🎙 The CTR Podcast — 18 August 2026
Your audio digest of China technology news. Today's podcast covers 10 stories.
Latest News
- Unitree Robotics is preparing a STAR Market IPO, positioning its advanced humanoid and quadruped robots as key domestic players capable of serving complex industrial needs in China.
Read the original story at Unitree Robotics Showcases Advanced Humanoid and Quadruped Robots in its IPO on China's STAR Market - Google plans to cease manufacturing Pixel products in China by 2027 as part of a broader strategy to diversify its global supply chain and mitigate geopolitical risks.
Read the original story at Google Plans to Cease Pixel Manufacturing in China by 2027 Amid Supply Chain Diversification - Beijing is recalibrating its energy plan, treating domestic fossil fuels as an insurance policy while aggressively directing future electricity growth toward renewables and nuclear power.
Read the original story at China Recalibrates Oil & Gas Strategy for Energy Security and Carbon Transition - Zhipu AI released GLM 5.3, an advanced open-weight LLM that demonstrates strong capabilities in complex reasoning and specialized cybersecurity threat analysis for developers.
Read the original story at Zhipu AI Unveils GLM 5.3: Advanced Open-Weight LLM for Cybersecurity - Waymo is integrating Chinese electric vehicles into its US robotaxi fleet, signaling a willingness by major American tech firms to source key components despite geopolitical tensions.
Read the original story at Waymo Integrates Chinese EVs into Robotaxi Fleet, Reshaping US Mobility - Hollywood struck the first major AI copyright agreement with Bytedance, establishing new licensing frameworks to protect intellectual property in generative video content.
Read the original story at Hollywood Strikes First Major AI Copyright Agreement with Chinese Tech Giant Bytedance - Apple is testing memory chips from Chinese manufacturers like CXMT as part of a pragmatic strategy to diversify its critical component supply chain amid global shortages.
Read the original story at Apple Diversifies Memory Sources by Testing Chinese Chip Manufacturers - Doodod raised $15M Series A funding to scale its "Agent Compiler" technology, aiming to standardize and automate complex business processes using AI agents.
Read the original story at Doodod Secures $15M Series A to Scale Agent Compiler Technology - Aliibaba and ByteDance are trimming non-core retail and gaming operations to aggressively redirect capital toward building defensible dominance in artificial intelligence.
Read the original story at Alibaba and ByteDance Pivot: Trimming Retail/Gaming for AI Dominance - China's CAC now mandates strict security measures, including encryption and de-identification, for large personal information processors handling sensitive user data.
Read the original story at China's CAC Mandates Strict Data Security for Large Personal Information Processors