technology

Xi says China must 'overcome' AI chip challenges

  • In this context, Xi called for "continuing to strengthen basic research, focusing our efforts on overcoming challenges in key technologies such as advanced chips and core software, and building an autonomous AI system," according to Xinhua news agency.
  • President Xi Jinping said China must "overcome" the challenges of developing core AI technologies including high-end chips, state media reported Saturday, as Beijing seeks to become a world leader in the rapidly developing industry.
  • In this context, Xi called for "continuing to strengthen basic research, focusing our efforts on overcoming challenges in key technologies such as advanced chips and core software, and building an autonomous AI system," according to Xinhua news agency.
President Xi Jinping said China must "overcome" the challenges of developing core AI technologies including high-end chips, state media reported Saturday, as Beijing seeks to become a world leader in the rapidly developing industry.
China aims to dominate the artificial intelligence sector, a goal complicated by the trade standoff with Washington that could further deprive Chinese industry of certain key technologies.
The world's two leading economies are locked in an escalating tit-for-tat trade battle triggered by US President Donald Trump's new levies on Chinese goods, which have reached 145 percent on many products. Beijing has responded with new 125 percent duties on imports from the United States.
In this context, Xi called for "continuing to strengthen basic research, focusing our efforts on overcoming challenges in key technologies such as advanced chips and core software, and building an autonomous AI system," according to Xinhua news agency.
Xi made the remarks during a quarterly meeting of the Politburo, the inner circle of China's top leaders.
Since the launch of ChatGPT in November 2022, generative AI models have proliferated in the United States and China.
Chinese startup DeepSeek shook up the AI world in January with its R1 chatbot, matching the performance of its US competitors at a lower cost. 

'Promote self-reliance'

But Xi acknowledged Friday that the Chinese industry still had "gaps". It was "essential" to "promote self-reliance" in the field, he added.
Political support was essential to achieve this, Xi stressed, citing in particular "a combination of policies such as intellectual property rights, taxation, public procurement, and the opening up of infrastructure".
Under Trump and his predecessor Joe Biden, Washington has banned or restricted exports to China of advanced processors which are known for helping develop high-end AI models.
The Trump administration has imposed new licensing requirements to export to China some chips used in AI, which US firms Nvidia and AMD have said will hit them hard. 
Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang visited Beijing this month and said he was "willing to continue to plough deeply into the Chinese market and play a positive role in promoting US-China trade cooperation", Xinhua reported.
Washington's controls are officially imposed in order to prevent China developing military technologies, but they also allow the United States to maintain its competitive edge.
China's AI ambitions have prompted concern in numerous countries worried about the handling of personal data, particularly the possibility that such information could be transferred to Chinese authorities.
aas/rsc/mtp

pope

Pope's death triggers surge of disinformation he fought against

BY BILL MCCARTHY

  • "The tragedy of disinformation is that it discredits others, presenting them as enemies, to the point of demonizing them and fomenting conflict," Pope Francis wrote in a 2018 message for World Communications Day.
  • The death of Pope Francis drew tributes from mourners around the world -- and with them a wave of disinformation, old and new.
  • "The tragedy of disinformation is that it discredits others, presenting them as enemies, to the point of demonizing them and fomenting conflict," Pope Francis wrote in a 2018 message for World Communications Day.
The death of Pope Francis drew tributes from mourners around the world -- and with them a wave of disinformation, old and new.
Swarms of fake and misleading content interrupted the global rush of condolences that poured online for the 88-year-old Argentine reformer ahead of his funeral Saturday.
The outcome was in some ways par for the course for the 12-year head of the Catholic Church, who spoke out fiercely against disinformation but was also a frequent subject of it.
"The tragedy of disinformation is that it discredits others, presenting them as enemies, to the point of demonizing them and fomenting conflict," Pope Francis wrote in a 2018 message for World Communications Day. He likened modern-day "fake news" to the "snake-tactics" employed by the serpent in the Christian origin story described in the Bible.
"There is no such thing as harmless disinformation," he argued. "Even a seemingly slight distortion of the truth can have dangerous effects."
Two years earlier, the pope had found himself an unwilling yet central character in one of the most prominent lies of the 2016 US presidential election, when a hoax saying he endorsed Donald Trump exploded online. The false story garnered the most engagement on Facebook of any election story in the three months before the vote, BuzzFeed News reported at the time.
Several of the falsehoods that trailed his death appeared similarly aimed at misrepresenting his actions and connections.
One widespread video appeared to show him swatting the hand of President Trump, whose deportation policies the pontiff had denounced. The clip was manipulated, however, and had originally aired as a joke on a comedian's late-night TV show.
Another video, claiming to show Satanic rituals on display at the pope's funeral, turned out to be unrelated footage from Spain. 
In a third case, a photo of the pope meeting Holocaust survivors in 2014 was misrepresented as evidence that he was beholden to the wealthy Rothschild family, a favorite target of anti-Semitic conspiracy theories.

'Content follows attention'

The rash of disinformation underscores how bad actors seeking to farm engagement or push targeted narratives work to exploit the buzz around major events.
Similar campaigns followed the deaths of other public figures such as Queen Elizabeth II, whose passing in 2022 inspired false claims about vaccines and pedophilia.
"In general, content follows attention," digital literacy expert Mike Caulfield, the author of a book about verifying information online, told AFP. 
"When someone dies, as morbid as it seems, people run to where the spotlight is and try to put on their show," Caulfield said. "For some people it's a chance to promote an agenda, and they connect the event or the figure to whatever political cause or conspiracy theory they generally promote. For others, it's just about the money, the trolling or the attention."
Numerous images generated by artificial intelligence -- including an AI creation of Pope Francis draped in a rainbow LGBTQ Pride flag, and the now-infamous depiction of him wearing a white puffer coat that became an internet sensation in 2023 -- also resurfaced after his death.
They were joined by new fakes spread in multiple languages, one of which portrayed the pope's body in an open casket.
Some AI-enabled images circulated alongside malicious links that led to scams or fraudulent websites, according to research from Check Point, a cybersecurity company.
The pope cautioned against such deception in January, saying AI technologies "can be misused to manipulate minds." 
The message became one of his final warnings about disinformation.
bmc/mgs/sla

Europe

TikTok videos exploit trade war to sell fake luxury goods

BY DOUNIA MAHIEDDINE

  • The accusation that luxury goods officially manufactured in Europe were in reality being secretly made in China "does not make any sense", concurred Michel Phan, professor of luxury marketing at emlyon business school in France.
  • TikTok abounds with viral videos accusing prestigious brands of secretly manufacturing luxury goods in China so they can be sold at cut prices.
  • The accusation that luxury goods officially manufactured in Europe were in reality being secretly made in China "does not make any sense", concurred Michel Phan, professor of luxury marketing at emlyon business school in France.
TikTok abounds with viral videos accusing prestigious brands of secretly manufacturing luxury goods in China so they can be sold at cut prices.
But while these "revelations" are spurious, behind them lurks a well-oiled machine for selling counterfeit goods that is making the most of the confusion surrounding trade tariffs.
Chinese content creators who portray themselves as workers or subcontractors in the luxury goods business claim that Beijing has lifted confidentiality clauses on local subcontractors as a way to respond to the huge hike in customs duties imposed on China by US President Donald Trump.
They say this Chinese decision, of which AFP has found no trace, authorises them to reveal the hidden underbelly of luxury goods manufacturing in China.
They encourage Western consumers to buy directly from the websites selling these goods, which bear no logos or labels but are said to be of the same quality and design as the expensive originals.
The prices are alluring too, dropping from $38,000 for a luxury bag to $1,400.
Brands targeted -- which include Hermes, Chanel and Louis Vuitton, whose goods are produced in Europe and the United States according to their websites -- declined to respond to AFP questions about the claims made in these viral videos.
But for Jacques Carles, head of the French Luxury and Design Centre, a management consultancy, the notion that luxury brands would manufacture goods in China is simply "absurd".
"It would be suicidal. If there was evidence -- and there isn't -- it would be the end. These brands aren't stupid," he told AFP.
While the TikTokers point to the skill of the Chinese workers, presented as the little hands behind the big luxury names, "these counterfeit workshops absolutely do not respect all the required stages in the manufacturing process", he said.

