The Latest from Rita Liao
China’s vaping giant Relx gears up for US entry
The backlash against vaping in the United States has not deterred a Chinese challenger from entering the world’s largest vaping market. Relx, one of China’s largest e-cigarette companies,
TikTok’s Chinese rival Kuaishou becomes a popular online bazaar
In China, short video apps aren’t just for mindless time killing. These services are becoming online bazaars where users can examine products, see how they are grown and made and ask sellers que
Southeast Asia’s East Ventures on female VCs, foreign investment, consolidation
Melisa Irene‘s path to becoming a partner at one of Southeast Asia’s most esteemed venture capital firms is an unconventional one. “I always consider myself to be quite lucky,”
China tops 110 million 5G users in less than a year
More than 110 million users in China have signed up for 5G plans, announced president of the China Academy for Information and Communications Technology (CAICT), a think tank under the telecoms watchd
Neither Microsoft nor Oracle gets to buy TikTok US: Chinese state media
What a whirlwind of a Monday morning. Shortly after news broke that Microsoft is out of the picture in bidding for TikTok’s U.S. operations, and rumors began circulating that Oracle is the winne
Oracle boots out Microsoft and wins bid for TikTok, reports say
Update: The Oracle -TikTok tie-up is confirmed as a concept. Oracle put out a release earlier today saying that is party to an agreement in which it would partner with TikTok, and that the proposal ha
Huawei phones will start running on HarmonyOS in 2021
Huawei is planning to launch its proprietary Harmony operating system on smartphones in 2021, the firm announced at its annual developer conference in Dongguan on Thursday. The readiness of HarmonyOS
Viral article puts the brakes on China’s food delivery frenzy
For China’s food delivery workers, life can feel like a constant battle with algorithms, traffic police and disgruntled customers. An essay detailing the hazardous work conditions of China’
China presents ‘global standard for data security’
As tensions between the U.S. and China heighten over data security issues, Beijing took a proactive step to unveil a “data security initiative” that it believes can serve as “a globa
China bans Scratch, MIT’s programming language for kids
China’s enthusiasm for teaching children to code is facing a new roadblock as organizations and students lose an essential tool: the Scratch programming language developed by the Lifelong Kinder
Qualcomm-powered Chinese XR startup Nreal raises $40 million
Nreal, one of the most-watched mixed reality startups in China, just secured $40 million from a group of high-profile investors in a Series B round that could potentially bring more adoption to its po
Xiaomi backs Dyson’s Chinese challenger Dreame in $15 million round
Once known for its affordable smartphones, Xiaomi has in recent years been transforming itself into an online mall for consumer electronics by making deals and building relationships with hundreds of
PropertyGuru lands $220M from KKR and TPG to conquer Southeast Asia
Southeast Asia’s leading property listing company PropertyGuru is making great strides across the region as it secures a fresh investment of SG$300 million ($220 million), it announced this week
China’s logistics titan YTO nets close to $1B from Alibaba in overseas push
E-commerce has brought in a logistics boom in China over the last decade, transforming small-town delivery businesses into multinational corporations. One leading player, YTO, is gearing up for intern
TikTok parent ByteDance says it will ‘strictly follow’ China export controls
While Beijing has repeatedly spoken out against Washington’s pressure on Huawei, it has remained relatively quiet amid TikTok’s recent struggles in the U.S. As the red-hot video app approa
Podcast is social: How China’s Lizhi makes audio interactive
For Marco Lai, the founder of Chinese podcast network Lizhi, radio has always been social. Twenty years ago, the entrepreneur was a host at a radio station in southern China. He ran a late-night progr
TikTok CEO Kevin Mayer resigns after 100 days
Kevin Mayer, the chief executive of TikTok, announced on Wednesday that he is resigning, just over 100 days after the former Disney executive joined the world’s largest short-video app in mid-M
Meet the startups from Brinc’s first online Demo Day
Like other accelerators, Brinc hasn’t let 2020 get in the way of its program for early-stage startups. The firm is known for focusing on food technology, health tech, clean energy and hardware, and
BlackBerry makes China push as the OS for Xpeng smart cars
The once-pioneering BlackBerry is pretty much out of the smartphone manufacturing game, but the Canadian company has been busy transitioning to providing software for connected devices, including smar
Pinduoduo’s latest aim: Sell $145 billion of farm produce in 2025
Still working to turn a profit and shake off its fake-goods reputation, China’s e-commerce upstart Pinduoduo set itself another ambitious goal for 2025: surpass 1 trillion yuan or $145 billion a