Latest news with #commercialisation
South China Morning Post
2 days ago
- Automotive
- South China Morning Post
Robotaxis: Pony.ai sets mass production target with eye on overseas expansion
Chinese autonomous driving technology firm is gearing up to mass produce driverless cabs to make its robotaxis widely available and more affordable, as technological advancement helps shorten its path to commercialisation. The Guangzhou-based company – the only firm with approval to operate robotaxi services on the mainland's four most developed cities – is banking on an accelerated pace of commercialisation at home and abroad to achieve cost efficiency, according to Lou Tiancheng, co-founder and chief technology officer. 'We are anticipating a pickup in production [of robotaxis],' he said in an interview on the weekend. 'Over the past few years, we have solidified our tie-ups with carmakers to attest to the feasibility of building a large volume of driverless cabs.' would partner with local carmakers GAC and BAIC, and Toyota of Japan in production, and target a fleet of 1,000 robotaxis by the end of this year, he added. co-founder Lou Tiancheng speaks at a conference in Singapore on July 9. Photo: Reuters Nasdaq-listed received a permit to run its robotaxis in Shanghai's Pudong New Area last week. The permit allows the company to charge fares, pioneering the move in the nation's major commercial and financial hub. will initially operate its fleet in the Jinqiao and Huamu areas totalling a combined 40 sq km. That will be gradually expanded to other parts of Pudong, China's 1,400 sq km pioneer zone to showcase progress in building a modern socialist system.
Forbes
23-07-2025
- Business
- Forbes
EU-Wide Plan AimsTo Nudge Researchers Towards Startup Life
Fderico Menna, CEO of EIT Digital says Europe's ecosystems are fragmented Europe has a commercialisation problem. The continent is home to a great many world-class universities, but their record on converting laboratory research into successful startup and scaleup businesses is relatively poor when compared to their counterparts in the United States. It's not an easy problem to solve, but a new initiative by EIT Digital is hoping to encourage more academic researchers to explore commercial pathways for the IP they create. Established in 2010 and part funded by the E.U., EIT Digital's mission is to drive digital innovation while also supporting entrepreneurship in Europe. Its latest initiative - dubbed SPIN: RISE - aims to address what it describes as the 'research-to-market' gap. It's a bold statement of intent given the deep-seated issues that are preventing Europe from matching the levels of innovation seen in the U.S.. So what can reasonably be achieved? To find out more, I spoke to EIT Digital's CEO, Federico Menna. Under Exploited Research There is certainly a problem to be addressed. Towards the end of last year, former European Central Bank President Mario Draghi published a report on European competitiveness. One of the observations in a generally downbeat document was that much of the research generated by Europe's researchers remained unexploited. Indeed, only about a third of the patents granted by Europe's issuing body found their way to the marketplace. In other words, there are a lot of wasted opportunities. So why is Europe underperforming? According to Menna, there are a number of reasons, not least an outflow of talent. As he sees it, the US, China and Europe are fairly evenly balanced when it comes to nurturing technology talent. However, around 60% of Europe's technologists and entrepreneurs have opted to live and work in the U.S.. 'These talents are the ones who are pushing the technology forward, bringing the technology to the market and creating global players,' he says. Regulation can have a dampening effect. The European Union - often for very good reasons - is rather fond of regulating, but Menna says this can be counterproductive when it comes to the development and rollout of new technologies. Capital is also a problem, with European VCs tending to be relatively risk-averse. Then there is the reality of fragmentation. There is a European Single Market, but within that, there are 27 ecosystems, each with its own regulations and IP protection mechanisms. 'The support structures are there, but they don't connect with each other,' adds Menna. There is perhaps even more diversity around technology transfer, with rules, attitudes and enthusiasm varying significantly between universities. Collectively, all these factors act as a deterrent to entrepreneurship. Encouraging Entrepreneurship EIT Digital's approach to solving the problem is to work with university Technology Transfer Offices (TTOs) to identify research with commercial potential while providing entrepreneurial education for researchers. Menna says the idea is to create a template for all of the EU. 'The value of SPIN: RISE is that it brings the activities of TTOs and of entrepreneurial training to a higher level. We are trying to unify the approach across Europe without entering into the fragmentation of each individual member state.' How does this play out in practice? Menna describes SPIN:RISE as a pre-incubation program. 'The outcome of this is not a startup yet. The outcome is an entrepreneur or a researcher who is not quite an entrepreneur yet, but who is ready to take the next step. From there, we connect to our other programs, like Venture Incubation. That moves on to creating the company and getting the first investment.' The initiative is divided into two parts. The first is online and is to some extent focused on awareness raising - for instance, helping researchers to identify possible commercial opportunities. Then there is an on-site component. 