'Creating doubt'

Carles cited the example of Hermes's Birkin bag, which requires "hundreds of hours of work" to produce.
He said the internet clip makers were, "by creating doubt", actually looking to "open up an opportunity... to shift their stocks" of counterfeit goods.
"It's a viral campaign that's spread on social networks (and) is difficult to counter," he said.
Luxury brands chose to remain silent and "treat the phenomenon with scorn", which was a mistake in his view, he added.
The accusation that luxury goods officially manufactured in Europe were in reality being secretly made in China "does not make any sense", concurred Michel Phan, professor of luxury marketing at emlyon business school in France.
He rejected the argument made on TikTok that this was a Chinese retort to US trade tariffs.
"Hurting European luxury brands will not change anything (for) the US government because they are not related to those brands," he said.
"All the videos online mentioning that luxury brands manufactured their products in China and then put the 'Made in France' label before selling them are nonsense.
"It is illegal to do so and no brand will take the risk to get caught (sic) doing it."
The e-commerce department at China's trade ministry said in a statement: "Any misleading marketing, infringement, or counterfeit activities" by entities posing as subconstractors for established brands "will be promptly referred to law enforcement agencies for investigation and action."

'I'm such a sucker'

Comments on the viral clips, portrayed as coming from internet users rather than the video creators themselves, seem to show that the message resonates.
"I'm so annoyed. I paid top price!" said one in a video comment.
"I'm such a sucker," said another.
Some leave comments asking for the names of "suppliers of luxury goods" in China from whom they can buy the coveted items on the cheap.
Meanwhile, Chinese vendors are also selling counterfeit luxury goods directly on TikTok, with links to their websites. These TikTok live reels garner hundreds of views each.
They show row upon row of shelves full of luxury items, all numbered.
"DHL delivery. Products identical to those in stores. The only difference is the price," says one, using an AI-generated voice in French.
Internet users are invited to scan a QR code or click on a link to complete their purchase via WhatsApp or PayPal.
AFP has found a score of similar live feeds, released simultaneously in English and French, suggesting that the main targets are internet users in Europe and the United States.
China is regularly accused of being the world's top producer of counterfeit goods.
Some estimates suggest 70 to 80 percent of all fakes are manufactured there.
In European Union states and a number of other countries there are hefty penalties for purchasing counterfeits.
In France, that could mean a three-year prison term and a fine of 300,000 euros ($340,600).
Customs authorities may also confiscate counterfeit goods and fine the purchaser the equivalent of the items' true value.
The European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO) says counterfeiting costs European industry 16 billion euros a year, with the clothes, cosmetics and toy sectors being the worst affected.
dou/cds/vmt/gil/rlp

earnings

Alphabet quarterly earnings lifted by cloud and AI

BY GLENN CHAPMAN

  • Overall revenue at Alphabet grew 12 percent to $90.2 billion compared to the same period a year earlier, while revenue for the cloud unit grew 28 percent to $12.3 billion, according to the tech giant.
  • Google parent Alphabet on Thursday reported profit of $34.5 billion in the recently ended quarter, powered by its cloud computing and artificial intelligence operations.
  • Overall revenue at Alphabet grew 12 percent to $90.2 billion compared to the same period a year earlier, while revenue for the cloud unit grew 28 percent to $12.3 billion, according to the tech giant.
Google parent Alphabet on Thursday reported profit of $34.5 billion in the recently ended quarter, powered by its cloud computing and artificial intelligence operations.
Overall revenue at Alphabet grew 12 percent to $90.2 billion compared to the same period a year earlier, while revenue for the cloud unit grew 28 percent to $12.3 billion, according to the tech giant.
Alphabet chief executive Sundar Pichai said the strong quarterly results reflect healthy growth and momentum across the business.
"Underpinning this growth is our unique full stack approach to AI," Pichai said in an earnings release.
He touted the latest Gemini software as Alphabet's most intelligent AI model and an "extraordinary foundation" for the Silicon Valley company's innovation.
Alphabet shares were up more than three percent in after-market trades that followed the release of the earnings figures.
"Cloud grew rapidly with significant demand for our solutions," Pichai said of Alphabet's services and tools hosted at data centers.
Investors have been watching closely to see whether the tech giant may be pouring too much money into artificial intelligence.
"Cloud's growth indicates that Google AI product mix continues to thrive despite heightened competition," said Emarketer principal analyst Yory Wurmser.
Google and rivals are spending billions of dollars on data centers and more for AI, while the rise of lower-cost model DeepSeek from China raises questions about how much needs to be spent.

Antitrust battles

Meanwhile the online ad business that churns out the cash Google invests in its future could be neutered due to a defeat in a US antitrust case.
US government attorneys are urging a federal judge to make Google spin off its Chrome browser, arguing artificial intelligence is poised to ramp up the company's online search dominance.
The Department of Justice (DOJ) is arguing its position before District Judge Amit Mehta, who is considering "remedies" after making a landmark decision last year that Google maintained an illegal monopoly in online search.
"Nothing less than the future of the internet is at stake here," Assistant Attorney General Gail Slater said prior to the start of the hearings this week in Washington.
"If Google's conduct is not remedied, it will control much of the internet for the next decade and not just in internet search, but in new technologies like artificial intelligence."
Google countered in the case that the United States has gone way beyond the scope of the suit by recommending a spinoff of its widely used Chrome, and holding open the option to force a sale of its Android mobile operating system.
The legal case focused on Google's agreements with partners such as Apple and Samsung to distribute its search tools, noted Google president of global affairs Kent Walker.
"The DOJ chose to push a radical interventionist agenda that would harm Americans and America's global technology leadership," Walker wrote in a blog post.
In another legal battle, a different US judge ruled this month that Google wielded monopoly power in the online ad technology market in a legal blow that could rattle the tech giant's revenue engine.
The federal government and more than a dozen US states filed the antitrust suit against Google, accusing it of acting illegally to dominate major sectors of digital advertising.
District Court Judge Leonie Brinkema ruled that Google built an illegal monopoly over ad software and tools used by publishers.
"Google has willfully engaged in a series of anticompetitive acts to acquire and maintain monopoly power in the publisher ad server and ad exchange markets for open-web display advertising," Brinkema said in her ruling.
Online advertising is the driving engine of Google's fortune and pays for widely used online services like Maps, Gmail, and search offered free.
Combined, the courtroom defeats have the potential to leave Google split up and its influence curbed.
Google said it is appealing both rulings.
gc/jgc

earnings

Intel chief vows to thin ranks at US chip maker

  • Malaysia-born tech industry veteran Tan, who took over as Intel chief executive in March, has said it "won't be easy" to overcome challenges faced by the company.
  • New Intel chief executive Lip-Bu Tan on Thursday announced upcoming layoffs at the struggling US chip maker as White House tariffs and export restrictions muddy the market.
  • Malaysia-born tech industry veteran Tan, who took over as Intel chief executive in March, has said it "won't be easy" to overcome challenges faced by the company.
New Intel chief executive Lip-Bu Tan on Thursday announced upcoming layoffs at the struggling US chip maker as White House tariffs and export restrictions muddy the market.
Tan did not provide details about the number of employees affected, but said he was "a big believer in the philosophy that the best leaders get the most done with the fewest people."
Despite the promise of cost-cutting and an earnings report that bested market expectations, Intel's share price sank more than five percent after it reined in its financial outlook for the current quarter due to broader market conditions.
"The economic landscape has become increasingly uncertain, driven by shifting trade policies, persistent inflation and increased regulatory risk," Intel chief financial officer David Zinsner said during an earnings call.
"The very fluid trade policies in the US and beyond, as well as regulatory risks, have increased the chance of an economic slowdown with the probability of a recession growing."
Intel reported a loss of $800 million on revenue of $12.7 billion in the first three months of this year. The chip maker forecast revenue of between $11.2 and $12.4 billion in the current quarter.
Bloomberg reported that more than 20 percent of staff could be laid off. 
When asked by AFP for more details about the job cuts, a spokeswoman did not offer figures, but referred to an email to staff from Tan, who said the layoffs would begin in the current quarter and continue "over the next several months."
"As we refocus on engineering, we will also remove organizational complexity," Tan said in the note to staff. 
"There is no way around the fact that these critical changes will reduce the size of our workforce."
Malaysia-born tech industry veteran Tan, who took over as Intel chief executive in March, has said it "won't be easy" to overcome challenges faced by the company.

