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… Harman Kardon 16-speaker setups, while top-tier models offer Bowers &amp; Wilkins audio with 30 speakers.
I remember when head-up displays (HUDs) first appeared in BMWs. I used to show off my car’s HUD everywhere I went—it was a cutting-edge feature back then. Now, HUDs, digital instrument panels, and premium sound systems are standard even in BMW’s entry-level models. Prices have become more accessible, yet features have only improved.
Some argue that BMW has cut costs on certain models, but I see it differently.
Take the latest BMW X5, for instance. The new generation no longer includes a trunk-mounted power outlet. I asked BMW engineers why, and they explained that over 90% of users never utilized it. Removing an underused feature to optimize other aspects of the car isn’t a downgrade—it’s progress.
I will continue to support BMW, but I also hope the brand keeps up with the rapid evolution of in-car technology. BMW pioneered active steering and HUD technology—now it needs to push further into smart vehicle innovations.
Additionally, BMW should expand its fan engagement activities across China. More people should have the opportunity to experience the brand’s heritage and its latest innovations firsthand.
Each year, hundreds of new cars enter the market, and technology evolves at a dizzying pace. But ultimately, it’s the driving experience that speaks for itself. Every car tells a story, and it’s the owners who bring those stories to life.
KrASIA Connection features translated and adapted content that was originally published by 36Kr. This <a href="https://36kr.com/p/3110097184476678">article</a> was written by Xu Caiyu for 36Kr.