'We allow them to have hands-on experience - refining their innovation, discussing the value proposition, meeting industry partners. This is where they begin to get their hands dirty and start moving away from research and into business.' The aim this year is to have around people 150 taking part in the online component and similar number going on to the advanced stage. The programs are delivered in tandem with delivery partners such as Bocconi University in Milan and SIBB in Berlin. Menna stresses that the program is focused on market verticals, namely smart manufacturing, digital health and wellbeing, cyber resilient societies and trustworthy AI, and dual use technologies for civil and security applications. It is, he says, a question of priorities. 'The innovation gap is across the board, and we will not solve it across the board. There are technologies where Europe will not catch up. There are others where Europe can catch up. And in the case of some technologies, Europe is in the lead and we shouldn't allow others to take the lead. For example, Quantum.' The success of the program will be measured by conversion rates. In the longer-term, how do these conversion rates translate into companies created and MVPs? Later on, EIT digital will track first customers and first investors. There are different perspectives on this. Earlier this month, the European Commission announced that the trading bloc was doing well on innovation, particularly when viewed through the prism of progress made by member states. This reflects the fact that the countries making up the EU have their own programs, ambitions and priorities. In that respect, EIT Digital's initiative potentially represents another piece of the jigsaw with a program designed to encourage technology transfer across the continent.
Mail & Guardian
23-07-2025
- Business
- Mail & Guardian
Cannabis reform without legal legitimacy is an illusion
Commercialisation of the trade requires cohesive regulation. File photo South Africa's cannabis economy is poised for transformation, but it is being built on a legal contradiction. The department of trade, industry and competition has proposed a national licensing authority and commercialisation framework. Yet the Cannabis for Private Purposes Act (CfPPA) of 2024 still prohibits all forms of cannabis trade, cultivation for profit and distribution. This is not a technical oversight. It is a constitutional fault line. We cannot licence what the law criminalises. Until the Act is amended to include commercial provisions or a new enabling Cannabis Commercialisation Act is passed, the department's proposals remain legally unenforceable. Officials risk overreach. Entrepreneurs face uncertainty. People are left in limbo. Even the government acknowledges this. In a parliamentary Q&A session in June, the department's minister, Parks Tau, said: 'It is the intention of the [department] to address this aspect as soon as cannabis has effectively been removed from the Drugs and Drug Trafficking Act.' While this reflects a degree of momentum, it's legally insufficient. Removing cannabis from the Drugs Act may lift criminalisation, but the CfPPA continues to prohibit dealing, trading and cultivation for commercial gain. In short, even if cannabis is no longer classified as a drug, it still cannot be sold or licensed under the Cannabis for Private Purposes Act when the Act comes into operation. This legal misalignment has real-world consequences. The department's policy framework, while ambitious, suffers from structural blind spots: It focuses narrowly on licensing without transitional support for informal traders; It fails to protect small-scale cultivators from being displaced by large corporations; It omits regulatory clarity around cannabis clubs and urban dispensaries; It overlooks enforcement coordination across the South African Police Service, municipalities, and regulatory bodies; and It excludes meaningful integration of indigenous knowledge systems into product development. One major omission is the legal ambiguity about cannabis clubs, private collectives facilitating cultivation and sharing among adult members. Since the Haze Club case was dismissed in 2022 and its appeal withdrawn in 2024, the status of grow clubs remains undefined. This vacuum has enabled the proliferation of illicit urban clubs and pseudo-dispensaries selling untested products to non-members, tourists and minors, often with no age verification or dosage controls. What South Africa needs is regulatory clarity, not criminal silence. Rather than banning cannabis clubs outright or letting them proliferate unchecked, the law should define them, regulate them and use them as strategic tools within a broader commercialisation policy. Ignoring their existence only empowers the illicit market. South Africa must not repeat the mistakes seen elsewhere. In Thailand, decriminalisation without proper controls led to youth exposure and market chaos. The government reversed its policy in 2025, reclassifying cannabis as a controlled herb, shuttering thousands of dispensaries, and leaving farmers in limbo. In Italy, a sudden 2025 ban on low-THC products erased billions in legal revenue, criminalised compliant retailers, and triggered European Union-level legal challenges. In the United States, fragmented state-by-state regulation has caused enforcement confusion, increased youth access, and resurgence of illicit trade, particularly in states failing to fund education and safety programmes. In Canada, even with national legalisation, spikes in underage consumption, impaired driving