Competition from Nvidia

Intel is one of Silicon Valley's most iconic companies, but its fortunes have been eclipsed by Asian powerhouses TSMC and Samsung, which dominate the made-to-order semiconductor business. 
The company was also caught by surprise with the emergence of Nvidia as the world's preeminent AI chip provider.
Intel's niche has been in chips used in traditional computing processes being eclipsed by the AI revolution.
"I strongly believe we can reduce our costs while securing our future," Tan said.
"Our competitors are lean, fast and agile -- and that's what we must become to improve our execution."
Tan's predecessor, Pat Gelsinger, was forced out as Intel chief in December after the board lost confidence in his plans to turn the company around. 
Former US president Joe Biden's administration last year finalized a $7.9 billion award to Intel as part of an effort to bring semiconductor production to US shores.
But Intel in February extended the timeline for completing two new fabrication plants in Ohio, saying it is taking a prudent approach to the $28 billion project.
Intel has also delayed projects in Germany, Poland and Malaysia.
gc/sst

Britain

Ahead of marathon debut McColgan calls out social media abuse

  • McColgan said the solution was to make social media accounts verified and passport linked but said she will nevertheless maintain a social media presence with clear goals.
  • Eilish McColgan said on Thursday that she has been the target of body shaming on social media and called for accounts to be passport linked as she prepared for her first marathon.
  • McColgan said the solution was to make social media accounts verified and passport linked but said she will nevertheless maintain a social media presence with clear goals.
Eilish McColgan said on Thursday that she has been the target of body shaming on social media and called for accounts to be passport linked as she prepared for her first marathon.
McColgan said her target in Sunday's London Marathon is to beat the personal best of her mother Liz, who won the race in 1996 and was runner up in 1997. 
In March, when her mother reposted a video of McColgan training it drew, she said, "demeaning and abusive" responses, including comments describing her as anorexic.
"I've become pretty numb to it. Those comments I've had for years, they're nothing new," said McColgan.
She said many of those posting abuse hid behind opaque identities, although she added that some had¨"their name and face on there and they're fully brazen".¨
She said one was a teacher with a daughter and one was a man with three daughters and she wrote to them to express her dismay. 
"The only reason I call it out from time to time is that I know that I have a lot of young kids who do follow me and I don't want them to read it and think the reason I'm that fast is because I'm starving myself to do it,¨she said.
"I want people to see that what's being said is not my reality, it's actually the complete opposite of that."
London Marathon has not posted on its official X account since January, saying it is no longer a "positive place to be".
McColgan said the solution was to make social media accounts verified and passport linked but said she will nevertheless maintain a social media presence with clear goals.
"It's trying to get across to the next generation that to get the most out of your career the utmost priority is looking after your body. It doesn't matter what people online think."
"I've had a couple of people message to say they get bullied at school because of the way they look so it's helped them because if I'm in my 30s and still getting bullied for the way I look, it gives them a little more confidence to fight their corner."
McColgan, the reigning Commonwealth 10,000m champion representing Scotland, said she is targeting the marathon at the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles. 
She is making her 26.2-mile debut on Sunday and wants to match her mother's time of 2 hours 26 minutes 52 seconds in 1997.
"I'm absolutely bricking it. I've never been this scared! It's completely unknown," she said.
"I've done 21 miles in training, never got anywhere near 26. There's that thought process of what happens after 20 miles because I don't know."
but-pb/dmc

lifestyle

French independent studio's first video game draws fans

BY PHILIPPE SIUBERSKI

  • One of the studio's three co-founders said the high numbers -- rare for a game developed by an independent studio -- were "extremely encouraging".
  • Independent French studio Sandfall Interactive's first video game "Clair Obscur: Expedition 33" launched worldwide on Thursday but has already built up a solid community of fans eager to discover its post-apocalyptic fantasy world.
  • One of the studio's three co-founders said the high numbers -- rare for a game developed by an independent studio -- were "extremely encouraging".
Independent French studio Sandfall Interactive's first video game "Clair Obscur: Expedition 33" launched worldwide on Thursday but has already built up a solid community of fans eager to discover its post-apocalyptic fantasy world.
According to Metacritic, which aggregates video games reviews, it had a 92 out of 100 "universal acclaim" score -- the highest so far this year.
More than a million players have also added the "turn-based" role-playing game to their wish-list, according to the company, which was set up in 2020 in Montpellier, southern France.
One of the studio's three co-founders said the high numbers -- rare for a game developed by an independent studio -- were "extremely encouraging".
"We are coming to the end of four years of production and even longer for some of us," Francois Meurisse told AFP a few days before the game's release.
"We're now at a crucial moment," he added calmly.
Sandfall Interactive's 20 or so employees sit serenely behind a bank of screens on the first floor of an Art Deco-style mansion in the southern coastal city of Montpellier.
The building's high ceilings, marble-accented bathroom and large garden ideal for drinks fits perfectly with the fantasy "Belle Epoque" spirit of the game.

Fierce battles

For players, "Expedition 33" starts in "Lumiere", a city on an island whose iconic buildings recall the real-life City of Light -- Paris.
But while passers-by are dressed in 1900s fashion, most of the buildings barely remain standing after a disaster whose nature is gradually revealed.
Just as intriguing is a gigantic monolith which displays the number "34", corresponding to the age at which the city's inhabitants "fade away" and turn into flowers.
Worse still, an enigmatic "Paintress" lowers this age every year, cutting life expectancy accordingly.
As characters Gustave, Maelle, Lune, Sciel or Monaco, players must leave the island and explore a vast continent across the sea where, among forests and ruins, the heavily armed minions of the Paintress await.
Between cinematic sequences, the player-explorer must fight fierce battles to try to reach level 33, which should take at least 30 hours, and twice as long to explore the entire universe and solve side puzzles.
The story also provides its share of "unpredictable" twists and turns, according to its creators, who have chosen not to display an on-screen map allowing players to locate themselves.

