME working capital loans
Cyber: "This is the broadest cyber espionage campaign known to be conducted by a China-nexus threat actor since the mass exploitation of Microsoft Exchange in early 2021..."
• Taiwan: DeepMentor leverages AI tech and industrial computers, building its own ChatGPT-like service; PicSee uses ChatGPT to boost content creator work, write headlines and social media posts...
• China: CellX cultivated meat firm gains $6.5M Series A+ funding in pursuit of production at low cost and high scale
• Japan: Animoca Brands partners Mitsui trading firm for Web3 in Japan, gaining access to Mitsui assets spanning industrial and consumer firms, partner and customer networks
• South Korea: 7-Eleven to offer deliveries via Neubility self-driving robots, trialing in select areas in southern Seoul in October
• Taiwan: bolttech insurance-tech firm partners with Taiwan Mobile to focus on easy travel insurance options for users of the telco's mobile app
• Singapore: Monetary Authority issues White Paper proposing standards for use of digital assets including CBDCs, tokenised bank deposits and, potentially, stablecoins
"Based on a survey of how widespread entrepreneurship is across business managers — Australia was ranked 62nd of 64 countries. The credibility of managers was a little better at 46th."
• Malaysian and Asia-Pacific tech startups shortlisted for Petronas FutureTech
• Indonesia's GoTo-backed Go-Ventures raises $240M 2nd fund, rebrands as Argor Capital, looks to back B2B marketplaces, consumer and enviro-tech, fintech and SME digital transformation platforms
• Taiwan: A podcast interview with Audrey Tang, Digital Minister of Taiwan, on social innovation, Taiwan's thriving democracy and more
• Cambodia: Gov't rolls out Phase III of Online Business Registration Platform, integrating 12 state bodies, in part to streamline registration and procedures for licences, permits and certificates
• South Korea: An intro to inDJ, AI algorithm-backed music recommendations drawing on data from users' devices like smartwatches and smartphones to suggest music, channels and broadcasts
• North Asia Big Bang Beauty Tech & Innovation Challenge launched by France's L’Oréal, looking for new beauty products and experiences for China, South Korea and Japan
Market-driven journalism: "...[this] bad idea is behind so much of the tragic state of journalism right now. It’s what gave us Fox News and Tucker Carlson; it’s what’s killing your local newspaper; and it’s even threatening nonprofit outlets..."
• China's Sinochem, Pirelli's largest shareholder, curbed by Italian gov’t, blocking Chinese government access to sensitive chip tech
• South Korea: Ministry of SMEs & Startups launched Regional Angel Investment Fund to boost initial investments in non-metro areas of the country
• Australia: New South Wales to open state's first International Landing Pad by year-end in bid to attract tech firms from overseas
• India: Ministry of Earth Sciences awards France's Eviden $100M contract to deliver 2 supercomputers for weather modelling and climate research, aiming to triple computing capacity
• New Zealand: Cogo, carbon footprint management fintech, raises NZ$1M with services to banks, help bank customers measure and reduce their carbon impact
• Cambodia: The Rising Giants podcast looks at the venture capital scene and startup ecosystem in the Kingdom, with input from Monk's Hill Ventures VC, Jeremy Au
"Social media may be digital, but its effects can be just as damaging as tobacco, lead paint, or air pollution... There is no reason to treat social media any differently."
In other news…
» International Monetary Fund is working on a global platform for CBDCs to facilitate seamless cross-border transactions and avoid 'fragmented national propositions'
» Tesla tech takes another step to becoming EV charging standard with EV maker Rivian to join General Motors and Ford in use of Tesla charging network
» Compact ramjet engine may make drones supersonic, delivering thrust at over 5x speed of sound, more than Mach 5
» Deutsche Bank, Germany's largest, seeks regulatory approval to provide custody services for digital assets including cryptocurrencies
» US Dep’t of Justice announced creation of cyber-focused section within National Security Division, prioritizing a coordinated response to national security cyber threats
» US Dep't of Energy to loan $9.2BN to JV between Ford Motor Co and South Korea's SK On Co battery maker for 3 new factories in Kentucky and Tennessee
» "Stablecoins and decentralized finance are likely to become the next targets in the US Securities & Exchange Commission's crackdown on the crypto industry, Berenberg [investment bank] said..."
"On 2 separate occasions last year, railroad cars carrying tens of thousands of kilograms...to collectively make at least 80M rounds of ammunition - rumbled across the China-Russia border..."