Technology

An anti-graft crackdown targeting the China Integrated Circuit Industry Investment Fund is rattling the entire semiconductor industry. What is the "Big Fund" and how does it work? What are its most recognised and controversial projects and how did it play a role as a fund of funds? And what’s the role of Sino IC Leasing Co. in all this?

China’s Big Fund has come under scrutiny following a series of high-profile corruption investigations involving key persons in the chip industry. The CHIPS Act was also recently signed into law in the US to counter China, which makes things even more difficult for the sector. Zaobao correspondent Chen Jing speaks to industry experts to find out how the Big Fund can come out of this crisis.

While China has accelerated its push to build the infrastructure and to promote 5G among telcos and subscribers, it still faces a shortage of exciting new 5G applications that will draw in a constant stream of consumers or find wider industrial use. Amid a hostile external environment, it also faces some challenges in rolling out 5G and other advanced digital technologies through the Digital Silk Road. Nonetheless, it plans to go full steam ahead.

As governments across the world grapple with ways to regulate platform algorithms, China has pushed ahead with rolling out a set of provisions regulating algorithm-generated recommendations for internet information services. Chinese tech giants have taken prompt adaptive actions in response, but a lack of consumer awareness, prevailing attitudes and a digital divide may undermine the authorities’ efforts.

China has made use of several advanced Industry 4.0 technologies in the fight against Covid-19, especially during the recent Shanghai lockdown. While it remains to be seen if companies will have the capacity to accelerate the production of robots and drones for other uses, their potential has been clearly showcased.

With China's accelerated efforts to become a great space power, including opening up its space sector to private firms, Western developed countries worry that China's military-civil fusion (MCF) strategy may see technology developed in the commercial sector being used to boost China's military space power in the future. Are these fears justified? Japanese academic Masaaki Yatsuzuka looks into the issue.

In the second of a seven-part Lianhe Zaobao-Business Times series on China and ASEAN, Zaobao senior correspondent Chew Boon Leong looks at the strategies adopted and challenges faced by China’s tech companies in Southeast Asia.

Masayoshi Son, billionaire head of SoftBank Group Corp. may finally be able to push ahead with launching a US IPO for semiconductor and software design giant Arm Ltd., after wresting control of Arm China back from ousted CEO Allen Wu. It was no mean feat and a saga of twists and turns. But even now, some questions of Arm China’s shareholding and business remain unanswered.

An alleged ban of Tesla cars from Beidaihe, the site of Communist Party leaders’ annual retreat, shows the fangs behind the smiles in the Chinese government’s attitude towards US company Tesla. Lianhe Zaobao’s China Desk has the analysis.