Inspired by 'Final Fantasy'

At the studio, Guillaume Broche holds the key role of "creative director" for the game, which he has overseen from start to finish and is now available on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S and PC.
He conceived the adventure more than five years ago and wanted it to be a "role-playing" game, inspired by the famous "Final Fantasy" series but in an environment resembling late 19th, early 20th-century France.
Broche was working in Sweden for the French gaming giant Ubisoft and spoke to a colleague, Tom Guillermin, about the project.
At the end of the first Covid lockdown, they teamed up with Meurisse and founded Sandfall Interactive in Montpellier, which has a long-established video game industry.
In 2022, the three young entrepreneurs were at a specialised trade show in San Francisco when they met London-based publisher Kepler Interactive.
Kepler provided them with funding and took charge of marketing and distribution -- and also helped them gain international recognition.
In June last year, Microsoft announced that "Expedition 33" would also be included on the release date in its Game Pass subscription service.
Since then, interest and anticipation have grown.
siu-kf/ol/jp/zub/phz/rlp

skhynix

SK hynix posts record profits thanks to strong AI demand

  • The news comes after Taiwanese chip giant TSMC last week announced a surge in net profit for the first quarter and forecast robust demand for artificial intelligence technology, despite the spectre of US tariffs on the critical sector.
  • South Korean chip giant SK hynix reported record quarterly profits Thursday thanks to soaring global demand for artificial intelligence, highlighting the firm's ability to weather mounting tariff threats.
  • The news comes after Taiwanese chip giant TSMC last week announced a surge in net profit for the first quarter and forecast robust demand for artificial intelligence technology, despite the spectre of US tariffs on the critical sector.
South Korean chip giant SK hynix reported record quarterly profits Thursday thanks to soaring global demand for artificial intelligence, highlighting the firm's ability to weather mounting tariff threats.
The world's second-largest memory chip maker dominates the market for high-bandwidth memory (HBM) semiconductors and is a key supplier for US titan Nvidia.
SK hynix said it recorded an operating profit of 7.44 trillion won ($5.19 billion) -- a nearly 158 percent year-on-year increase -- on revenues of 17.64 trillion won from January–March. 
Both figures marked the company's second-highest quarterly results on record, following last quarter's performance.
The news comes after Taiwanese chip giant TSMC last week announced a surge in net profit for the first quarter and forecast robust demand for artificial intelligence technology, despite the spectre of US tariffs on the critical sector.
Net income also quadrupled compared to the previous year to 8.11 trillion won ($5.67 billion), with the firm saying the "memory market ramped up faster than expected due to competition to develop AI systems and inventory accumulation demand".
The company added that its annual HBM sales for this year are expected to double compared to last year.
Despite the news, SK hynix's shares fell more than one percent in Seoul morning trade.

Less affected

South Korea is a major exporter to the United States and its powerhouse semiconductor and auto industries would suffer greatly under President Donald Trump's looming 25 percent tariffs.
The country is also home to the world's largest memory chip maker, Samsung.
Experts say SK hynix's resilience is because of the company's growth in the DRAM market.
SK hynix recently took the lead in DRAM revenues with a 36 percent market share, according to specialist research firm Counterpoint, surpassing Samsung for the first time and marking the first change in the top spot in over four decades.
"Right now the world is focused on the impact of tariffs, so the question is: what's going to happen with HBM DRAM?" said Counterpoint research director MS Hwang. 
"At least in the short term, the segment is less likely to be affected by any trade shock as AI demand should remain strong. More significantly, the end product for HBM is AI servers, which -- by definition -- can be borderless."
During a conference call, SK hynix noted that "uncertainty has grown around demand for semiconductors", but sales plans for key clients for the company this year "remain unchanged".
"Global customers are, overall, maintaining their previously discussed memory demand levels with us," said an SK hynix official. 
"Additionally, some clients are pulling forward demand by requesting short-term supply advances," the company said. 
The company also noted that while roughly three-fifths of its sales are to US-based customers, tariffs apply only to products shipped directly to the United States. 
"Even when our clients are headquartered in the US, memory products are often shipped to locations outside the US, meaning the actual proportion of direct exports to the US is not particularly high," an SK hynix official said.
hs/fox

Nintendo

Nintendo bullish on Switch 2 pre-sales in Japan

  • An X post attributed to company president Shuntaro Furukawa published Wednesday said there had been 2.2 million pre-order applications for the new console in Japan.
  • Nintendo shares surged Thursday after the gaming giant boasted of higher than expected demand in Japan for pre-orders of its hotly anticipated Switch 2 console.
  • An X post attributed to company president Shuntaro Furukawa published Wednesday said there had been 2.2 million pre-order applications for the new console in Japan.
Nintendo shares surged Thursday after the gaming giant boasted of higher than expected demand in Japan for pre-orders of its hotly anticipated Switch 2 console.
The successor to the Switch -- the third best-selling console ever behind Sony's PlayStation 2 and the Nintendo DS -- is set to hit shelves worldwide on June 5.
And the stakes are high: although Nintendo is diversifying into theme parks and hit movies, analysts say around 90 percent of its revenue comes from the Switch business.
An X post attributed to company president Shuntaro Furukawa published Wednesday said there had been 2.2 million pre-order applications for the new console in Japan.
This is an "extremely high" number which "greatly exceeds our initial expectations", the post said.
"It also significantly exceeds the quantity of Switch 2 consoles" that can be delivered on the release date.
"Therefore, it is expected that a considerable number of customers will not win the lottery when the winners are announced" on Thursday, for which "we deeply apologise".
Shares in the Kyoto-based company gained as much as 5.5 percent on Thursday following the bullish announcement.
Nintendo in early April revealed details about the Switch 2, which like its predecessor is a hybrid console that can be used on the go or connected to a TV screen.
However the price has raised eyebrows at over a third more than the original Switch in major markets including the United States, where it will cost $449.99.
A Japanese-only version for domestic consumers will be cheaper at 49,980 yen ($350).
"Uncertainty around reciprocal tariffs, global trade and higher component costs" mean a price drop is unlikely within the next five years, industry research firm Niko Partners said earlier this month.
Nintendo delayed pre-orders for the Switch 2 in the United States by several weeks as it assessed the fallout from US President Donald Trump's trade levies.
kh-kaf/hmn

television

YouTube says more than 20 billion videos uploaded in 20 years

  • YouTube says that it now sees an average of some 20 million videos uploaded daily.
  • YouTube on Wednesday celebrated more than 20 billion videos being uploaded to the platform since the first clip debuted two decades ago.
  • YouTube says that it now sees an average of some 20 million videos uploaded daily.
YouTube on Wednesday celebrated more than 20 billion videos being uploaded to the platform since the first clip debuted two decades ago.
The online video-sharing platform has evolved from a dinner party lark into a modern lifestyle staple poised to overtake US cable television in paid viewership.
PayPal colleagues Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim conceived YouTube in 2005, reportedly during a dinner party. The domain YouTube.com launched on Valentine's Day that year.
Video uploading capabilities were added on April 23, when Karim posted the first video, titled "Me at the Zoo." The 19-second clip showing Karim at the San Diego Zoo's elephant exhibit has garnered 348 million views.
Over the next 20 years, the site expanded beyond what was imagined possible back in 2005.
YouTube says that it now sees an average of some 20 million videos uploaded daily.
The platform hosts everything from concert clips and podcasts to political ads, tutorials and much more.
YouTube has become the world's largest digital video service in terms of time spent by viewers and ad revenue, according to eMarketer analyst Ross Benes.
The platform reached more than 2.5 billion viewers globally last year, and hit 100 million subscribers to its music and premium tier, according to market tracker Statista. 
YouTube is projected to surpass all US cable television services in paid subscribers within two years, according to Benes. 
Users worldwide watch more than a billion hours of YouTube content daily on television sets alone, Google reported.
YouTube said it will upgrade its TV viewing experience this summer with improved features and "quality tweaks," though it did not provide further details.
"If you go back 20 years, it would have seemed laughable that this website with kids making parody videos would become a threat to Disney, ABC, and CBS," Benes said. 
"That's what they were able to accomplish."
Analysts consider Google's 2006 purchase of YouTube for $1.65 billion in stock a pivotal moment, combining Google's search and advertising expertise with a video-sharing platform that had passionate users.
Google used its advertising know-how to build a successful model, sharing revenue with creators who attracted significant audiences. 
The company enhanced technology and negotiated with studios to address copyright violations on what was once considered the Wild West of video content.
YouTube also worked its way past concerns that disturbing content, like parody videos of popular cartoon characters in violent or risque situations, were being served up to children by its recommendation software.
The platform now competes with streaming services like Netflix, Disney, and Amazon Prime, as well as short-form video platforms like TikTok and Instagram's Reels.
gc/jgc

