Robyn Mak

Unitree ‌sold 5,500 humanoid robots last year. Tesla sold none. Securing official approval for a ​rare Shanghai IPO will highlight the $6 ​bln Hangzhou firm's strategic role in ⁠Beijing's automation push. Yet breakneck tech ​advances threaten its impressive lead and rich ​margins.

Results ​due Thursday will confirm the $1.7 trln group's dominance ‌of cutting-edge AI processors. But Japan’s $16 bln bet on homegrown Rapidus and Elon Musk’s Intel tie-up show unease with the ​Taiwanese group's rule. Though a challenge will take ​years, pretenders are on the move.

Alibaba, $40 bln MiniMax and ⁠others flooded the ​market with cheap ​access to models that power agents and ​apps, turning artificial ​intelligence into a commodity. ‌But ⁠without new US chips, Chinese labs will lag Western ​ones. ​It's ⁠one industry where low ​prices might not ​be ⁠decisive.

The low valuation suggests founder Liang Wenfeng still favours innovation ​over profits. A $300 mln ​fundraise should help retain talent, but whether ⁠DeepSeek can keep up with ​US rivals OpenAI and Anthropic will ​be better determined by how the Chinese AI lab's next model performs.

Businesses ​may spend $680 bln on ⁠models, agents ​and more next ​year. Unlike predictable software subscriptions, pay-as-you-go AI bills ​are volatile. ​A correction looms for OpenAI ‌and ⁠its peers. But cloud computing shows the market ​can still ​grow ⁠even as CFOs try ​to rein in ​costs.

At two mega tech ‌confabs this week leaders from Nvidia and Intel lavished praise on the island’s role in global supply chains. As AI moves from the cloud to local devices, Taiwan's importance will grow. And with GDP set to expand 10%, Taipei also can boost spending on defense.

Kunlunxin may bag a $50 bln valuation, up 17-fold in ​months as semiconductor shortages ​continue, accounting for most of its ⁠top owner’s worth. The ​implied 25 times sales is akin ​to listed rivals. But the speed and disconnect highlight how the market ​is running uncomfortably hot.

AI advances, policy ⁠support and Unitree's ​dancing humanoids have ​turbocharged an industry with 50 IPOs in ​waiting and ​an estimate for $15 bln of ‌sales ⁠by 2030. Tech constraints, however, limit real-world uses ​and ​financial ⁠returns. A mechanical, EV-like ​boom and ​bust ⁠awaits.

Samsung ‌and SK Hynix are turning to multi-year contracts to protect earnings in the cyclical chip ​market. It's prudent given their $2 ​trln spending plans and warnings of ⁠faltering AI demand. But such agreements ​are only truly effective if they cover ​longer periods and more sales.

The ‌iPhone maker’s pursuit of low-end chips from a blacklisted producer spotlights a global shortage. ​For years, the West prioritised investing ​in advanced silicon. Now Chinese giants ⁠like CXMT, which has doubled its ​IPO fundraising target to $8.6 bln, will seize ​market share.