Chinese EVs Nio, Xpeng turn to mass market for growth

Nio Founder and CEO William Li poses outside of the New York Stock Exchange to celebrate his company’s IPO. Photo: NYSE BEIJING — Chinese electric car start-ups Nio and Xpeng are turning to a lower-priced segment of the market with plans to release newly branded cars this year. Nio’s first such mass market car will … Read more

Geely-backed luxury EV brand Zeekr says it’s beating Tesla in parts of China

Pictured here is the Zeekr 001 electric car at a services trade fair in Beijing on Aug. 31, 2023. China News Service | China News Service | Getty Images BEIJING — Chinese electric car brand Zeekr is selling more vehicles than Tesla in parts of China, and plans to expand in Europe and Latin America … Read more

China may have to brace for a new wave of bond defaults, S&P says

Residential buildings under construction at the Phoenix Palace project, developed by Country Garden Holdings Co., in Heyuan, Guangdong province, China in September 2023. Bloomberg | Bloomberg | Getty Images BEIJING — China’s state-directed economy may be creating the conditions for a new wave of bond defaults that could come as soon as next year, according … Read more

China’s Xiaomi is selling so many electric cars it’s closer to breaking even

The Xiaomi SU7 on display at the Mobile World Congress 2024. Arjun Kharpal | CNBC BEIJING — Chinese smartphone company Xiaomi‘s new electric vehicle is selling better than expected, putting it closer to break-even despite undercutting Tesla‘s Model 3 on price. Xiaomi has received more than 70,000 orders for its electric SU7 sedan as of … Read more

China’s ‘Netflix’ iQiyi pivots toward an aging population in an AI era

IQiyi, sometimes dubbed the “Netflix” of China, swung to a profit in 2023 for the first time since it listed in the U.S. in 2018. Bloomberg | Bloomberg | Getty Images BEIJING — Chinese video streaming platform iQiyi is turning its attention to the country’s aging population, while using artificial intelligence tools to bolster content … Read more

China’s fiscal stimulus is losing its effectiveness, S&P says

Pictured here is a commercial residential property under construction on March 20, 2024, in Nanning, capital of the Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region in south China. Future Publishing | Future Publishing | Getty Images BEIJING — China’s fiscal stimulus is losing its effectiveness and is more of a strategy to buy time for industrial and consumption … Read more

Baidu releases new AI tools to promote application development

Baidu CEO Robin Li speaks during the company’s Create conference in Shenzhen, China, on April 16, 2024. Bloomberg | Bloomberg | Getty Images SHENZHEN, China – One year after Chinese search engine operator Baidu released its ChatGPT-like Ernie bot, the company this week announced tools to encourage locals to develop artificial intelligence applications. “In China … Read more

China’s BYD fires up NEV offerings to compete with Tesla and Jeep

BYD unveiled three new cars for its Fang Cheng Bao brand on April 16, 2024, in Shenzhen. This vehicle, the Super 3 SUV, comes with a drone port on its roof. CNBC | Evelyn Cheng SHENZHEN – Chinese electric car company BYD is rapidly expanding its lineup to include vehicles that compete with traditional automakers … Read more

Baidu says its ChatGPT-like Ernie bot exceeds 200 million users

Men interact with a Baidu AI robot near the company logo at its headquarters in Beijing, China April 23, 2021. Florence Lo | Reuters SHENZHEN — Baidu CEO Robin Li said Tuesday the company’s ChatGPT-like Ernie bot has exceeded 200 million users. He added the company would hold another round of its AI development competition, … Read more

Jack Ma is praising Alibaba. Wall Street is more cautious

Alibaba shares got a boost last week from news founder Jack Ma is pleased with the company’s turnaround so far. That’s after co-founder and current Chair Joe Tsai told CNBC in late February he felt a lot more “confident” about Alibaba’s ability to still be a top e-commerce player. Ma stepped down as chairman in … Read more