religion

Asked to predict the next pope, AI bots hedge bets

  • Each emphasised the near impossibility of forecasting the outcome.
  • Artificial intelligence was struggling on Wednesday to forecast the outcome of the notoriously secretive and unpredictable process by which Catholic cardinals elect a new pope.
  • Each emphasised the near impossibility of forecasting the outcome.
Artificial intelligence was struggling on Wednesday to forecast the outcome of the notoriously secretive and unpredictable process by which Catholic cardinals elect a new pope.
The April 21 death of Pope Francis triggered a period of mourning in the Catholic Church, but also kick-started the race for his successor, with everyone from Vatican insiders to bookmakers scrambling to guess who it will be.
AFP asked four AI chatbots -- including OpenAI's ChatGPT and billionaire Elon Musk's Grok -- for insights into the potential frontrunners, with mixed results.
Grok and Google's Gemini said their top contender is Italian Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Vatican's number two during nearly all of Francis's papacy.
"Based on current analysis and prominent discussions, Cardinal Pietro Parolin emerges as a strong contender," said Gemini.
But it also listed some eight others -- including ChatGPT's leading pick.
"If I had to make a prediction based on current trends, influence, and the direction the Church has taken under Pope Francis, Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle stands out as the most likely candidate," Open AI's ChatGPT said.
Tagle is Asia's frontrunner for the papacy and like Francis, seen as a leading advocate for the poor, migrants and marginalised people.
But one similarity in the chatbots' responses stood out.
Each emphasised the near impossibility of forecasting the outcome.
"It's important to understand that while AI can analyze data and identify patterns, predicting the next Pope involves factors that go beyond data analysis," said Gemini.
These include the cardinals' theological stances, age, experience, and the secrecy surrounding the vote.
ChatGPT made it clear that its guess was "not a prediction in the crystal ball sense", but rather "a 'here's what the cardinals might consider' kind of thing".
Meanwhile, French company Mistral AI refused to get dragged into the guessing game at all.
"I don't have the ability to predict or speculate on who the next Pope will be," it said.
Mistral did offer one suggestion: "For the most accurate and up-to-date information, I recommend following reliable news sources."
ekf/jh/rlp

media

200 French media groups sue Meta over 'unlawful' advertising: lawyers

  • Meta did not respond immediately when contacted by AFP. The lawyers representing the media groups pointed out that Meta and Google dominate the online advertising market.
  • Around 200 French media groups, including leading television channels and newspapers, are taking legal action against Meta, the owner of Facebook and Instagram, over its online advertising practices, their lawyers announced on Wednesday.
  • Meta did not respond immediately when contacted by AFP. The lawyers representing the media groups pointed out that Meta and Google dominate the online advertising market.
Around 200 French media groups, including leading television channels and newspapers, are taking legal action against Meta, the owner of Facebook and Instagram, over its online advertising practices, their lawyers announced on Wednesday.
The social media giant is accused of "targeting advertisements based on the massive and unlawful collection of users’ personal data," according to a statement from their lawyers, French firm Darrois and US-based Scott+Scott.
The plaintiffs filed a lawsuit against the company on Wednesday before the Paris commercial court, seeking "compensation for the massive economic harm ... caused by the unfair business practices of the American giant." 
According to them, Meta "massively collected users' personal data without informing them or seeking their consent," in violation of European data protection rules.
"By exploiting this data to offer ultra-targeted advertising, Meta was able to capture the majority of advertising investments to the detriment of the media," said the lawyers, describing this joint legal action as a "historic first."
The list of plaintiffs includes public and private TV stations from TF1 to France Televisions, state radio broadcaster Radio France, newspapers Le Figaro and Liberation, as well as local magazine publishers.
Meta did not respond immediately when contacted by AFP.
The lawyers representing the media groups pointed out that Meta and Google dominate the online advertising market.
"Together, they account for 75 percent of the market and 90 percent of its growth," they stated, adding that advertising makes up 98 percent of Meta's global turnover. 
"Without Meta’s unfair practices, French media outlets would have received a significantly larger share of digital advertising investment," the lawyers argued.
The European Union slapped Meta with a 200-million-euro ($227 million) fine on Wednesday for violating rules on the use of personal data on Facebook and Instagram.
The fine targeted Meta's "pay for privacy" system, which means users have to pay to avoid data collection or agree to share their data with Facebook and Instagram to keep using the platforms for free.
pr/adp/rl

Trump

Moving fast and breaking everything: Musk's rampage through US govt

BY SEBASTIAN SMITH

  • One of his first and splashiest moves was to send emails to 2.3 million civil servants, offering buyouts -- and making clear their futures now hang by a thread.
  • In Silicon Valley, they talk about "moving fast and breaking things."
  • One of his first and splashiest moves was to send emails to 2.3 million civil servants, offering buyouts -- and making clear their futures now hang by a thread.
In Silicon Valley, they talk about "moving fast and breaking things." In Washington, these days, they call it Elon Musk doing his job.
The one thing even Musk, the richest human alive, is not allowed to obtain under the US constitution is the presidency, because he was not born in the United States.
But when Donald Trump charged him with downsizing the entire government, Musk scored a good second best.
The South African-born 53-year-old's official title is the non-descript "special government employee." In reality, he is one of the most powerful individuals in the country.
As Trump's top financial supporter during last year's election, Musk emerged over the first 100 days of the new administration with extraordinary access.
The bulky figure, usually wearing a T-shirt and Trump-themed baseball cap, appeared alongside the president at cabinet meetings and Oval Office sessions. On golf weekends. On Marine One. On Air Force One.
And he rode that authority to launch the cost-cutting, so-called Department of Government Efficiency.
Unopposed by Trump's pliant Republican majority in Congress, and barely slowed by lawsuits, the Tesla and SpaceX magnate hit the task with the manic energy of a venture capitalist.
In a shock-and-awe campaign, he ripped through official Washington, canceling programs, raiding secretive computers, and portraying the US government as a seething mess of fraud.
At one point Musk projected a staggering $2 trillion saving from the $7 trillion federal budget. This then became a $1 trillion target.
And the number has quietly continued to dwindle, leaving Musk's legacy uncertain -- in more ways than one.
As his Tesla car company posted a shocking 71 percent drop in first-quarter profits on Tuesday, Musk announced he would be reducing his White House gig.

Shock and awe

But the man who wants to colonize Mars is not prone to self-doubt.
Musk has appeared all-powerful and at times -- as his handpicked team of young IT wizards rampage through government computer systems -- all-knowing.
One of his first and splashiest moves was to send emails to 2.3 million civil servants, offering buyouts -- and making clear their futures now hang by a thread.
The email subject line, "Fork in the Road," was the same as a similar email Musk sent out to employees at Twitter after he bought the social media company before drastically reducing jobs and rebranding it as X.
Musk also demanded every single employee respond to a weekly email describing five things they'd accomplished. This, he said, was to check staff had a "pulse."
He jokingly brandished a shiny chainsaw gifted by Argentina's libertarian president, Javier Milei.

Ending US foreign aid

Initial results were dramatic.
Within weeks of Trump taking office, Musk's DOGE crew effectively shut down USAID, the main US foreign aid organization. Staff at headquarters in Washington were told to go home, life-saving programs around the world were frozen, and some government employees were stranded abroad.
Other early targets included any government projects based on DEI, or diversity, equity and inclusion -- anathema to the Trump government.
Musk's DOGE has also tried to shut down the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, a watchdog agency meant to guard ordinary Americans against bank malpractice, but seen in Trump world as a meddling leftist entity.
In that, as in the other attacks, DOGE's modus operandi was the same: Musk's team of outsiders entered the CFPB's internal computer systems, taking over the financial controls and social media accounts, then locked out staff.
"CFPB RIP," Musk posted on X.