Driver’s diary: A loyalist on why he’s owned 19 BMW cars—and counting

Transportation

Electric Vehicles

Mobility

Singaporean entertainment group Neon Group said its sales are growing by more than 20% a year, driven by the popularity of its immersive experiences among young consumers.
Ron Tan, CEO of Neon, which operates exhibitions using IP drawing on pop culture and history, said the company would continue to expand in developed countries, including Japan, despite the uncertain global economic outlook.
Tan was in Tokyo to announce an Egyptian-themed immersive exhibit, which will open its doors in March. It is operated by a joint venture between Neon, Sankei Building, and a real estate subsidiary of Itochu. For Neon, which holds content licenses for movie hits like Jurassic World and Avatar, this will be its first permanent facility in Japan.
<figure id="attachment_151955" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-151955" style="width: 640px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="wp-image-151955" src="https://console.kr-asia.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/Neon-Avatar-The-Way-of-Water-1024x576.jpg" alt="Photo of a sculpt representation of the Ilu, a marine creature from Avatar: The Way of Water, which was exhibited at Singapore's Gardens by the Bay." width="640" height="360" srcset="https://console.kr-asia.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/Neon-Avatar-The-Way-of-Water-1024x576.jpg 1024w, https://console.kr-asia.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/Neon-Avatar-The-Way-of-Water-300x169.jpg 300w, https://console.kr-asia.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/Neon-Avatar-The-Way-of-Water-768x432.jpg 768w, https://console.kr-asia.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/Neon-Avatar-The-Way-of-Water-1536x864.jpg 1536w, https://console.kr-asia.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/Neon-Avatar-The-Way-of-Water-480x270.jpg 480w, https://console.kr-asia.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/Neon-Avatar-The-Way-of-Water.jpg 1920w" sizes="(max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px" /><figcaption id="caption-attachment-151955" class="wp-caption-text">Visitors to Neon's exhibit at Singapore’s Gardens by the Bay experienced a sculpted representation of the Ilu, a marine creature from Avatar: The Way of Water. Photo of the exhibit, courtesy of Neon.</figcaption></figure>
He said the business would weather weak consumer sentiment in some of its markets. The company's revenues are currently increasing by 20–30% a year. "We're growing rapidly," he told Nikkei Asia.
Tan said experiential entertainment had innate strengths in difficult economic conditions, citing the resilience of the movie industry during the 2008 recession. "Right now, the younger generation in their 20s [and] 30s are more into the experience ... into what you feel inside rather than what you have outside."
Neon positions its experiences in the midprice range, catering to the needs of a wide bracket of income groups, which could be beneficial in an inflationary climate, he said. For example, pricing for adult tickets for the Harry Potter: Visions of Magic interactive art exhibit in Singapore start at SGD 49 (USD 36.30). Neon's focus on the domestic consumer rather than foreign tourists, and experiences over merchandise sales, is an advantage in an unstable economic situation, Tan noted.
<figure id="attachment_151953" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-151953" style="width: 640px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="wp-image-151953" src="https://console.kr-asia.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/Neon-Harry-Potter-Grimmauld-Place-1024x576.jpg" alt="Photo of an exhibit depicting Grimmauld Place from the Harry Potter series, showcased as part of an interactive art experience at Singapore’s Resorts World Sentosa." width="640" height="360" srcset="https://console.kr-asia.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/Neon-Harry-Potter-Grimmauld-Place-1024x576.jpg 1024w, https://console.kr-asia.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/Neon-Harry-Potter-Grimmauld-Place-300x169.jpg 300w, https://console.kr-asia.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/Neon-Harry-Potter-Grimmauld-Place-768x432.jpg 768w, https://console.kr-asia.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/Neon-Harry-Potter-Grimmauld-Place-1536x864.jpg 1536w, https://console.kr-asia.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/Neon-Harry-Potter-Grimmauld-Place-480x270.jpg 480w, https://console.kr-asia.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/Neon-Harry-Potter-Grimmauld-Place.jpg 1920w" sizes="(max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px" /><figcaption id="caption-attachment-151953" class="wp-caption-text">Photo of an exhibit depicting Grimmauld Place from the Harry Potter series, showcased as part of an interactive art experience at Singapore’s Resorts World Sentosa. Photo courtesy of Neon.</figcaption></figure>
Neon was set up as Cityneon in 1956 and rebranded as Neon in 2022. It has hosted events, mostly in temporary venues, in at least 80 cities globally that were attended by more than 16 million people, according to the company. The Singaporean company has a robotics and IP management company under its umbrella, enabling it to produce more immersive experiences than its competitors.
The company typically operates special exhibitions by renting venues for limited periods. Its first permanent facility, Crevia Base Tokyo, will host exhibitions for around six to 12 months.
The company sees an opportunity to expand in Japan through collaboration with holders of <a title="" href="https://asia.nikkei.com/Business/Markets/Equities/Shogun-shines-stock-market-spotlight-on-Japan-pop-culture" target="_blank" rel="noopener">valuable Japanese IP</a>, Tan said. Neon is also looking to build permanent venues in other developed nations, or relatively rich Asian cities. It is considering Bangkok, Paris and an unspecified city in Germany as possible locations.
The confident tone from the head of the entertainment company comes despite uncertainty over the global economy, which faces the possibility of higher trade tariffs under US President Donald Trump.
Economic growth was flat in the eurozone in the fourth quarter ending in December 2024, weighed down by countries such as Germany, which is struggling with high energy costs and other difficulties.
ASEAN was more of a mixed bag. Singapore's economy saw a robust 4% expansion in 2024. In Indonesia, Southeast Asia's largest economy, gross domestic product <a title="" href="https://asia.nikkei.com/Economy/Indonesia-s-tepid-5.03-growth-undermines-Prabowo-s-8-goal" target="_blank" rel="noopener">expanded</a> at the slowest pace in three years in 2024.
This article first appeared on <a href="https://asia.nikkei.com/Business/Media-Entertainment/Singapore-s-Neon-says-immersive-experience-business-is-growing">Nikkei Asia</a>. It has been republished here as part of 36Kr’s ongoing partnership with <a href="https://www.kr-asia.com/nikkei-teams-up-with-36kr-in-asia-tech-news-coverage/">Nikkei</a>.

Singapore's Neon says immersive experience business is growing

Entertainment

Creative

Singapore

… it,” it might actually mean “no.” Without cultural awareness, a foreign company might misinterpret such responses and waste time pursuing deals that will never materialize.
<h3>36Kr: You mentioned the importance of communication with Japanese professionals. However, some people say that Japan has a strong business culture of closed circles, where Chinese and Japanese professionals rarely interact. What’s your view?</h3>
LS: This phenomenon does exist, but it depends on the individual and the company. If a business only operates within the Chinese community in Japan, it can still reach a certain scale—but it will also face many limitations.
In any market, scaling up requires a deep understanding of local consumers and business practices. Japan is no exception. Companies that integrate into the local ecosystem, build relationships with Japanese partners, and fully grasp the local business culture will find it much easier to break into the market.
Japan’s business culture does emphasize established networks, but these barriers aren’t insurmountable. As long as a company invests time in building relationships, demonstrating value, and communicating effectively, it can gradually integrate into the local business landscape.
KrASIA Connection features translated and adapted content that was originally published by 36Kr. This <a href="https://36kr.com/p/3155150621907717">article</a> was written by Lin Qingqing for 36Kr.

