Plus: Robots will take manufacturing jobs, says Foxconn boss

Welcome to Computing’s weekly roundup of tech news in Asia. This time we look at Huawei’s launch of its first notebook featuring the HarmonyOS operating system, Foxconn CEO’s warning that low-end manufacturing jobs will soon be a thing of the past and Vietnam’s Telegram ban.

Despite recent agreements to reduce tariffs, the trade war between the US and China is still a cause of significant strife. China this week accused the US of protectionism and “abusing export controls” to impede its technological development. China has long had a policy to displace Microsoft Windows, and current users are struggling to upgrade to Windows 11 because of a ban on TPM chips. Now Huawei is looking to break the stranglehold of Windows and MacOS, launching its first laptop running HarmonyOS, its homegrown operating system previously restricted to smartphones, smart devices and tablets. The Harmony laptop is completely independent of any US technology, including Intel and Qualcomm, and the laptop comes with its own office suite plus hundreds of native apps.

Across the Taiwan Strait, Foxconn CEO Young Liu has urged world leaders to prepare for geopolitical upheaval due to the imminent loss of millions of low-end manufacturing jobs as robots and AI become capable of replacing them.

And Vietnam has instructed its telecoms companies to block the Telegram messaging app, saying that its owner has not done enough to crack down on alleged criminal activity by its users.

Australia

• Australia is trialling several technologies from more than 50 vendors to enact its social media ban for under-16s, which will take effect in December. Source
• The launch of Australia’s first orbital-class rocket has been delayed after the nose cone opened unexpectedly hours before its planned debut . Source

China

• The Chinese commerce ministry has accused the US of “abusing export controls to suppress and contain China” and engaging in “typical acts of unilateral bullying and protectionism.” Source
• Huawei Technologies has demonstrated its first in-house operating system for laptops, offering an alternative to Microsoft’s Windows as China reacts to US hawkishness by reducing its reliance on US tech. Source
• A court has sentenced the former chairman of Chinese semiconductor company Tsinghua Unigroup, to death. Zhao Weiguo was found guilty of corruption and embezzlement. Source
• The BeiDou satnav system, China’s answer to GPS, is now being used over 1 trillion times a day, and drove nearly $80 billion of economic output last year. Source
• Liang Liang, a deputy director at the Beijing Economic-Technological Development Area, has told media he does not believe humanoid robots will replace human workers, though will boost productivity. Source
• Despite the claims of a truce in the China-USA trade war, China has said it will impose a new 75% anti-dumping tax on American imports of polyformaldehyde copolymers, an important engineering plastic. Imports from other regions like Europe and Japan will face lower duties. Source
• Some Chinese companies are apparently investing in Trump’s cryptocurrency to avoid being delisted from Nasdaq. Source
• Shares in the Chinese battery making giant CATL have surged on their debut. The company accounts for nearly 40% of the global market for electric vehicle batteries, and the IPO is this years’ biggest to date globally. Source
• Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang has branded US semiconductor sanctions on China as a failure, saying it has boosted innovation in China’s manufacturers. Source
• Chinese manufacturing giant Lenovo said fourth-quarter profit plunged 64% in a result that sent shares plunging. Source
• Xiaomi, the world’s third-largest new electric SUV, the YU7, is expected to enter the market in July, founder and CEO Lei Jun said in a Weibo post. Source

India

• Parts of Bengaluru, a tech hub known as India’s Silicon Valley, have been flooded after heavy rainfall, and the city is bracing for more. Source
• A Delhi-based workers union has filed a complaint against Zepto’s Rural Mobilisation Program (RMP), accusing it of imposing “digital bonded labour” and exploitative working conditions. Source
• Singapore’s CapitaLand Investment is seeking investment from Gulf states to create a $250 million fund to build datacentres in India. Source
• The Supreme Court of India has raised the lack of regulations on cryptocurrencies with the Union Government. Source
• Uber has launched two services onto India’s Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC). The Delhi-based pilot has been a success and Uber will take further steps to integrate into India’s public digital infrastructure soon. Source
• Razorpay has announced a partnership with the MeitY Startup Hub aimed at providing local start-ups with access to advanced fintech infrastructure, mentorship and an innovation-first ecosystem. Source
• Samsung’s latest smartphone, the ultra-thin Galaxy S25 Edge is now being manufactured in India, the company said. Source

Japan

• Toshiba and other Japanese firms have accelerated their patent application filings for silicon carbide (SiC) power technology, challenging China’s Global Power Technology. Source
• The private equity arm of State-backed Japanese Investment Corp (JIC) has said its goal of driving consolidation in Japan’s chipmaking sector through portfolio firm JSR is unaffected poor financial performance at JSR which ended the year in March with an operating loss of 209 billion yen ($1.45 billion). Source
• NTT Docomo will stop supporting its own in-house emoji, the Japanese wireless carrier announced. Source
• IHI, the Japanese defence contractor plans to launch small observation satellites in conjunction with Finnish space tech company Iceye. Source

Taiwan

• Foxconn chair Young Li has predicted that the combination of generative AI and robotics will destroy low-end manufacturing jobs. He called for more rich countries to allow more immigration and to outsource more work to low-GDP nations, to keep the cost of goods low. Source
• Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang has announced plans for Taiwan’s “first AI supercomputer.” Source

Elsewhere in Asia

• Singapore: Singaporean asset manager CapitaLand Investment is targeting investors in the Gulf, hoping to tempt them to put money towards a $200 million-$250 million fund to build datacentres in India. Source
• Malaysia: Malaysia’s trade ministry is planning to boost its domestic semiconductor industry later this year according to state media reports. Source
• Pakistan: A Pakistan-based firm Majestic Ghostwriting has been accused of “widespread, intentional and coordinated effort to defraud both [trademark] applicants and the US Patent and Trademark Office”. Source
• Thailand: Japanese logistics company Mitsubishi Logistics has confirmed plans to build a large distribution centre in Thailand. Source
• Vietnam: The Vietnamese government has told the country’s telecoms companies to block Telegram for not cooperating in combating criminal activity. Source