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Ye Jun, former president of Alibaba's DingTalk, has confirmed his exit. He oversaw DingTalk’s cloud integration, enterprise strategy, and AI rollout. …

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Ye Jun, former president of <a href="/company/alibaba">Alibaba's</a> DingTalk, has confirmed his exit. He oversaw DingTalk’s cloud integration, enterprise strategy, and AI rollout. After his March transfer, founder Chen Hang returned as CEO to refocus on product quality, user experience, and monetization.

Asia’s convertible and exchangeable bond sales have surged past USD 30 billion in 2025, led by Chinese firms tapping strong equity markets and low-cost funding. Major issuers like <a href="/company/baidu">Baidu</a>, <a href="/company/alibaba">Alibaba</a>, and Ping An Insurance offered zero-interest deals. Analysts say demand remains strong, barring disruption from geopolitical risks.

Stablecoins are gaining ground in Africa as businesses adopt them for cross-border payments. With global banks deprioritizing the continent, on-chain dollars could offer faster, cheaper, and more accessible alternatives, positioning stablecoins as emerging infrastructure for trade and financial autonomy.

BMW is partnering with Chinese tech firm Momenta to co-develop an <a href="/industry/ai">AI</a>-powered driver assistance system tailored for China. The system will offer point-to-point assist across urban and highway routes, combining BMW’s safety architecture with Momenta’s AI. It will launch on next-gen China-made BMW vehicles.

<a href="/company/tiktok">TikTok</a> is pushing for urgent talks with Canadian officials to avoid a shutdown of its local operations, warning it may need to lay off staff and halt investment. The company has proposed a Canada-specific data security plan but says it has yet to receive a government response. TikTok employs 350 people in Canada and serves around 14 million users.

Cognition AI has acquired what remains of <a href="/industry/ai">AI</a> coding startup Windsurf, including IP, staff, and assets. The deal follows Google’s hire of Windsurf’s co-founder and CEO, after a prior USD 3 billion acquisition by <a href="/company/openai">OpenAI</a> collapsed amid tensions with Microsoft. Windsurf reported USD 82 million in ARR, and all remaining employees will share in the deal.

<a href="/company/nvidia">Nvidia</a> CEO Jensen Huang met with government and industry leaders in Beijing to promote <a href="/industry/ai">AI’s</a> role in boosting productivity and innovation. He said Nvidia is reapplying to sell its H20 GPU in China and introduced a new RTX Pro chip for smart factories. Huang also emphasized global collaboration and open-source AI development.

<a href="/company/huawei">Huawei</a> has shared a timeline for autonomous driving, targeting Level 3 highway rollout and pilot Level 4 use in urban areas, with full deployment by 2028. Execs emphasized safety and sensor fusion over vision-only approaches, adding that driverless logistics could begin as early as 2027.

Xpeng AeroHT has raised USD 250 million in Series B funding to support the R&amp;D, mass production, and commercialization of its flying cars. Its production facility has reportedly topped out and is slated for completion in Q4 2025. The “Land Aircraft Carrier” model is expected to enter mass delivery in 2026.

Robotaxis could eventually account for 6% of China’s taxi and ride-hailing market, totaling USD 40 billion annually, according to HSBC. Backed by strong digital infrastructure and tech-savvy consumers, pilot fleets are expanding—but high fleet, AI, and operating costs could delay breakeven by 7–8 years.

Yonghui Superstores has projected a net loss of RMB 240 million for H1 2025 after closing 227 stores and overhauling 93 others. Core earnings are expected to show a deeper loss of RMB 830 million as the retailer enters what it described as a year of deep transition. It plans to revamp 200 stores by September and has registered new trademarks as part of a brand reset.

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AI-powered therapy tools are emerging in the mental health space, but questions around empathy, safety, and readiness remain unresolved.

AI may offer a listening ear, but can it close mental healthcare gaps?

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Former DingTalk chief Ye Jun exits Alibaba

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