Newsletter: The Rise of India and China Apparently Upsets America

Here is this week’s roundup of China innovation stories.

Two IT corridors bridge the gaps in aspects of cooperation between China and India. When seeking and establishing more common grounds, India and China upset the US for their rises in tech development, and Dawei Chen shed some lights on how China is “luring” Indian tech firms with market access and free rent.

News about internet giants include: Tencent and Bytedance have trouble getting along while Beijing-based bike-sharing company ofo is rumored to be in serious crisis.

Moreover, in Mary Meeker’s annual “Internet Trends Report”, 9 of the top 20 global internet leaders are from China while 11 are from the United States. Alibaba impressively ranks 6th on the list.

Enjoy reading China’s tech news this week!

Editor’s Pick

The Rise of India and China Apparently Upsets America

Lawsuits & Layoff

Tencent filed lawsuits last Wednesday against Bytedance, Douyin’s parent company and owner of Toutiao and Tik Tok, claiming 1 yuan for compensation and demanding public apologies to be published on the company’s new media platforms. A week later on June 1st, Toutiao fought back by suing Tencent, with a demand of 90 million yuan (US$14 million) in compensation.

According to a report on Huxiu.com, a record layoff is taking place at the headquarters of ofo, impacting up to 50% of the staff. Its co-founder Yu Xin, however, denied the rumors.

Market Briefings

Tujia.com, Airbnb’s equivalent in the China market, denied the rumor of a possible merger, stating that the two short-term rental service platforms have not been in any form of contact.

Kuaishou, one of China’s most popular video apps, confirmed that it has completed the purchase of AcFun to fully own China’s largest online video hosting platform.

Xiaohongshu (“Red” or “Little Red Book”), a shopping tip app gaining large popularity among Chinese millennials, just closed its $300 million Series D funding round led by Alibaba.

SenseTime, a Beijing-based company, raised $620 million in its latest Series C+ round of fundraising, remaining the world’s most valuable AI unicorn at a valuation of over $4.5 billion.

Uxin Limited, China’s leading used auto trading platform, filed for an IPO to seek investments of up to $500 million on Nasdaq.

Tech Giants

Alibaba’s Cainiao network showcased its new technologies at the 2018 Global Smart Logistics Summit and unveiled plans to expand its global network by opening five new hubs around the world.

Youku Inc. recently announced that it has gained new media broadcasting rights of the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia.

Ele.me, the leading food delivery platform in China, announced that the company will put drones to use for food delivery services in Shanghai, marking a new era for food delivery.

Mary Meeker published the 23rd edition of the annual “Internet Trends Report” and among today’s top 20 global internet leaders (ranked by market value), 9 of them are from China and the other 11 from the U.S.

New Releases

On May 31, the product launch of Xiaomi Mi 8 was held at the Shenzhen Universiade Stadium as scheduled, during which Xiaomi CEO Lei Jun unveiled seven new products.

Lenovo officially released three new phones in Beijing: Lenovo Z5, Lenovo K5 Note, Lenovo A5, and the smartwatch Watch X.

Republic of Gamers (ROG) by ASUS, released its first gaming smartphone in Taiwan.

Meizu released its new budget phone the Mblu 6T starting at $124.

Podcast

This week on TechBuzz China by Pandaily, co-hosts Ying-Ying Lu and Rui Ma look at the resignation of Baidu COO and tech genius Lu Qi and how the move brought tidal waves of speculations, commentary, and reactions to the Chinese tech world.