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Yahoo
27 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Analysis-China urges caution - and speed - on assisted-driving technology
(Reuters) -China's automakers are outpacing foreign rivals in their push for assisted-driving technology, eager to woo motorists hungry for rapid innovation. Yet, Beijing has a nuanced message for its rising stars: move fast - but be careful. Regulators this week have been finalising new safety rules for driver-assistance systems as Beijing sharpens scrutiny of the technology following an accident involving a Xiaomi SU7 sedan in March. That incident killed three occupants when their car crashed seconds after the driver took control from the assisted-driving system. While Chinese officials want to prevent carmakers from overselling the capabilities of such systems, they are also threading the needle between innovation and safety to ensure their automakers don't lose out to U.S. and European rivals. Setting clear regulations for assisted-driving tech without slowing its advancement could give China's industry an edge over global competitors, analysts say. This approach is in stark contrast to the U.S. market, where companies pursuing autonomous cars have expressed frustration that the government has not implemented a regulatory system to validate and test the technology. Markus Muessig, auto industry lead at Accenture Greater China, said China's regulators and industries have long followed former Chinese leader Deng Xiaoping's "feel the stones to cross the river" philosophy. The expression means to steadily explore new, uncertain technologies, which "has proven very successful for this market," he said. Current Chinese regulations allow systems that automatically steer, brake and accelerate under certain conditions while requiring the driver to stay engaged. For that reason, marketing terms such as "smart" and "autonomous" are banned. The new rules will focus on hardware and software designs that monitor a driver's state of awareness and their capacity to take control in time. To do this, regulators enlisted Chinese automaker Dongfeng and tech giant Huawei to help draft new rules and have sought public input over a month-long period, ending Friday. At the same time, government officials are pressing Chinese automakers to rapidly deploy even more-advanced systems, known as Level 3 assisted-driving, which allow drivers to take their eyes off the road in certain situations. Level 3 is the midway point on the industry's autonomous-driving scale, from basic features like cruise control at Level 1, to self-driving capability under all conditions at Level 5. The Chinese government had tapped state-owned Changan to be the first automaker to begin Level 3 validation tests in April, but the plan was paused after the Xiaomi crash, said a source familiar with the regulatory planning process. Beijing still hopes to resume such tests this year and approve the country's first Level 3 car in 2026, the source said. China's Ministry of Industry of Information Technology and Changan did not respond to requests for comment. Xiaomi has said it is cooperating with a police investigation into the accident. Driver-assistance systems are seen by industry analysts as the next big battleground in China's hyper-competitive car market. Over the past decade, Level 2 systems have proliferated in China, including Tesla's Full Self Driving system, as well as the Xiaomi feature involved in the March crash. The capability ranges from basic vehicle following on highways to handling most tasks on busy urban roads, under driver supervision. Automakers have pushed down hardware costs to levels that allow them to offer Level 2 features at little or no extra cost. China's No. 1 automaker BYD has rolled out its "God's Eye" assisted-driving software for free across its entire product line-up. More than 60% of new cars sold in China this year will have Level 2 features, according to an estimate from research firm Canalys. GLOBAL RACE In its push for assisted-driving technology, and ultimately fully self-driving cars, Beijing is seeking to help homegrown carmakers just as it supported China's rapid rise to become the world's electric-car juggernaut. Last year, China's government lined up nine automakers for public tests to advance the adoption of self-driving cars. In their Level 3 push, Chinese regulators also are upping the regulatory ante by holding automakers and parts suppliers liable if their systems fail and cause an accident. Legislation passed in Britain last year adopted a similar approach to liability. At the Shanghai auto show in April, several companies touted progress toward rolling out vehicles with Level 3 capability. Tech giant Huawei said it is ready to introduce a Level 3 system for highways after simulated testing of more than 600 million kilometers. It showed a video of drivers and passengers singing karaoke as the car drove itself. Geely's Zeekr brand debuted the luxury SUV 9X, featuring Level 3 software the automaker said is ready for mass production in the third quarter if regulations allow. Zeekr is also applying to be part of a second batch of automakers to undergo government Level 3 validation tests. Meanwhile, traditional automakers at the Shanghai auto show such as Mercedes-Benz and Volkswagen said they were pushing their most advanced assisted-driving features but stopped short of crossing the Level 3 liability line. Getting there is a challenge as they are already at a cost disadvantage against their Chinese rivals, analysts say. Mercedes-Benz CTO Markus Schaefer told Reuters that while chip and computing power prices have fallen, the additional safety required for Level 3 will cost much more. "It's a moving target," Schaefer said.
