The Latest from Rita Liao
How a Chinese anti-virus software maker builds a fintech firm to wrestle with giants
360 Finance, an online consumer loan platform that spun off from China’s anti-virus service giant 360 Group, has joined a raft of Chinese fintech companies to go public in the U.S. over the last
BMW’s premium ride-hailing service is now live in China
BMW has joined a handful of automakers to compete with transportation upstart Didi Chuxing, which bought Uber’s Chinese business in 2016. Last Friday, the German luxury carmaker launched a premi
China’s BYD further drives into Chile with 100 electric buses
Over the past few years, Chinese automaker giant BYD has been on a partnership spree with cities across China to electrify their public transportation systems, and now it’s extending its footpri
What China searched for in 2018: World Cup, trade war, Apple
Soon after Google unveiled the top trends in what people searched for in 2018, Baidu published what captivated the Chinese in a parallel online universe, where most of the West’s mainstream tech
China’s second-largest gaming company to sell comics assets to rival
China’s online youth entertainment platform Bilibili said it has agreed to buy major assets from the comics arm of gaming giant NetEase, which helped introduce Marvel’s first batch of Chi
Starbucks challenger Luckin snags $200M investment on $2.2B valuation
Luckin, a startup that vows to topple Starbucks’ dominance in China, announced on Wednesday that it’s lifted its valuation to $2.2 billion after raising $200 million in a Series B funding
A Chinese e-commerce app that lures grocery shoppers with cash just raised $100M in Series B
There is no shortage of up-and-comers jostling for a spot in China’s massive e-commerce industry, and oftentimes they pick a niche market and present a novel business model different from the e
Apple says iPhones remain on sale in China following court injunction
Apple has filed an appeal to overturn a court decision that could ban iPhone sales in China, the company said on Monday, adding that all of its models remain available in its third-largest market. The
Tencent Music sued by investor ahead of $1.2 billion US IPO
China’s largest music streaming service has had a whirlwind year. With 800 million monthly users across multiple apps and a profitable business, Tencent Music Entertainment is gearing up for one
Tencent-backed fleet manager G7 racks up $320M in funding
A sizable funding round is poised to heat up a race to automate China’s logistics infrastructure. Beijing-based fleet management company G7 announced on Monday that it has banked $320 million t
TikTok parent ByteDance said to raise $1.45 billion for AI and content
ByteDance, the Chinese company behind the immensely popular video app TikTok, is in talks to raise $1.45 billion for a new fund, The Information reported on Friday, citing sources. The fresh vehicle w
Mogu’s long journey: From rejecting Alibaba’s advances to US IPO
Mogu, a Tencent-backed service that offers fashion content and products to young women, has joined a string of Chinese tech companies pressing ahead to sell their shares through initial public offerin
Chinese stocks plummet as Huawei CFO arrest raises trade fears
A string of Chinese stocks fell hard on Thursday after the arrest of Huawei’s chief financial officer Meng Wanzhou in Vancouver deepened concerns over U.S.-China trade tensions. The Hang Seng Ch
China’s Didi restructures key units to improve safety following passenger deaths
China’s largest ride-hailing operator Didi Chuxing announced on Wednesday a major restructuring, which trails a series of tweaks to its core businesses following two separate passenger murders t
Alibaba replaces video streaming boss amid anti-corruption probe
A top-level reshuffle is sending shockwaves across one of China’s biggest online video businesses. Yang Weidong has stepped down as the president of Alibaba’s video streaming unit Youku, t
China’s Infervision is helping 280 hospitals worldwide detect cancers from images
Until recently, humans have relied on the trained eyes of doctors to diagnose diseases from medical images. Beijing-based Infervision is among a handful of artificial intelligence startups around the
China’s iQiyi to offer $500M convertible note as content costs balloon
Chinese video streaming service iQiyi is raising new cash as it feels the squeeze from surging content costs. The video business, which is owned by China’s online search giant Baidu, said on Wed
China’s Didi adds driver training program to counter sharp decline in rides
Didi Chuxing, China’s largest ride-hailing company by number of users, has been struggling to recover from a major setback following the deaths of two passengers earlier this year. On Wednesday,
China leaves Huawei founder off honor roll marking 40 years of economic success
In the lead up to China’s 40th anniversary of reforms and opening up, People’s Daily, the mouthpiece of the ruling Communist Party, published a list on Monday commending 100 extraordinary
Alibaba-backed parenting site Babytree starts taking orders for downsized IPO
A lot of Chinese millennials may be delaying or opting out of childbearing, but those who have committed to parenting often go all out to ensure their children grow up healthy and do well in school. O