The Next Big Things in Tech: AI, Drones, and More
Hi everyone! This is Cheng Ting-Fang, your #techAsia host for the week, sending a warm hello from Taipei!
I just returned to Asia from Barcelona — a city bursting with Gaudi’s artistic architecture and fresh tapas, from garlic prawns to grilled cuttlefish and patatas bravas. Every spring, the global wireless industry gathers in this Spanish city for the latest market insights. This year, the buzzword once again was "artificial intelligence."
At the Mobile World Congress, I was able to try out various Chinese AI applications first-hand. There were long queues at the booth of telecom operator China Unicom, which showcased a photo station capable of instantly transforming snapshots into centuries-old historical figures — blending my face, for instance, with Empress Wu Zetian’s Tang Dynasty attire in the blink of an eye. The company said its own Yuanjing large language model was the engine behind this transformation.
Meanwhile, iFlytek — China’s top provider of speech-recognition tech — demonstrated a powerful tool (pictured above) that allows content creators to generate short movies from just a few words of input, selecting the genre and style on the go. In under 20 seconds, I found myself watching a Disney-Pixar-style animation about Barcelona, produced entirely by AI. China Mobile affiliate AsiaInfo — the nation’s leading telecom software provider — used a simple camera backed by its DeepSeek-enhanced AI language model and Nvidia chips to provide visitors with 30-second health checks by measuring their heartbeat and breathing rate.
Not everything was so futuristic, however. My colleague Lauly Li and I shared a two-bedroom suite with a large work table during the trip, but we endured three nights without hot water, forcing us to take showers in less than a minute, as well as two nights of disrupted underground transit. Despite these challenges, we were able to meet numerous industry executives and after catching the earliest flight back to Asia at 6am, were soon back home.
The Next Big Things
Besides AI, drones and humanoid robots are two of the top buzzwords in the tech industry as EVs and mobile phones slow down.
Quiet Cash
Wealthy Chinese investors are funneling tens of millions of dollars into private companies controlled by Elon Musk — including SpaceX and xAI — using an arrangement that shields their identities from public view, according to asset managers and investors involved in the transactions.
Lightbulb Moment
Top Japanese telecom carrier NTT is betting big on fully optical communications, which it says can reduce AI data centers’ power consumption to one one-hundredth of current levels. But such a radical transformation faces many hurdles, Nikkei Asia’s Mitsuru Obe writes in this deep dive on the topic.
A Popular Young Manus
China’s AI frenzy has found a new darling. Little-known Manus AI sparked significant excitement last week with its claim to have developed the world’s first "general AI agent," Cissy Zhou of Nikkei Asia writes. According to the demo video released by Manus AI, their AI agent is capable of doing complicated tasks such as screening resumes, researching real estate, and analyzing stocks.
Suggested Reads
- Grab ties up with Chinese, US companies on self-driving vehicles (Nikkei Asia)
- Elon Musk’s Starlink in tie-up with domestic tycoon to enter India (FT)
- Space station start-up aims for out-of-this-world drug ‘factories’ (Nikkei Asia)
- China’s delivery platforms compete to offer better worker benefits (FT)
- Coinbase to make comeback in India as opposition to crypto eases (FT)
- Apple’s struggles in China extend to earphones and tablets (Nikkei Asia)
- Pokémon Go developer Niantic to sell game business, with payout for Nintendo (Nikkei Asia)
- TSMC is ‘not afraid’ of losing US chip subsidies (FT)
- Trump tariff ‘bomb’ rattles South Korea’s chip and auto sectors (Nikkei Asia)
- TSMC plays its hand in Donald Trump’s tariff war (FT)
Conclusion
The tech industry is constantly evolving, with new innovations and advancements emerging every day. From AI to drones, humanoid robots, and more, there’s always something new to learn and explore. At #techAsia, we’re dedicated to keeping you up-to-date on the latest developments in the tech world. Stay tuned for more updates and insights from our team of experts.
FAQs
Q: What is #techAsia?
A: #techAsia is a weekly newsletter curated by Nikkei Asia, focusing on the latest technology trends and innovations from around the world.
Q: How can I receive #techAsia?
A: To receive #techAsia, sign up here at Nikkei Asia.
Q: Who is behind #techAsia?
A: #techAsia is coordinated by Nikkei Asia’s Katherine Creel in Tokyo, with assistance from the FT tech desk in London.