Yahoo
32 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Unlocking China's Potential: 5 High-Growth Hong Kong Stocks You Can Buy as SGX SDRs
China's economy may be in a challenging situation amidst the trade wars, but selective sectors such as consumer technology and clean energy continue to deliver strong growth. Now, Singapore investors can directly access this upside through Singapore Depository Receipts (SDRs). SDRs are a newly-launched initiative by SGX that introduces high-quality Hong Kong (HK) and Thai-listed companies closer to home. From industry disruptors to established leaders, here are five high-growth HK stocks you can buy as SDRs to unlock China's evolving potential. Tencent is a leading technology and internet company. The company has a variety of internet-based service offerings such as games and social networks like Weixin. In the first quarter of 2025 (1Q 2025), Tencent reported a revenue growth of 13% year-on-year (YoY) to RMB 180 billion. The tech giant also saw a gross profit growth of 20% YoY to RMB 100.5 billion. One of the strongest reasons for this growth is due to its domestic games segment, which saw a 24% YoY growth in revenue. This growth was attributed to its existing games such as HoK and VALORANT showing a strong and growing user base. Moreover, new games like Delta Force show promising earnings potential with its daily average users exceeding 12 million in April. Tencent's earnings model is poised to capitalise on the artificial intelligence (AI) wave. The firm captures the AI trend by using its surplus earnings to reinvest in AI. A strong example of this reinvestment in AI can be seen in the developments for Weixin where AI search engines such as Deepseek R1 and AI coding assistant for mini programs development were integrated into the platform. The marketing services division also saw year-on-year revenue improvements from the usage of AI to create better quality and personalised advertisements to users, thereby increasing user engagement. BYD is a dominant global player in the electric vehicle (EV) sector and has witnessed aggressive international expansion, especially in emerging markets. In 1Q 2025, BYD reported a revenue growth of 36.4% YoY to over RMB 170 billion. The firm also saw a significant increase in net profits to over RMB 9 billion, double that of 2024. This boost in net profit can be attributed to strategic developments such as its Dipilot advancements for intelligence driving. These advancements include mapless city piloting, improved parking assistance, and built in AI chatbots. In 2024, the management also announced the release of its new luxury model, Denza. Denza includes full-stack independent and intelligent-electronic technologies from BYD's existing e3 platform to its newer God's Eye system. These more sophisticated inclusions helps BYD expand its reach to the luxury EV market on top of its already dominant foothold in the affordable mass market segment. There was also strong geographical diversification made by BYD with auto shows and store openings in Latin America and Europe. These expansion efforts will help to hedge against Trump's trade tariffs, allowing BYD to maintain its earnings growth momentum. Xiaomi is one of the largest consumer electronics and smart hardware companies globally. In 1Q 2025, Xiaomi showed a strong revenue growth of 47.4% YoY to RMB 111.3 billion. The company also reported a 64.5% YoY growth in adjusted net profit. The segment which showed the greatest growth was smartphones and AI Internet of things (IoT) with a 22.8% YoY revenue growth to RMB 92.7 billion. Xiaomi's global smartphone market share grew by 0.3 percentage points (ppt) YoY to 14.1% internationally and 4.7 ppt YoY to 18.8% domestically. For the company's IoT segment, smart large home appliances saw a surge in revenue of 113.8% YoY. In 1Q 2025, the tech leader also unveiled its premium flagship processor, XRING O1. This processor will be inserted into its new smartphones, smartwatches and tablets. This innovation increases Xiaomi's competitiveness by delivering greater efficiency along with increased capabilities. For 1Q 2025,Xiaomi also saw promising growth in its EV offerings with the SU7 Series with an 8.9% quarter-on-quarter growth in deliveries to 75,869. Additionally, the firm's research and development (R&D) expenses are growing at a compound annual growth rate of 27%. The increasing R&D expenses points at Xiaomi's commitment to innovation and to be future-proof. Alibaba is a global tech powerhouse specialising in e-commerce, digital