Trouble in Musk's world

Signs are emerging after three months that Musk's political rocket ship, at least, may finally be losing altitude.
Liberals, who once saw Musk as a cult hero for overseeing the ground-breaking electric cars, now slap on bumper stickers awkwardly declaring they bought their Tesla "before Elon went crazy."
Others have taken darker routes -- vandalizing or setting fire to Teslas.
And the company's stock price continues to tank.
Then there's the matter of DOGE's effectiveness.
Setting aside the often traumatic damage inflicted on longstanding government bodies, there's increasing doubt over the actual savings.
This month, Musk announced a much smaller $150 billion target -- and even that is questionable, because the DOGE website, which tracks savings, is reportedly error-strewn.
Where does Musk go next?
Under the law, a "special" employee can only serve the government for 130 days. So in theory Musk will have to leave this summer anyway.
"He's going to be going back" to his businesses, Trump said. "He wants to."
sms/jbr

Bluesky

X rival Bluesky adds blue checks for trusted accounts

  • Bluesky is starting out such "trusted verifiers" with blue checks and plans to eventually launch a request form for accounts seeking the mark of authenticity, the team said.
  • X rival Bluesky on Monday said it was adding blue checks to accounts that have been verified to confirm users are who they claim to be.
  • Bluesky is starting out such "trusted verifiers" with blue checks and plans to eventually launch a request form for accounts seeking the mark of authenticity, the team said.
X rival Bluesky on Monday said it was adding blue checks to accounts that have been verified to confirm users are who they claim to be.
In a blog post, the company said it would "proactively verify authentic and notable accounts and display a blue check next to their names."
"Trust is everything," the team said in the post.
The move mirrors a feature once deployed at Twitter in an effort to thwart imposters and help users know when account holders were authentic.
Billionaire Elon Musk did away with verifying who was behind accounts after he bought Twitter, now called X, in 2022.
Instead, Musk offered blue check marks to those paying for subscriptions for an X Premium tier on the social network.
"Social media has connected us in powerful ways, but it hasn't always given us the tools to know who we're interacting with or why we should trust them," the Bluesky team said in its post.
Bluesky was created by Twitter co-founder Jack Dorsey as a side project in 2019. 
Dorsey pulled five engineers aside to build a decentralized alternative to Twitter. 
He said at the time that centralized attempts to police abuse and misinformation on a platform like Twitter were unlikely to work, and that he wanted to give users more control of personal data and content moderation. 
Bluesky did not see the light of day until 2023, the year after Twitter was bought by Musk -- a key ally of US President Donald Trump who has pushed misinformation on his platform since his takeover.
Bluesky said in a post early this year that it had grown to more than 30 million users.
The burgeoning social media network already lets individuals and organizations verify who they are by letting them use their website addresses as their user names, and more than 270,000 accounts use that option, according to the platform.
Bluesky is starting out such "trusted verifiers" with blue checks and plans to eventually launch a request form for accounts seeking the mark of authenticity, the team said.
Bluesky's chief operating officer Rose Wang said in a recent interview with AFP that she was optimistic about the social network's trajectory.
"We really see this as our coming-out year," she said. 
"People want to know what's happening in the world and need a safe, moderated space to discuss it, have fun, and make friends. Right now, they're not finding that anywhere else."
gc/sla/aha

technology

US urges curb of Google's search dominance as AI looms

BY GLENN CHAPMAN

  • - Ad tech under fire - Google's battle to protect Chrome renewed just days after a different US judge ruled this month that it wielded monopoly power in the online ad technology market, in a legal blow that could rattle the tech giant's revenue engine.
  • US government attorneys urged a federal judge Monday to make Google spin off its Chrome browser, arguing artificial intelligence is poised to ramp up the tech giant's online search dominance.
  • - Ad tech under fire - Google's battle to protect Chrome renewed just days after a different US judge ruled this month that it wielded monopoly power in the online ad technology market, in a legal blow that could rattle the tech giant's revenue engine.
US government attorneys urged a federal judge Monday to make Google spin off its Chrome browser, arguing artificial intelligence is poised to ramp up the tech giant's online search dominance.
The Department of Justice (DOJ) made its pitch at a hearing before District Judge Amit Mehta, who is considering "remedies" after making a landmark decision last year that Google maintained an illegal monopoly in online search.
"Nothing less than the future of the internet is at stake here," Assistant Attorney General Gail Slater said prior to the start of the hearing in Washington.
"If Google's conduct is not remedied, it will control much of the internet for the next decade and not just in internet search, but in new technologies like artificial intelligence."
Google is among the tech companies investing heavily to be among the leader in AI, and is weaving the technology into search and other online offerings.
Google countered in the case that the United States has gone way beyond the scope of the suit by recommending a spinoff of its widely used Chrome, and holding open the option to force a sale of its Android mobile operating system.
The legal case focused on Google's agreements with partners such as Apple and Samsung to distribute its search tools, noted Google president of global affairs Kent Walker.
"The DOJ chose to push a radical interventionist agenda that would harm Americans and America's global technology leadership," Walker wrote in a blog post.
"The DOJ's wildly overbroad proposal goes miles beyond the Court's decision."
The DOJ case against Google regarding its dominance in internet search was filed in 2020. 
Judge Mehta ruled against Google in August 2024.

Ad tech under fire

Google's battle to protect Chrome renewed just days after a different US judge ruled this month that it wielded monopoly power in the online ad technology market, in a legal blow that could rattle the tech giant's revenue engine.
The federal government and more than a dozen US states filed the antitrust suit against Alphabet-owned Google, accusing it of acting illegally to dominate three sectors of digital advertising -- publisher ad servers, advertiser tools, and ad exchanges.
The vast majority of websites use Google ad software products that, combined, leave no way for publishers to escape Google's advertising technology, the plaintiffs alleged.
District Court Judge Leonie Brinkema agreed with most of that reasoning, ruling that Google built an illegal monopoly over ad software and tools used by publishers, but partially dismissed the argument related to tools used by advertisers.
"Google has willfully engaged in a series of anticompetitive acts to acquire and maintain monopoly power in the publisher ad server and ad exchange markets for open-web display advertising," Brinkema said in her ruling.
The judge concluded that Google further entrenched its monopoly power with anticompetitive customer policies and by eliminating desirable product features.
Online advertising is the driving engine of Google's fortune and pays for widely used online services like Maps, Gmail, and search offered free.
Money pouring into Google's coffers also allows the Silicon Valley company to spend billions of dollars on its artificial intelligence efforts.
Combined, the courtroom defeats have the potential to leave Google split up and its influence curbed.
Google said it is appealing both rulings.
gc/jbr

