Asia's tech news, weekly: September 19th 2023
Japan-India semiconductors, China-Saudi datacenters, Singapore electric cargo vessels, TSMC server-on-a-chip, India's Adani & green hydrogen, Indian 3D metal printing...
• South Korea: Hyundai unit partners 60Hz, energy-tech firm working on 'virtual power plants', networks of small power-producing and storage devices that can be pooled to feed the grid
• China's Shanghai Lumaotong Group and China Mobile ink MoU with Saudi Call ICT service provider for data centers in Saudi Arabia, including in Neom mega-city project
• Sri Lanka gov't email network hit by ransomware, wiping data from thousands of accounts, including those of gov't officials, made worse by lack of backups from May to August
• Singapore: GlobalFoundries opens $4BN, 23,000-square meter facility to meet projected semiconductor demand, manufacturing chips designed by global firms
Japan: 'Rapidus envisions a chipmaking cluster spanning coast to coast, with easy access to multiple ports...'
• Indonesia's deputy trade minister: "Social media and social commerce cannot be combined... Revisions to the trade regulations that are currently underway will firmly and explicitly ban this..."
• Indian Space Research Org'n, Amazon Web Services and India's IN-SPACe partner for cloud computing resources, support and tools for startups and research via AWS Activate program
• World-first AI-focused NR1 'server-on-a-chip' delivered to TSMC production facility by NeuReality, following validation of chip design
• China launches 3rd classified, likely military-use, remote-imaging Yaogan 33 series satellite, stating aims across land surveys, crop yield study, disaster relief
• Indian Institute of Tech Kanpur and Uni of Wollongong gain Australia-India Cyber & Critical Tech Partnership Grant to focus on shared Indo-Pacific issues
• Taiwan: Toshiba-backed Photon Taiwan Fund invested in a projected 120MW solar power plant, aiming to generate 'green energy' for use by as-yet unnamed semiconductor manufacturer
• Japanese public and private entities to develop Canada supply chains for EVs, encompassing mineral extraction and processing, and battery production, with Canadian gov't support
• India's Adani inks JV with Japan's Kowa conglomerate for green hydrogen products in Japan, Taiwan and Hawaii, with up to $50BN set for 10-year investment in hydrogen market
"The Answer to Starlink Is More Starlinks... Elon Musk has become a national-security problem that the government can’t solve. Maybe private industry can."
• South Korea: Panmnesia chip firm backed with IP on Compute Express Link tech which allows data center operators to pool devices including AI chips, processors and memory
• China adds Tibet observatory to VLBI network, joining facilities in Beijing, Shanghai, Urumqi and Kunming, boosting support for launches, moon missions and deep-space probes
• India: A look at IDR's 'nano drones', 200 grams in weight with 30-minute fly-time, top speed of 80kmph, and AI-backed ability to identify 80 different objects
• Singapore: Hydromover electric cargo vessel to start sea trials and likely launch by year-end, featuring 25-ton cargo capacity and quick-swap battery tech
• Singapore's Temasek-backed Vertex Ventures Southeast Asia and India closes 5th fund at $541M, with a $50M commitment to back women-led startups
• Australia: NAB bank proposes gov't-set cybersecurity standards and requirements for cloud service providers and third-party services
• China: Ant Group launches ZAN, a suite of blockchain products and services aimed at both institutional and individual Web3 developers
• Indonesia has proposed a critical minerals trade deal under the US Inflation Reduction Act, positioning for 'green subsidies'
"...given China and the US are Hong Kong's main sources of economic and financial backing, it remains to be seen if HK's web3 push is a bold move...or a policy out of step with the times."
• China's WM Motor EV maker loses $2BN Hong Kong IPO rescue, now to be purchased by Kaixin Auto, a luxury used car retail platform
• Japan and India's growing semiconductor industry partnerships, with both nations pursuing tech self-reliance and innovation-driven growth
• Hong Kong: Chimbusco Pan Nation Petro-Chemical, HK's largest shipping fuel supplier, announces first use of low-carbon biofuel for shipping
• South Korea: Gov't unveils 'Comprehensive Startup Korea Plan' to boost innovation with funding for deep tech, global expansion support, and private sector-led approach
• Singapore: Nanyang Tech University, Nat'l University of Singapore, and state-owned Temasek to invest $55M to boost tech commercialisation, developing a common IP licensing framework
• Hong Kong: Buyandship cross-border platform raised $10M Series B, enabling consumers to purchase products globally via unified services platform, overseas centres and more
• HSBC Malaysia unveils $106M HSBC New Economy Fund to provide funding solutions for tech-led businesses emerging startups from Series B stage onwards
• Indonesia: Gov't in August announced 47 critical minerals designated for strategic industry development
SEA's fintech future?: "...we reckon that Tik-Tok, which is indispensable to many of its users' lives, could be a real threat to both GoTo's and Shopee's e-commerce businesses."
• Japan External Trade Org'n preps for launch of Global Startup Acceleration Program, aiming to boost overseas expansion of Japanese startups, with 100 startups selected to participate
• India: Eastern state of Odisha unveils Odisha Startup Yatra and Startup Xpress 2023, with goal of developing 5000 startups by 2025
• Philippines: Google partners gov't departments for training program to boost MSME digital skills, Digital Export Enablement Programme
• Australia: The Pitch applications are now open for November event for seed or early stage startups
• India: ThinkMetal raised $300K pre-seed funding with compact metal 3D printer, seeing opportunity in smaller machines producing smaller parts
• Australia: Personal data of more than 1M Dymocks customers stolen and published on the dark web
• Vietnam's ELSA English language learning platform raised $22.5M Series C, adding role-play scenario driven ELSA AI Tutor
• Indonesia: DELOS aquaculture startup raised $5.75M Series A with data-driven management system for shrimp farmers, claiming production lift from 50-150%
Samsung & semiconductors: "...once TSMC joins us in the race for two-nanometre technology, Samsung will lead the way. Within five years, we can surpass TSMC."
• Thailand: Kasikornbank launches $100M Web3 and AI fund, with access to corporate resources and bank’s partners
• Japan: Gov't to set dedicated and priority lanes outside Tokyo, preparing for level 4 autonomous driving and aiming for similar lanes nationwide once safety is assured
• Philippines: An intro to Make-roscope, keychain microscope connecting to phone or tablet cameras, capable of 125-400x magnification
• Australia: EnergyLab unveils 13 startups for Climate Tech Charge program, working on green hydrogen, plastic and biomass treatment, building materials and more
Philippines: A video chat with SariSuki's CEO, platform connecting users to local farms selling fresh produce, 1 of 9 Filipino firms on Forbes Asia's 100 to Watch list
In wider-world technology news:
» Saudi Ma’aden mining firm and King Abdullah Uni of Science & Tech to co-invest in Lithium Infinity, a startup extracting lithium from unconventional sources including seawater
» German gov't blocks Chinese firm's bid for full takeover of KLEO Connect, a satellites firm broadly similar to Starlink
» Google's Jigsaw rolls out standalone VPN code, allowing devs to build VPN service directly into apps as method to bypass authoritarian gov't internet censorship
» European Commission launches anti-subsidy investigation into China EV imports, citing 'huge state subsidies' and past EU-China experience with solar
» Google Cloud partners Orderly Network Web3 firm for decentralized finance developer tools, with Orderly becoming a DeFi infrastructure provider via Google Cloud Marketplace
» NVIDIA joins investment in Enfabrica, US firm working on networking chips more effectively for better utilization in artificial intelligence data centers
Artificial Intelligence & disinformation: "BBC analysis showed YouTube recommends these 'bad science' videos to children alongside legitimate educational content."
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