Singapore-headquartered Neufast has raised USD 1.1 million in pre-Series A funding led by Wavemaker ...

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Singapore-headquartered Neufast has raised USD 1.1 million in pre-Series A funding led by Wavemaker Ventures, with participation from Wings Capital Ventures. Designed for sectors like insurance and public service, its AI-powered platform automates multilingual interviews and skills development, with reported clients in Hong Kong, Malaysia, and beyond.

Japanese startups are increasingly building on Alibaba Cloud’s Qwen open-source models, with Abeja’s QwQ-32B and other Qwen-based systems ranking among the top performers in Japanese AI benchmarks. <a href="/company/alibaba-cloud">Alibaba Cloud</a> plans to localize Qwen deployment, citing data sovereignty concerns, and aims to expand to over 1,000 Japanese corporate users within three years.

Low-altitude sightseeing flights under 1,000 meters proved popular across China during the Labor Day break, with cities offering tours via helicopters and unmanned aircraft from eVTOL providers like EHang. Despite strong demand, the industry faces regulatory bottlenecks, with over 800 UAVs awaiting certification amid limited staffing and safety oversight.

Hong Kong leader John Lee will lead a delegation to Qatar and Kuwait on May 10 to explore business ties, marking his second trip to the Middle East since 2023. The visit aims to promote Hong Kong’s role as a “superconnector” and strengthen cooperation with Gulf economies, alongside plans to open a new trade office in Saudi Arabia.

Zeekr appointed Lynk &amp; Co veteran Lin Jie to lead domestic marketing as the EV brand falls behind its 2025 sales target. He is supported by vice president Lin Jinwen, who now oversees service, network, and digital operations. The move follows an April sales decline and aligns with <a href="https://kr-asia.com/geely-brings-battery-operations-under-jiyao-tongxing-to-streamline-and-scale">Geely's broader restructuring</a>, including Jiyao Tongxing’s “golden battery” debut at Auto Shanghai.

<a href="/company/shein">Shein</a> and <a href="/company/temu">Temu</a> ramped up digital ad spending in Europe in April, with double-digit gains in France and the UK, as looming US tariffs undercut growth in their core market. Both fast fashion platforms cut US ad budgets and are also investing in Brazil, where Temu recently entered and Shein expanded local manufacturing.

Uber and Momenta have signed a deal to launch autonomous vehicles outside the US and China, starting in Europe in 2026 with safety drivers onboard. The partnership aims to combine Uber’s global reach with Momenta’s technology to scale robotaxi services in international markets.

DailyCo has acquired Waku, an institutional catering firm serving clients in 20 cities across Indonesia, to expand its footprint in the country’s B2B food services market. Waku CEO Anthony Gunawan will join DailyCo as chief human resources officer, with Waku continuing to operate as a wholly owned subsidiary.

<a href="/company/openai">OpenAI</a> will convert its for-profit arm into a <a href="https://www.britannica.com/money/what-is-a-public-benefit-corporation">public benefit corporation</a> (PBC), while remaining under nonprofit control. The shift follows discussions with state regulators and is aimed at better support its mission of "ensuring AGI benefits all of humanity." The nonprofit will retain oversight and become a major shareholder in the new entity.

Ecovacs and Roborock posted record 2024 revenues of RMB 16.54 billion and RMB 11.95 billion, respectively, but rising costs eroded profits. Both firms are expanding overseas through new categories and offline channels, yet face pressure from saturated markets, high logistics costs, and trade-related risks.

<a href="/company/openai">OpenAI</a> has agreed to acquire Windsurf, an AI coding startup formerly known as Codeium, in a deal valued at about USD 3 billion, according to people familiar with the matter. The deal has not yet closed and would be OpenAI’s largest acquisition to date amid rising competition in AI-powered coding tools.

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An alias used when humans and machines team up in our newsroom. Articles under this byline may be shaped with the help of AI, but are always vetted by a human before publication.

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The global vacuum market is maturing, and China’s top brands are now betting on new categories.

Record sales, shrinking profits: China’s robot vacuum leaders face their next test

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China’s tech ecosystem serves as a driving force behind the world’s second largest economy, influencing global digital markets.

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Xiaomi crafts affordable smartphones, wearables, and IoT devices, appealing to users who seek innovation, quality, and budget-friendly tech.

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Xiaomi says there’s no formal sales network in place, but the new facility appears to be part of a long-term Europe strategy.

Neufast raises pre-Series A funding for AI hiring tech

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