Technology
Faster than Bolt, but can China’s robots fold clothes?
Humanoid robots’ real test lies in the real world. By putting them through standardised sporting and real-world tasks, the World Humanoid Robot Games aim to expose their shortcomings, generate valuable data and lay the groundwork for industry standards and large-scale commercial deployment, says academic Zhang Tiankan.
Zhang Tiankan
Society
China’s AI idol craze: Fad or future?
China’s virtual idols are moving beyond entertainment, winning followers, landing brand deals and taking on roles once reserved for real people. As AI gives these digital characters voices, memories and agency, is China witnessing a passing craze — or the start of a new kind of celebrity? Lianhe Zaobao correspondent Christine Li Yage dives into the matter.
Christine Li Yage
Society
[Video] How Singapore travellers can navigate cashless payment in China
As Singaporeans surge into China, navigating its cashless economy is a key challenge. From card integration to cross-border app remittances, Lianhe Zaobao business journalist Thomas Li Tao breaks down the costs, limits and strategies involved for seamless spending.
Thomas Li Tao
Economy
How Guangzhou and Shenzhen weathered Trump’s tariff storm
Guangzhou and Shenzhen, manufacturing and technology engines of Guangdong province, were hard-hit by Trump 2.0 tariffs, but they managed to bounce back or even hold steady with resilience under pressure. Economics professor Jiang Kun gives her analysis in ThinkChina’s Eye on Guangdong series.
Jiang Kun
Politics
Xi may meet Modi. But can China-India trust return?
Xi Jinping may meet Narendra Modi at next month’s BRICS summit, in what could mark another step in the China-India thaw. But after years of tensions, how far has the improvement in official ties extended to public perceptions? Lianhe Zaobao associate China news editor Sim Tze Wei examines the issue.
Sim Tze Wei
Popular This Month
Politics
[Video] Bilahari Kausikan: How to navigate the new world order
Bilahari Kausikan, in an interview with ThinkChina editor Chow Yian Ping, examines how US-China rivalry is reshaping the global order, why China’s “China dream” narrative of national rejuvenation remains powerful but limiting, and how a more fluid, multipolar Asia will test the nimbleness of smaller states such as Singapore.
Chow Yian Ping
Politics
Why Trump is ready to lose the midterms
As the US midterms loom and polls plunge, Donald Trump appears strangely indifferent to his party’s fate. US commentator Ian Bremmer argues that despite Trump’s claims of rigged systems, US institutional guardrails will hold as the post-Trump era nears.
Ian Bremmer
Society
Passports surrendered: Inside China’s expanding web of exit controls
China’s new regulations have reignited concerns over who may be prevented from leaving the country. While Beijing says the measures are aimed at safeguarding national security, broad discretionary powers and vague definitions could create greater uncertainty for travellers, says Lianhe Zaobao China news editor Yang Danxu.
Yang Danxu
Politics
Iran misread what China meant by ‘strategic partner’
Iranians have long considered how China would act in a crisis involving the US and Israel. It got its answer in the recent Iran war, where it has had to lower its expectations and extract practical gains from China, observes Iranian analyst Mohammad Khatibi.
Mohammad Khatibi
Technology
China’s DUV breakthrough: Has America’s tech wall outlived its purpose?
China’s reported breakthrough in producing domestic DUV lithography machines could mark a turning point in its chip war with the US, but experts warn that catching up with global leaders remains a long road. Lianhe Zaobao China news correspondent Edwin Ong reports.
Edwin Ong
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Editor's pick
Politics
[Video] Is China stopping its own citizens from leaving?
China has introduced new rules on exit and entry administration, setting out when authorities can intervene in border crossings and when citizens may be barred from leaving the country. The regulation brings national security, export controls and technology concerns more directly into the rules governing cross-border movement. ThinkChina’s Lingming Lu looks into the issue.
Politics
[Video] Bilahari Kausikan: How to navigate the new world order
Bilahari Kausikan, in an interview with ThinkChina editor Chow Yian Ping, examines how US-China rivalry is reshaping the global order, why China’s “China dream” narrative of national rejuvenation remains powerful but limiting, and how a more fluid, multipolar Asia will test the nimbleness of smaller states such as Singapore.
Chow Yian Ping
Politics
[Video] Is China stopping its own citizens from leaving?
