US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer stated that the US is not receiving sufficient critical mineral exports from China despite ongoing high-level talks. He emphasized US leverage and efforts to boost domestic production to reduce dependency.
Hugging Face CEO Clément Delangue publicly thanked Chinese startup Z.ai for its open-source GLM 5.2 model, which helped defend against an OpenAI model hack. American closed-source models failed due to excessive guardrails, highlighting the value of unrestricted AI.
The Kimi K3, a new 2.8 trillion-parameter open-weight AI model from a Chinese developer, has drawn attention for its performance, prompting Washington's concern that Chinese developers may be circumventing US restrictions on AI models and advanced semiconductors.
Hong Kong authorities have warned of potential enforcement action against mainland Chinese dental chains suspected of operating illegally in the city, following reports from the Hong Kong Dental Association about promotional booths and issues with cross-border treatments.
Chile's foreign minister announced plans to diversify the country's copper buyers beyond its heavy reliance on China and attract approximately $100 billion in mining investment over the next decade, aiming to reduce market concentration.
U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent reiterated warnings to Chinese AI companies, stating sanctions are possible for IP theft, specifically citing Moonshot's alleged distillation of Anthropic's Fable model. A White House official also accused Moonshot of using banned Nvidia servers.
The White House and Beijing used subtly different phrases to describe their relationship, highlighting a broader US challenge in interpreting China's intentions. Analysts attribute this difficulty to funding cuts in US language programs, dwindling student exchanges, and reduced interest in learning Chinese, leading to fragmented China analysis.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio met Chinese counterpart Wang Yi in Manila to manage bilateral tensions ahead of a Trump-Xi summit. Discussions covered China's South China Sea conduct, US war against Iran, and US election meddling claims, with Rubio reiterating US defense treaty obligations to the Philippines after a recent maritime incident.
The Senate Commerce Committee advanced bipartisan legislation to toughen a ban on Chinese automakers from the U.S. market. However, Chairman Ted Cruz warned that the bill's 15% Chinese ownership threshold could unintentionally bar Mercedes-Benz due to its significant Chinese investment, necessitating changes before it becomes law.
After China's 2023 crackdown on online scams in Southeast Asia, criminal syndicates shifted their primary targets from Chinese nationals to Americans, leading to significant financial losses for US victims and creating a global "whack-a-mole" challenge.
GSMA, a telecom industry body, estimates the cost of removing high-risk vendors like Huawei and ZTE from EU telecoms networks at €30-40 billion, significantly higher than the European Commission's €10-13 billion estimate, citing equipment replacement and reduced competition.
The Trump White House is set to announce a 30-year civilian nuclear cooperation agreement with Saudi Arabia, allowing Riyadh to enrich uranium under conditions. The deal faces scrutiny in Washington over proliferation risks and regional security, contrasting with stricter past agreements.
The Chinese Medicine Hospital of Hong Kong will launch two strategic treatment programs for stroke and lower back pain next week, with bookings opening Wednesday. The hospital emphasizes the advantages of traditional Chinese medicine and a multidisciplinary approach, with more programs planned for the coming years.
Chinese social giant RedNote's AI model, dots-note-3.0, achieved a perfect score of 42 at the International Mathematical Olympiad (IMO) in Shanghai, solving all six puzzles. This marks the first time an AI has secured a perfect score in the prestigious competition, surpassing previous gold-medal-level performances by Google DeepMind and OpenAI.
Beijing plans to increase its intelligent computing power to over 130,000 petaflops by late 2026 and implement new policies for its "token economy," accelerating AI adoption to compete with the US in the tech race.
Top Chinese and American diplomats, Wang Yi and Daniel Kritenbrink, met in the Philippines to discuss President Xi Jinping's planned US trip and the South China Sea dispute. Wang described the meeting as "pragmatic, positive and constructive," urging "strategic stability" and "peaceful coexistence" despite acknowledged differences.
The US Coast Guard Cutter Munro actively monitored Chinese research ships Xuelong and Xuelong 2 as they transited northbound through the US exclusive economic zone and extended continental shelf in the Bering Sea towards the Arctic, marking the first such transit this year.
China's Ministry of Science and Technology and the European Commission have signed a two-year joint research funding agreement, supporting scientific cooperation until 2027 in areas like food, agriculture, biosolutions, climate change, and biodiversity.
US AI developers Anthropic and OpenAI welcomed Australia's new AI rules, which aim to provide clarity for investors and allow creatives control over their work. This comes as both companies saw billions in predicted value drop due to competition from Chinese startup Moonshot AI's new Kimi K3 model.
Philippine Foreign Minister Maria Theresa Lazaro and Chinese diplomat Wang held "candid, comprehensive and constructive" talks at the ASEAN meeting, discussing maritime disputes, security, trade, and regional stability, with Lazaro reiterating Manila's protest over China Coast Guard actions near Second Thomas Shoal.
Chinese and Australian diplomats, Wang and Wong, met in Manila, with China urging Australia to uphold non-interference and abandon double standards, while both sides expressed a desire for positive growth in relations despite disagreements.
Bank of China's Shenzhen and Fujian branches processed two cross-border transactions, each over US$1.7 billion, via the mBridge multilateral CBDC platform. This marks a significant step for the emerging payment network and China's ambition to internationalize the yuan, bypassing Western-centric financial systems.
Beijing-based AI start-up Moonshot AI is set to close its current funding round at a US$30 billion valuation and plans a subsequent round as early as August, targeting up to US$50 billion before a potential listing, according to a source familiar with the matter.
A man surnamed Si in Anyang, Henan province, faked his death in June last year to avoid prosecution for drink-driving, a case recently revealed by prosecutors. He staged a fatal overdose after being arrested in January and released on bail, fearing imprisonment due to prior offenses and debts.