NBA

AI only just beginning to revolutionize the NBA game

BY THOMAS URBAIN

  • Ten years later, new tech upgraded renderings of the court from 2D to 3D, unlocking even more precious data.
  • It's not a scene out of the future, but a reality on the hard courts of today.
  • Ten years later, new tech upgraded renderings of the court from 2D to 3D, unlocking even more precious data.
It's not a scene out of the future, but a reality on the hard courts of today.
Using artificial intelligence, a top basketball team found the right defensive strategy that made the difference to win the NBA championship.
Data specialist Rajiv Maheswaran declines to name the outfit that leveraged AI analysis to victory, saying in a corporate video only that it happened several years ago.
That was "the moment that sealed it," added the co-founder of tech startup Second Spectrum, which provides the league with swathes of player positioning data gathered during crucial games.
Analytics have transformed the NBA over the past decade, with AI and other breakthroughs still ramping up.
Embryonic in the early 2000s, the revolution truly took hold with motion-capture cameras installed in every venue in 2013.
Ten years later, new tech upgraded renderings of the court from 2D to 3D, unlocking even more precious data.
Cameras track 29 points for each player "so you know not just where they are, but you know where their elbow is, and you know where their knee is," said Ben Alamar, a sports analytics writer and consultant.
"You're actually able to see, yes, that was a high quality (defensive) closeout," said Tom Ryan, head of Basketball Research and Development at the NBA, describing an often-used manouvre. 
"It's adding more context to that metric."
"Now all 30 teams are doing significant analysis with varying levels of success," said Alamar.
Houston, Golden State and Oklahoma City were often cited among early adopters at the turn of the 2010s.
This season, Oklahoma City is on top of regular season standings, "and they play different," said ESPN Analytics Group founder Dean Oliver. 
"They force turnovers, and they have very few turnovers themselves. So there are definitely advantages to be gained."
"It's not going to turn a 25-win team into a 70-win team during the season, but it can turn a 50-win team into a 55, 56-win team," according to Alamar.
AI allows for "strategic insights" like "understanding matchups, finding the situations where players perform well, what combinations of players," he added.

'Optimizing shots'

None of the dozen teams contacted by AFP agreed to discuss their work on analytics.
"Teams are (understandably) secretive," Oliver confirmed.
Even before 3D, motion capture data was already shifting the game, taking basketball from a more controlled pace to something looser and faster, he added.
The data showed that faster play secures more open looks and a higher percentage of shots -- a development that some criticize.
On average, three-point shot attempts have doubled over the last 15 years.
"As a league now, we look deep into analytics," Milwaukee point guard Damian Lillard noted at February's All-Star Game. 
While it perhaps "takes away the originality of the game... you've got to get in line with what's working to win."
The league is taking the issue seriously enough that Commissioner Adam Silver recently mentioned that "some adjustments" could be made to address it.
Even now, AI has "plenty of upside" yet to emerge, said Oliver. 
"The data is massive, but converting that into information, into knowledge that can be conveyed to players, that they can absorb, all of those steps are yet to be done."

'Get calls right'

The league itself is pursuing several analytics and AI projects, including for real-time refereeing.
"The ROI (return on investment) is very clear," said Ryan. "It's about getting more calls right, faster and in a transparent way to our fans."
"We would love a world where if a ball goes out of bounds and you're not sure who it went off of, rather than going to replay you look at high frame rate video in real time with 99.9 percent accuracy... That's really our North Star."
Spatial data can also extend the fan experience, shown off during the recent "Dunk the Halls" Christmas game between San Antonio and New York. 
An alternative telecast rendered the game in video game-style real-time display, with avatars replacing live action images.
"We want to experiment with all different types of immersive media," says Ryan. "We just want to be able to sell our game and present it in compelling ways."
tu/arp/tgb/sms

economy

China's CATL launches new EV sodium battery

  • Production of large batteries for electric and hybrid cars are due to follow in December of this year.
  • Chinese battery giant CATL launched on Monday a new sodium-ion battery it says will restructure the electric car industry, and a new system to combine two battery technologies into one car.
  • Production of large batteries for electric and hybrid cars are due to follow in December of this year.
Chinese battery giant CATL launched on Monday a new sodium-ion battery it says will restructure the electric car industry, and a new system to combine two battery technologies into one car.
The firm produces more than a third of all electric vehicle (EV) batteries sold worldwide, working with major brands including Tesla, Mercedes-Benz, BMW and Volkswagen.
Sodium-ion batteries are viewed as a cheaper and in some respects safer alternative to the lithium-ion batteries which are widely used in both electronics and electric vehicles but pose a fire risk if damaged.
"We will achieve mass production by the end of the year. It will restructure the whole industry," CATL's chief marketing officer Luo Jian told a news conference in Shanghai on Monday.
Production of the sodium-ion batteries is due to start in June, beginning with small starter batteries for heavy goods vehicles under the Naxtra brand. This new battery is expected to offer a major advantage for starting vehicles in cold weather.
Production of large batteries for electric and hybrid cars are due to follow in December of this year.
The sodium-ion batteries have "emerged from the labs and are now ready for commercial scale production", CATL CEO Robin Zeng told the news conference. 
Zeng said he sees sodium-ion batteries replacing half the market for lithium, iron and phosphate batteries.
While sodium-ion technology has been around for decades, it has lagged behind lithium-ion batteries in performance. But renewed interest in the technology has meant sodium-ion batteries can be manufactured without the need for certain costly metals.
CATL's Naxtra batteries promise a driving range of 500 kilometres (310 miles) for electric cars.
A few hours before the opening of the Shanghai Motor Show on Monday, CATL also launched the second generation of its Shenxing battery, due to be fitted in 67 cars this year belonging to Chinese brands Zeekr, Nio and Avatr.
The fast-charging battery boasts an 800-kilometre driving range, and a 520-kilometre range regained in just five minutes of charging time -- more than its Chinese rival BYD.
CATL is counting on the development of battery exchange systems, such as that of its partner Nio, to disseminate its new technologies.
But heavy tariffs imposed by US President Donald Trump on China could increase the price of parts and cars. 
CATL executives declined to comment on tariffs.
The US Defense Department has included CATL on a list of companies it accuses of affiliation with the Chinese military, a claim denied by CATL.
At the Shanghai Motor Show, the group also presented as its new dual battery system for EVs.
The firm's technical director Gao Huan said the dual system will offer more safety, particularly for self-driving cars, by preventing failure if one of the two batteries malfunctions.
A production date for the dual batteries, which have been in development for five years, has yet to be announced. But one car manufacturer is already using the dual system in its design of an autonomous car, Gao said.
stsz-ew/ak/dhw/dw

pope

Francis, a pope for the internet age

BY MARINE DO-VALE

  • Within months of its creation Benedict stepped down and Francis took over, immediately striking social media gold.
  • As an at-times unwitting star on social media, Pope Francis knew how to exploit the internet to preach the gospel, broadening the Church's appeal while modernising its communications.
  • Within months of its creation Benedict stepped down and Francis took over, immediately striking social media gold.
As an at-times unwitting star on social media, Pope Francis knew how to exploit the internet to preach the gospel, broadening the Church's appeal while modernising its communications.
Yet the head of the world's 1.4 billion Catholics, who died on Monday, likewise regularly warned against the scourge of disinformation, and in recent years took aim at the possible perils of artificial intelligence. 
It was his predecessor Benedict XVI who created the papal X presence @pontifex in 2012, at a time when the now-Elon Musk owned site was known as Twitter, in a bid at reaching younger people.
Within months of its creation Benedict stepped down and Francis took over, immediately striking social media gold.
The handle boasts a total of 50 million followers across its accounts in nine languages, among them English, Italian, Spanish, Portuguese, French, Polish, German and Arabic.
Even its account in long-dead Latin boasts one million followers. 
Then, in March 2016, three years to the day after he became pope, the Argentine went even further by creating an Instagram account. 
Today @Franciscus has nearly 10 million followers on the Meta-owned platform.
As on X, the Vatican posts daily photos and videos, mostly of a religious nature, as well as excerpts from the speeches, texts and public addresses of the religious leader. 
His last video on Instagram, which consisted of an extract of his speech for the Easter Sunday mass, was liked by nearly 400,000 people. 