China has introduced new rules on exit and entry administration, setting out when authorities can intervene in border crossings and when citizens may be barred from leaving the country. The regulation brings national security, export controls and technology concerns more directly into the rules governing cross-border movement. ThinkChina’s Lingming Lu looks into the issue.
Lu Lingming
Society
[Video] Rare Hubei tornadoes expose China’s rising weather risk
Three rare tornadoes in Hubei exposed a stark new reality: China must prepare for increasingly complex extreme weather with better forecasting, more resilient cities and stronger disaster response. ThinkChina’s Yi Jina and Lu Lingming find out more.
Yi Jina, Lu Lingming
Society
[Video] Effortlessly beautiful: China’s new obsession with ‘invisible’ cosmetic procedures
Why are millions of Chinese paying for cosmetic procedures that nobody is supposed to notice? The pursuit of “natural beauty” is reshaping the country’s booming medical aesthetics industry. ThinkChina’s Yi Jina finds out more.
Yi Jina
Society
[Video] China made it to the World Cup, just not on the pitch
China’s men’s football team is once again absent from the World Cup, but China is visible almost everywhere else around the tournament. ThinkChina’s Lu Lingming looks at how China made it into the World Cup economy, even as its team remains off the pitch.
Lu Lingming
Society
[Video] ‘Bullying our ancestors’: Why Chinese netizens are boycotting LV
A seemingly ordinary trademark dispute between Louis Vuitton and Chinese milk tea chain Molly Tea has escalated into a wider debate over intellectual property and cultural ownership. As backlash builds, with many even calling for LV’s trademark to be revoked, the case has become a broader reckoning on how cultural motifs should be protected in a modern commercial world.
Yi Jina
Culture
[Vox pop] Blood, lion dance or dialect: What makes a Chinese Singaporean?
As the movie Dear You brings the history of early Chinese migrants back into the spotlight, online conversations about Chinese identity and cultural heritage have grown louder. ThinkChina’s Lu Lingming and Yi Jina speak with Chinese Singaporeans about what Chinese identity, or “Chineseness”, means to them today.
Lu Lingming, Yi Jina
Culture
[Video] Living in the moment: Two Singaporean artists finding home in Jingdezhen
In Jingdezhen, China’s porcelain capital, Singaporean ceramists Ken Lu and Nelson Lim have each found their own mecca — a place for Ken to put down roots, and for Nelson to continually return to. Living in the Moment, produced by Lu Lingming and Yi Jina, is ThinkChina’s first documentary film. It explores how the city reshapes Ken and Nelson’s identities as Chinese Singaporeans, while tracing their lifelong pursuit of art and craft.
Lu Lingming, Yi Jina
Culture
[Video] Hsu Chung-mao: Why I am both Taiwanese and Chinese
Taiwanese historical photo collector Hsu Chung-mao had a front-row seat to history as a war journalist, and became part of it himself when he was injured during the 1989 Tiananmen incident. Decades spent collecting and colourising rare photographs have shaped how he sees the past — and why he sees himself as both Taiwanese and Chinese. In a conversation with ThinkChina’s Charlene Chow, he reflects on history, identity and the twists of fate that have shaped his journey.
Charlene Chow
Latest Articles
Society
How an American influencer exposed China’s ‘crotch nationalism’
The scandal surrounding an American influencer in China has exposed how quickly pro-China digital personas can turn sour, leaving female victims caught in a crossfire of nationalist judgment. Lianhe Zaobao correspondent Liu Liu dives into the matter.
Liu Liu
Technology
Behind Unitree’s plunge: China’s premature robot boom
Unitree Robotics’ dramatic stock swings are fuelling fears of a humanoid robot bubble, exposing the risks of companies entering public markets before their businesses are ready. Lianhe Zaobao associate China news editor Chen Jing examines the issue.
Chen Jing
Technology
How did Shenzhen-Hong Kong-Guangzhou become the world’s number one tech hub?
The Global Innovation Index published by the World Intellectual Property Office puts the Shenzhen-Hong Kong-Guangzhou innovation cluster in first place. The tech hub’s unique combination of strengths has allowed it to surpass the usual suspects in Silicon Valley, observes academic Erik Baark in ThinkChina’s Eye on Guangdong series.
Erik Baark
Economy
Beijing unleashes confidence campaign to reassure markets
Chinese authorities are using commentaries to reshape the country’s economic narrative, manage expectations and rebuild market confidence ahead of key political events. Lianhe Zaobao associate China news editor Sim Tze Wei speaks with academics to analyse the matter.
