China Tech News

Andrew Ng, former Baidu chief scientist and an artificial intelligence expert, will reportedly join Woebot, a chatbot developer, as chairman.

The chatbot developed by Woebot can reportedly help people handle their mental health problems. The company's technology is based on cognitive behavioral therapy, which focuses on emotional management and customized handling solutions for mental problems like depression and anxiety.

A research conducted by Stanford University shows that after using Woebot for two weeks, people's anxiety and depression can be reduced.

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ZTE and JD Group announced the signing of a strategic cooperation agreement in New York under which the two parties will work together in mobile terminal development; online and offline channel sales; and brand marketing.
Cheng Lixin, chief executive officer of ZTE's terminal business unit, said that mobile technology ecosystem and consumer habits have changed tremendously. By cooperating with JD, ZTE will provide more innovative mobile devices to Chinese consumers.

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China's nationwide automobile sales reached 2.709 million units, including 78,000 new energy cars, in September 2017.

According to statistics provided by China Association of Automobile Manufacturers, China's automobile output was 2.671 million units, an increase of 27.64% compared with the previous month and a year-on-year increase of 5.54%; and China's automobile sales were 2.709 million units, an increase of 23.93% compared with the previous month and a year-on-year increase of 5.66%.

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SHANGHAI stocks edged up yesterday for the fourth day on gains made by shares of home appliance makers and the environmental protection firms.

The Shanghai Composite Index edged up 0.26 percent to 3,396.90 points.

Environmental protection companies gained after the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology said yesterday it would promote green manufacturing, improve environmental protection equipment manufacturing, and encourage the sustainable and healthy development of the environmental protection industry.

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SAUDI Arabia’s powerful crown prince on Tuesday announced plans to build a futuristic city run entirely on alternative sources of energy and said the ultraconservative kingdom must return to “moderate Islam.”

The US$500 billion “Neom” project, envisioned as a hub for technological innovation, will be funded by the kingdom’s sovereign wealth fund, which the prince oversees, as well as the Saudi government and a range of private and international investors.

“This place is not for conventional people or conventional companies,” Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman told an audience of investors from around the world gathered in the capital, Riyadh, on Tuesday. “This will be a place for the dreamers of the world.”

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MCDONALD’S in China provoked snorts of laughter yesterday, as Internet users mocked a ham-fisted new company name that sounds a lot like the Chinese word for a pig eating.

Earlier this month, the company quietly changed its official name from a transliteration of “McDonald’s” to a new moniker meaning “Golden Arches” — a reference to the famous logo.

It was an under-the-radar decision only intended for official use, not for restaurants, the company said in a statement.

But the move threatened to turn into something of a PR nightmare after an enterprising Internet user uncovered the change in corporate filings.

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A series of safety scandals at Japanese companies have put the country’s lionized factory floor under scrutiny as manufacturers struggle with increased pressure on costs, stricter enforcement of standards and growing competition.

With margins squeezed by a stagnant domestic market and rivalry from China and South Korea, many factories have cut costs, reducing their reliance on workers in lifetime employment in favor of laborers on temporary contracts.

As they have done so, safety scandals have erupted across the country’s much-vaunted manufacturing sector, with Subaru Corp on Friday joining Nissan Motor Co Ltd in admitting it failed to follow proper vehicle inspection procedures.

Earlier this month, Japan’s third-largest steelmaker, Kobe Steel Ltd, said its workers had tampered with product specifications for years, leaving companies around the world scrambling to verify the safety of cars, planes, trains and electrical goods.

Unable to easily lay off “regular” employees, full-time employees with permanent contracts and pay scales based on seniority that formed the heart of Japan’s post-war workforce, companies have increasingly come to rely on “non-regular” workers — temps, part-timers and short-term contract workers.

These non-regular workers allow firms to cut costs and adjust their workforce, said Koji Morioka, emeritus professor at Kansai University and an expert on workplace issues. But it has led to a de-skilling of the factory floor, lowering standards and increasing the likelihood of wrongdoing and accidents, he said.

“The use of these ‘disposable’ workers is greatly increasing,” Morioka said. “The loss of experienced, skilled workers on the factory floor is becoming more and more risky.”

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ITALIAN super-luxury car manufacturer Maserati has enjoyed remarkable success in China. Thanks to its rich brand heritage and the outstanding performance of its cars, Maserati has won over more than 40,000 Chinese customers. Since the launch of Levante in mid-2016, the first SUV in Maserati’s history, the brand has enjoyed tremendous growth in China, which is now its largest market worldwide, even overtaking the US.

Soaring sales and surging growth

Following the launch of Levante and upgrading the flagship luxury sedan Quattroporte last year, Maserati secured its best-ever sales performance in China. The company’s total sales volume for 2016 was 12,250 units.
“In just one year, China has become the largest market for Levante worldwide,” said Mirko Bordiga, managing director of Maserati China. “Our sales have grown by 47 percent in the first three quarters of this year, and it is expected to hit a record high for the whole of 2017.”

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CHINA’S big four state-owned banks yesterday reported profit growth across the board in the third quarter.
Net income at the four lenders — the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China, Bank of China, China Construction Bank, and Agricultural Bank of China — all grew in the low single digits for July-September year on year, according to filings with the Hong Kong Stock Exchange.

ICBC, the world’s largest bank by assets, reported a net profit of 75 billion yuan (US$11.3 billion) for the third quarter, up 3.35 percent anually.

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THE first reviews of Apple Inc’s eagerly awaited iPhone X are out and the verdict is clear: it is the best iPhone yet.
The run-in to Friday’s release of the redesigned glass and stainless steel device has been dominated by concerns over the supply and functionality of its new FaceID access system.

At US$999, it is also the most expensive phone the company has ever launched, but going by channel checks run by market analysts, demand is already far outstripping supply.

“It’s thin, it’s powerful, it has ambitious ideas about what cameras on phones can be used for, and it pushes the design language of phones into a strange new place,” Verge reviewer Nilay Patel said in a lengthy review, which he promised to keep updated as he explored more features.

There is no home button in the iPhone X, a key feature on previous phones, and users instead tap the device to wake it up.

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