'Disinformation and polarisation'

That popularity however has not prevented him from criticising the negative effects of social media. 
While they serve "better to connect us", they can "also reinforce our self-isolation", he notably said in 2019, adding that "they also lend themselves to the manipulation of personal data".
When Musk's X was accused of spreading false information and manipulating political debate and Europe in January 2024, Francis condemned "disinformation and polarisation, where a few centres of power control an unprecedented mass of data and information".
Just a few days earlier, he had already condemned an era of "fake news" and warned against the abuse of AI to "manipulate people's minds".
Francis himself has been the subject of AI-generated images that have gone viral on the web, showing the pontiff partying in a nightclub or getting married.
In March 2023, images of Pope Francis dressed in a white puffer jacket from luxury label Balenciaga and a bling crucifix in the fashion of American rappers became an internet sensation within a few hours. 
That is not to say that the Catholic Church has eschewed evangelising via AI entirely.
Today, worshippers wishing to learn more about Catholic faith, dogma and theology can do so on platforms such as CateGPT -- a play on the name of AI market leader ChatGPT -- and HelloBible.
mdv/sbk/rmb

cybercrime

Asian scam centre crime gangs expanding worldwide: UN

  • Chinese and Southeast Asian gangs are raking in tens of billions of dollars a year targeting victims through investment, cryptocurrency, romance and other scams -- using an army of workers often trafficked and forced to toil in squalid compounds.
  • Asian crime networks running multi-billion-dollar cyber scam centres are expanding their operations across the world as they seek new victims and new ways to launder money, the UN said on Monday.
  • Chinese and Southeast Asian gangs are raking in tens of billions of dollars a year targeting victims through investment, cryptocurrency, romance and other scams -- using an army of workers often trafficked and forced to toil in squalid compounds.
Asian crime networks running multi-billion-dollar cyber scam centres are expanding their operations across the world as they seek new victims and new ways to launder money, the UN said on Monday.
Chinese and Southeast Asian gangs are raking in tens of billions of dollars a year targeting victims through investment, cryptocurrency, romance and other scams -- using an army of workers often trafficked and forced to toil in squalid compounds.
The activity has largely been focused in Myanmar's lawless border areas and dubious "special economic zones" set up in Cambodia and Laos.
But a new report from the UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) warned the networks are building up operations in South America, Africa, the Middle East, Europe and some Pacific islands.
"We are seeing a global expansion of East and Southeast Asian organised crime groups," said Benedikt Hofmann, UNODC Acting Regional Representative for Southeast Asia and the Pacific.
"This reflects both a natural expansion as the industry grows and seeks new ways and places to do business, but also a hedging against future risks should disruption continue and intensify in Southeast Asia."
Countries in east and southeast Asia lost an estimated $37 billion to cyber fraud in 2023, the UNODC report said, adding that "much larger estimated losses" were reported around the world.
The syndicates have expanded in Africa -- notably in Zambia, Angola and Namibia -- as well as Pacific islands such as Fiji, Palau, Tonga and Vanuatu.

Laundering through crypto

Besides seeking new bases and new victims, the criminal gangs are broadening their horizons to help launder their illicit income, the report said, pointing to team-ups with "South American drug cartels, the Italian mafia, and Irish mob, among many others".
Illicit cryptocurrency mining -- unregulated and anonymous -- has become a "powerful tool" for the networks to launder money, the report said.
In June 2023 a sophisticated crypto mining operation in a militia-controlled territory in Libya, equipped with high-powered computers and high-voltage cooling units, was raided and 50 Chinese nationals arrested.
The global spread of the syndicates' operations has been driven in part by pressure from authorities in Southeast Asia.
A major crackdown on scam centres in Myanmar this year, pushed by Beijing, led to around 7,000 workers from at least two dozen counrties being freed.
But the UN report warns that while such efforts disrupt the scam gangs' immediate activities, they have shown themselves able to adapt and relocate swiftly.
"It spreads like a cancer," UNODC's Hoffman said.
"Authorities treat it in one area, but the roots never disappear, they simply migrate."
Alongside the scam centres, staffed by a workforce estimated by the UN to be in the hundreds of thousands, the industry is further enabled by new technological developments.
Operators have developed their own online ecosystems with payment applications, encrypted messaging platforms and cryptocurrencies, to get round mainstream platforms that might be targeted by law enforcement.
pdw/dhw

Hegseth

US defense chief shared sensitive information in second Signal chat: US media

  • The Times reported that Hegseth had shared information in the second Signal group chat on the same March 15 strikes that were discussed in the accidental leak.
  • US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth shared information on forthcoming US air strikes on Yemen in a private Signal chat group that included his wife, brother and personal lawyer, the New York Times and CNN reported on Sunday.
  • The Times reported that Hegseth had shared information in the second Signal group chat on the same March 15 strikes that were discussed in the accidental leak.
US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth shared information on forthcoming US air strikes on Yemen in a private Signal chat group that included his wife, brother and personal lawyer, the New York Times and CNN reported on Sunday.
AFP was not able to independently verify the reports, which detailed what would be the second time Hegseth has been accused of sharing sensitive military information on the commercial messaging app with unauthorized personnel.
Last month, The Atlantic magazine revealed that its editor-in-chief was inadvertently included in a Signal chat in which officials including Hegseth and National Security Advisor Mike Waltz discussed the strikes, which took place on March 15.
The revelation sparked an uproar, with US President Donald Trump's administration facing a scandal over the accidental leak. A Pentagon Inspector-General's probe into that leak is ongoing.
Hegseth is facing increasing criticism from within his own camp, with three former staffers penning a statement decrying their dismissals and his own former Pentagon spokesman all but calling for him to be fired on Sunday.
The Times reported that Hegseth had shared information in the second Signal group chat on the same March 15 strikes that were discussed in the accidental leak.
The information shared "included the flight schedules for the F/A-18 Hornets targeting the Houthis in Yemen," the newspaper reported.
The outlet said that unlike the accidental leak where journalist Jeffrey Goldberg was mistakenly included in the group, this group chat was created by Hegseth. The other chat was initiated by Waltz.
"It included his wife and about a dozen other people from his personal and professional inner circle in January, before his confirmation as defense secretary," the Times' reported, citing unnamed sources.
Hegseth's wife Jennifer is a journalist and former Fox News producer. The group also included his brother Phil and Tim Parlatore, both of whom serve in roles at the Pentagon.
Parlatore also continues to serve as Hegseth's personal lawyer, the Times reported.
Responding to the report, Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell accused the New York Times of being "Trump-hating media."
"There was no classified information in any Signal chat, no matter how many ways they try to write the story," he said, without providing further specifics.
The Pentagon did not respond to AFP requests for specific details on what was shared in the defense secretary's Signal group chat.

'Unconscionable'

Trump largely pinned the blame for the earlier leak on Waltz, but has dismissed calls to fire top officials and insisted instead on what he called the success of the raids on the Yemeni rebels.
This week, three top Pentagon officials were put on leave pending investigations into unspecified leaks in the Defense Department.
Deputy chief of staff Darin Selnick, senior advisor Dan Caldwell and Colin Carroll hit back on Sunday, releasing a statement saying Pentagon officials had "slandered our character with baseless attacks."
"At this time, we still have not been told what exactly we were investigated for, if there is still an active investigation, or if there was even a real investigation of 'leaks' to begin with," they said in a joint statement posted on social media.
"While this experience has been unconscionable, we remain supportive of the Trump-Vance Administration's mission to make the Pentagon great again and achieve peace through strength."
Hours after the latest reported leak, Hegseth's former Pentagon spokesperson John Ullyot published a scathing opinion piece describing "a month of total chaos at the Pentagon."
"President Donald Trump has a strong record of holding his top officials to account. Given that, it's hard to see Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth remaining in his role for much longer," wrote Ullyot.
Democrats were quick to pounce on the latest allegations, with Senate Armed Services Committee ranking member Jack Reed calling for the Pentagon Inspector-General to include the latest allegations in its probe.
"If true, this incident is another troubling example of Secretary Hegseth's reckless disregard for the laws and protocols that every other military servicemember is required to follow," he said in a statement.
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