Sim Tze Wei
Technology
[Big read] China’s AI catch-up is forcing Silicon Valley to cut prices
China’s AI catch-up is challenging US dominance as cheaper, open-weight models spread. As both sides compete for the frontier and mass market, the lines between their AI ecosystems are hardening. Lianhe Zaobao correspondent Liu Sha finds out.
Liu Sha
Economy
Why Chinese farmers refuse to give up snake farming
A recent flood in Guangxi has put the spotlight on China’s lucrative but hazardous snake farming industry, revealing the complex trade-offs between rural livelihoods and public safety. Lianhe Zaobao correspondent Lim Zhan Ting examines the issue.
Lim Zhan Ting
Society
Hangzhou drinking party scandal casts shadow over city’s image
The alleged assault of a female employee at a meal involving a state-owned developer executive and a Hangzhou district official has reignited anger over China’s drinking culture and abuse of power, while calling into question Hangzhou’s clean-cut image. Lianhe Zaobao China news editor Yang Danxu dives in.
Yang Danxu
Politics
Japan tests China’s willingness to revive people-to-people exchanges
A series of planned visits to China by Japanese business groups and politicians has raised hopes that bilateral exchanges may be resuming despite prolonged tensions. Even so, this may not pave the way for a broader normalisation of relations, says Japanese academic Shin Kawashima.
Shin Kawashima
Economy
China needs a new strategy to rebalance its industrial might
China’s industrial capacity accounts for nearly 30% of global output, but it is facing increasing global risk of trade protectionism. Lianhe Zaobao associate editor Han Yong Hong says that amid escalating tariff wars and economic rivalry, China cannot avoid structural economic adjustments.
Han Yong Hong
Technology
Chatting alone? What AI companions reveal about human relationships
How do you manage a relationship with a machine that is not as emotionally invested as you and may learn to read you over time as a friend would? Navigating the AI companions landscape depends not just on regulation but on how these products are designed to handle emotional responsibility, says US researcher Hong Shen.
Hong Shen
Politics
The Mecca agreement’s implications for China
The Mecca pact among Saudi Arabia, Pakistan and Turkey calls for NATO-like collective defence, but a more realistic outcome could be greater mediation roles for each of the parties and gains for China, a close partner of all three. Academic Alessandro Arduino explains.
Alessandro Arduino
Technology
Game studios have bought into AI, but players still aren’t sold
AI is flooding gaming with cheaper, faster content — but not necessarily better games. As China embraces AI-native play and world models, the industry faces a harder test: can AI deliver real innovation without drowning players in clones?
Caixin Global
Society
[Video] Could Niu Lai be China’s highest-return film ever?
Made by a mother and son with no outside investment, the low-budget Chinese animated film Niu Lai earned only US$1,000 in its first nine days before viral clips pushed its box office takings past US$4 million in just a few days. ThinkChina’s Lu Lingming explains what drove its unexpected box office success.
Lu Lingming
Technology
China bans AI companions from pleasing you too much. Should Singapore?
Millions in China lost their AI confidants overnight. Days later in Singapore, chatbots were asked to introduce themselves. Behind the two responses lies a question kings once faced: what do you do about a servant who never disagrees with you? Academic Ashton Ng ponders the question.
Ashton Ng
Society
Are Chinese universities abolishing the ‘iron rice bowl’?
Tongji University’s decision to replace faculty tenure with three-yearly assessments effectively ends the traditional “iron rice bowl” concept for university lecturers. Lianhe Zaobao associate China news editor Chen Jing explores the issue.
Chen Jing
Society
AI micro-dramas do not understand people. Are we starting not to either?
The gliches in AI micro-dramas may have been fixed, but not their indifference to human nature. As we consume ever more predictable stories, are we also losing our patience for complexity — and our respect for what’s real? Han Yong May, deputy editor-in-chief of SPH’s Chinese Media Group, ponders the question.
Han Yong May
Politics
How China’s role in the global order has changed
Former Chinese Premier Zhu Rongji’s passing and the commemoration of former Chinese President Jiang Zemin’s centenary calls to mind how China has evolved from the era of integrating with the global economy to shaping the world, notes Lianhe Zaobao associate China news editor Sim Tze Wei.
Sim Tze Wei