Asia's tech news, weekly: October 17th 2023
Indonesian fish-tech, Huawei & open-source, Japan & semicon lithography, NZ microalgae protein, Korean LLM semiconductors, digital wallets in Australia...
• Japan: Canon announces 'nanoimprint lithography' machine, claimed to be capable of producing parts down to 5nm today, with refinement potentially producing 2nm parts
• Hydrogen Headstart program launched by Australian Renewable Energy Agency, aiming to develop the hydrogen industry, catalyse clean energy and connect to global supply chains
• Pacific Islands: US South Pacific Scholarship Program is open for candidates from Cook Islands, Fiji, Kiribati, Nauru, Niue, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tonga, Tuvalu and Vanuatu
• China: Huawei digs into open-source via KubeCon China 2023 with sights on Linux-based CAMARA and ONAP open source projects in telecoms, APIs, network mgmt and more
"With advancements in AI, several Chinese companies are now venturing into the world of 'griefbots' and digital avatars, which help reconnect with lost loved ones. But experts warn of..."
• Indonesia's new e-commerce law 'imposes a minimum price of $100 for transactions involving imported goods on online marketplaces', treating them the same as locally-purchased goods
• Western Australian government sees business case for new hydrogen electrolyser facilities, finding a 2 GW facility could add Au$200M per annum to local economy
• Indonesia's East Ventures VC and Korea's SV Investment join for new $100M fund looking to bridge wider SE Asia and South Korea
• Philippines: Kita agri-tech startup closes oversubscribed $3M seed round with focus on digitizing agriculture supply chains from farm to retailer
• India: Panasonic units partner 100XVC seed-stage investor to launch Panasonic Ignition accelerator, focusing on energy management solutions for commercial and residential applications
• South Korea: rebellions, an AI-driven fabless semiconductor firm, to co-develop next-gen semiconductor for super-large language models with Samsung Electronics at 4-nm scale
• Japan: Terra Motors to install 1000 fast-charge stations for EVs at Kojima shops across 18 months, near twice the current number of gas stations
• Spain plans $527M to grow 5G networks in rural areas with suppliers considered 'high risk' to be excluded; Huawei objects, claiming the move is politically motivated
• Australia: Gov't to intro laws enabling central bank to oversee digital wallets including Google Pay and Apple Pay, subjecting wallet services to same scrutiny as credit cards
Quantum technology's current state-of-play: "Companies used to do R&D, and basically now they just do D,” Campbell said. “All of quantum computing right now is still R [research]...”
• An intro to 3 ASEAN startups presenting at Hong Kong Electronics Fair, working on IoT wearables, semiconductors and 'nanomaterials', and AI-backed 3D printing
• New Zealand: NewFish gains backing from Norway with nutritional supplements derived from microalgae, focusing on marine whey protein
• European Union to open anti-subsidy investigations on Chinese steelmakers, building on EV investigations announced last month, with both actions citing China's gov't-subsidized competitive practices
• India: Uber and NASSCOM tech industry group partner for Uber Sustainovate, seeking sustainable mobility solutions
• Australia: West Tech Fest is set for December 4-8 in Perth, WA, bringing together startups and the tech community
• Indonesia: An interview introduction to eFishery fisheries management startup
• Australia's SeaStock makes finals in MassChallenge Switzerland 2023 with feed ingredients to limit livestock methane emissions, developed from native Australian seaweeds
• China: Ofilm camera modules firm, previously an Apple supplier but dropped due to tech blacklisting, takes tech skills to Huawei Mate 60 as a contractor
• Vietnam: An overview of the country's moves into blockchain tech, via e27
• China: HaomoAI, autonomous drive-tech firm backed by Great Wall Motor, unveils low-cost Advanced Driver Assistance System kits to enable autonomous driving on highways
HaomoAI: "The HP170, with a price range from RMB 3,000 to RMB 3,999 ($410 to $550), offers autonomous highway driving capabilities, automatic emergency braking rated five-star by E-NACP, and short-distance memory parking. It achieves it with computing power of..."
• Malaysia: Automotive High-Technology Valley project formalised with agreement inked between Malaysia's DRB-Hicom conglomerate and China's Geely automaker
• Philippines: Singapore's Account Labs launches UniPass Wallet allowing users to connect with Google Accounts for cross-border remittances and payments using stablecoins
• A brief intro to the 12 finalists for Ocean Impact Pitchfest 2023, working on kelp-based building materials, circular economy use of plastic, blockchain traceability and more
• China: Public-facing generative AI model training data regulation proposed, with data sources containing 'more than 5% of illegal and harmful information' to be blacklisted
• Singapore: A brief intro to 4 solutions to present at the TechInnovation 2023 event, spanning green hydrogen, energy management and more
• Australia: An intro to ALIAVIA Ventures, backing women-founded startups in Australia and announcing the US close of its first $13.5M fund
• Cambodia Securities Exchange and Cambodia Securities launch SMEs & Startups Go Public program to develop the Kingdom's stock market sector
• Philippines: An intro to Parallax cross-border payments firm, focused on faster and cheaper international payments for remote workers
• Indonesia's eFishery aquaculture firm to expand to India in Q1 2024, alongside launching blockchain-based cooperative for fish farmers to connect elements across fish and shrimp farming supply chain
• Australia: An intro to Stacked Farm, planning large indoor farms in each capital city, expanding on Queensland facility
"Stacked Farm has already built a 5,400 square-meter facility in Arundel on the Gold Coast of Queensland... Later this year, it will begin construction on a new 7,200 square meter facility in Melbourne."
• New Zealand: FTN Motion electric motorcycle startup to launch flagship Streetdog bike in Australia in 2024, with 80km range, 50km/h top speed, removable battery and more
• Kazakhstan: TikTok CEO makes inroads with Kazakh President at Digital Bridge Forum, aiming to build company presence on foundation of TikTok StartUp Academy project
• Australia: West Tech Fest is set for December 4-8 in Perth, WA, bringing together startups and the tech community
• Circular raises $7.6M, providing consumers in Australia and Singapore with premium tech device access via subscription plans
• Thailand and Taiwan firms have satellites placed in orbit by European Space Agency 'ride-sharing' launcher Vega with other payloads from Spain, Austria and Estonia
• Self-driving truck firm, Plus, splits China and US arms in bid to insulate operations from US-PRC tensions and tightening regulatory oversight in China
• Thailand: Eazy Digital raises $1M with SaaS platform automating insurance sales and processes for agents & brokers, with sights on Malaysia and Philippines
• Cambodia: An overview of the opportunities and challenges in the Kingdom's agri-tech sector
• A brief overview of the recent Vietnam Startup Summit in Japan 2023
In wider-world technology news:
» Amazon sent first 2 Kuiper internet satellites into orbit in step toward a constellation of more than 3000 sats, in part-bid to compete with SpaceX Starlink
» UAE Space Agency's Space Startup Pitch Competition closes soon, October 19th, seeking sustainability and climate-related applications
» An overview of Kazakhstan's recent Digital Bridge 2023 event in Astana - over 250 speakers, more than 300 startups and 100+ VCs from 15 countries
» UAE's North Star 2023 opened this month in Dubai, announced as the world's largest startup exhibition and conference
» Sweden's Luvly, making flat-pack small electric cars with swappable batteries
» Dubai's Blockchain Life 2023 Conference is set for October 24-25, with more than 80 speakers scheduled
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