media and cloud computing. For Alibaba's fiscal year 2025 (FY2025) ending on 31 March 2025, Alibaba reported a revenue growth of 7% YoY to RMB 236.5 billion. This high growth can be attributed to its Taobao and Tmall Group as well as its cloud intelligence segment. In FY2025, Taobao and Tmall Group's customer management revenue grew 12% YoY to RMB 71.1 billion. This rise in revenue is due to higher take rates from software service fees and increased adoption of Quanzhantui, an AI-powered marketing tool. Moving forward, Alibaba is planning to invest in AI-driven customer experiences and improve its 88VIP loyalty programme base to increase customer retention. Meanwhile, Alibaba's cloud intelligence revenue rose by 18% YoY in FY2025 to RMB 30.1 billion. This upturn was from a triple-digit growth in AI-related product adoption across industries. In the long term, the firm is committed to invest in next-generation AI infrastructure with the launch of Qwen3 model series and open source initiatives. Meituan is a technology-driven retail company specialising in supply and demand delivery chain infrastructure. In 1Q 2025, Meituan saw revenue growth of 18.1% YoY and an operating profit growth of 102.8% YoY. Meituan's core local commerce segment experienced the highest revenue growth of 17.8% YoY to RMB 64.3 billion. This growth is driven by its food delivery offerings such as Pin Hao Fan for affordable meals and Shen Qiang Shou, limited-time flash sales. These offerings help cater to the price-sensitive demand of different customers. In 1Q 2025, Meituan Instashopping experienced growth from the high demand in non-food retail products especially in lower-tier markets. Meituan also announced its 30-minute online order delivery, which enhances the service's reliability and customer experience. In late March 2025, the form released its Meituan Membership programme with tiered benefits to increase customer engagement and encourage spending. The company's overseas expansion was also successful, with Keeta being one of the preferred food delivery platforms in Saudi Arabia. In the future, Meituan plans to continue aiding merchants and couriers on its platform, increasing its product offerings and leveraging AI to improve user experience. By investing in these high-growth stocks via SGX's Hong Kong SDRs, you can diversify your portfolio and capture a slice of China's dynamic growth story. Don't miss this opportunity to gain exposure to some of the most promising sectors shaping China's future. Start exploring these SDRs today and position your portfolio for long-term success. We've found 5 SGX-listed dividend stocks with strong track records in turbulent markets. If you want consistency in an uncertain world, start here. Follow us on Facebook, Instagram and Telegram for the latest investing news and analyses! Disclosure: Gabriel Lim does not own shares of any of the companies mentioned. The post Unlocking China's Potential: 5 High-Growth Hong Kong Stocks You Can Buy as SGX SDRs appeared first on The Smart Investor. 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Bloomberg
33 minutes ago
- Bloomberg
ChatGPT's Mental Health Costs Are Adding Up
Something troubling is happening to our brains as artificial intelligence platforms become more popular. Studies are showing that professional workers who use ChatGPT to carry out tasks might lose critical thinking skills and motivation. People are forming strong emotional bonds with chatbots, sometimes exacerbating feelings of loneliness. And others are having psychotic episodes after talking to chatbots for hours each day. The mental health impact of generative AI is difficult to quantify in part because it is used so privately, but anecdotal evidence is growing to suggest a broader cost that deserves more attention from both lawmakers and tech companies who design the underlying models. Meetali Jain, a lawyer and founder of the Tech Justice Law project, has heard from more than a dozen people in the past month who have 'experienced some sort of psychotic break or delusional episode because of engagement with ChatGPT and now also with Google Gemini." Jain is lead counsel in a lawsuit against that alleges its chatbot manipulated a 14-year-old boy through deceptive, addictive, and sexually explicit interactions, ultimately contributing to his suicide. The suit, which seeks unspecified damages, also alleges that Alphabet Inc.'s Google played a key role in funding and supporting the technology interactions with its foundation models and technical infrastructure.