and workplace incidents exposed the limits of reform absent cultural readiness and public health investment. And in Mexico, international price competition with the US led to cannabis crop abandonment, pushing rural farmers into more dangerous illicit drug markets. The common thread across these countries? Commercialisation without cohesive regulation, especially about cultivation, processing, distribution, retail, enforcement, education and cultural integration. Cannabis is not just a commodity. It's a cultural and constitutional indicator, reflecting whether we are capable of reform that is inclusive, ethical and enforceable. A well-regulated industry could empower rural cooperatives, restore trust with legacy growers, elevate local brands on the global stage and reduce harm in urban youth sectors. Properly regulated cannabis clubs offer promise. If legally recognised and governed, they could provide: controlled, adult-only access aligned with privacy rights; peer-based harm reduction and responsible usage education; traceable supply chains that reduce street-level trade; municipal licensing opportunities and tax reinvestment models; the promotion of community accountability and reinvestment; and entry-level platforms for small-scale cultivators operating in compliant, cooperative models. The time has come to move beyond fragmented intent. Commercialisation needs: Legislative legitimacy: Amend the CfPPA or pass a Cannabis Commercialisation Act; End-to-end value chain governance: Link licensing to retail, enforcement, and branding; Transitional and inclusive models: Support informal traders and vulnerable communities; Cannabis club regulation: Recognise and govern clubs under civic and constitutional frameworks; Enforcement clarity: Align the police, municipalities and DTIC to police illicit trade and protect minors and the vulnerable; and Ethical branding and indigenous knowledge integration: Elevate products that reflect our biodiversity and cultural heritage. Develop premium South African cannabis products for global markets. South Africa can build a cannabis economy that is just, lawful, inclusive, and resilient. But it starts with fixing the foundation. Anything less is not reform. It is an illusion.' Adv Simi Pillay-van Graan is the chief executive of Trikar Enterprise Solutions.
South China Morning Post
21-07-2025
- Business
- South China Morning Post
China robotics firm Unitree eyes IPO filing this year as industry starts to commercialise
The Hangzhou-based start-up hired Citic Securities to 'assist the company in preparing documents to apply for an IPO and listing' by December, according to a document filed with the China Securities Regulatory Commission's (CSRC) Zhejiang branch, which was published on Friday. Unitree said that over the next three months, its employees would learn what they would need to do as part of a listed company and it would make sure its property, trademarks and patents were properly handled. It also said it would set out clear business objectives. The company was on track to become the first humanoid robot maker to list on a mainland bourse. Earlier this month, Shanghai's AgiBot said it would buy a controlling stake in publicly traded Swancor Advanced Materials, paving the way for a back-door listing. But AgiBot said that was not its intention. Hong Kong has some listed robotics stocks, including UBTech Robotics and Dobot Robotics. Both are based in Shenzhen. The interest in stock markets reflected the growing need of China's robot makers to raise more funds as they move towards commercialisation, analysts said. 'When a leader in the technology sector starts with an IPO, it often means that the industry has moved from 'laboratory technology breakthroughs' to 'product scale-up and commercialisation'', said Qian Wenying, the secretary general of the Research Centre for AI and Management Innovation at the China Europe International Business School.
South China Morning Post
18-07-2025
- Business
- South China Morning Post
Chinese AI agent firms lag US, but seek to close gap amid OpenAI's latest push
China's AI agents currently lag behind the US in commercialisation but adoption is speeding up, according to new research on the heels of OpenAI's launch of a ChatGPT agent that is set to push the bar higher. Orders and revenues of overseas AI agent makers exceeded those of Chinese firms 'by an order of magnitude' in 2024 to 2025, according to a report released on Friday by the China International Capital Corporation (CICC). That was thanks to their corporate clients' higher IT budgets and a more-developed digital infrastructure, CICC analysts said. Chinese AI agent companies, however, have 'relatively weak' digital infrastructure, and their digitalisation budgets have been impacted by the macro environment, according to the report. In 2024, the US had 100 million users of AI agents, representing a market penetration rate of 40 per cent. China, with 250 million AI agent users last year, had only a 17.7 per cent adoption rate, CICC said. AI agents are software applications designed to autonomously plan and complete tasks on behalf of users. They have emerged as the latest battleground following large language models, as generative AI rapidly advances. Manus faces uncertainty as it laid off most of its staff in Beijing earlier this month. Photo: Shutterstock Images San Francisco-based OpenAI on Friday launched a ChatGPT agent which it said could handle 'complex workflows from start to finish'. CEO Sam Altman wrote on social media X that the agent was a 'real 'feel the AGI' moment'. AGI stands for artificial general intelligence, or AI with human‑level intelligence.