Is Japan’s economy turning a corner? A Shein veteran weighs in

Retail

Consumer Services

… President Joe Biden, Washington continued to escalate tensions with multiple rounds of <a href="https://asia.nikkei.com/Business/Technology/U.S.-further-restricts-TSMC-and-Samsung-chips-from-reaching-China">export controls</a>, expanded trade blacklists and regulations on leading foreign chip suppliers such as Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) and Samsung, curbing their dealings with Chinese clients.
Trump's return to the White House in January has brought few signs that trade relations will improve. As new blanket 10% tariffs on Chinese goods took effect, Beijing <a href="https://asia.nikkei.com/Economy/Trade-war/China-hits-back-at-U.S.-with-new-tariffs-as-Trump-policy-kicks-in">retaliated on February 4</a> with tariffs of its own on various imports from the US, including energy and agricultural machinery.
Science and technology policy expert Stephen Ezell told Nikkei Asia that China is stepping up its R&amp;D efforts and that its spending could surpass that of the US in the coming years.
"In all sectors and in overall expenditure, China [has] neared the US in R&amp;D spending," said Ezell, vice president for global innovation policy at the Washington-based Information Technology and Innovation Foundation, adding that it has already surpassed America in university and government funding for applied research and experimental development. "If China continues to invest heavily and if the US. finds its budgetary environment constrained, it's certainly possible China could outstrip the US."
But while Chinese universities and research institutes are generally subject to fewer trade restrictions, they are not immune from political tensions. In 2020, the Trump administration placed a handful of <a href="https://asia.nikkei.com/Business/Technology/US-blacklists-China-s-MIT-as-tech-war-enters-new-phase">leading Chinese universities</a> specializing in industry and space on the Entity List. These include Harbin Institute of Technology—known as "China's MIT"—Beijing Institute of Technology, the Center for High Pressure Science and Technology Advanced Research, and Nanjing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics. Additionally, dozens of other Chinese universities and research institute were added to the US "unverified list," meaning any exports to or collaboration with them requires stricter reviews.
Ezell said China's international research collaborations, particularly with the US, have slowed. According to a study by Nature, over a quarter of research papers by Chinese authors involved international collaborations in 2018, but that share fell to 7.2% by 2023.
China, Ezell added, is good at forming industry clusters to facilitate the application of basic and applied research, even if there is inherent inefficiency and overcapacity in the Chinese system. "Efficiency has never been the central goal of the Chinese approach," he said. "They are willing to accept a lot of inefficiencies to gain market share."
"We've been very careful about exporting our equipment to Chinese research institutes or universities in light of the mounting export controls," an executive with a Europe-based measurement equipment supplier, told Nikkei Asia. "For almost everything we might have to apply for an export license."
Europe is also starting to scrutinize collaborations with China more closely, according to Mathieu Duchatel, director of international studies at the Paris-based think tank Institut Montaigne.
"In the past, the EU was not concerned about research security … and left it to member states to regulate research collaborations with international partners, but that has changed," Duchatel told Nikkei Asia. "Last year, the EU took the initiative to put research security at the top of its agenda." He added that the bloc is likely to draft policies targeting "problematic" entities involved in such research collaborations.
"However, China will likely find ways to get around international regulations, and establishing more of these research institutes is one way to do that," Duchatel said.
People should not underestimate China's capacity for innovation just because of inefficiencies in its state-driven system, he added. "The intense strategic pressure on China from the US and its allies is also a significant mobilizing force."
This article first appeared on <a href="https://asia.nikkei.com/Business/Technology/Tech-Asia/China-s-state-backed-labs-provide-a-lifeline-for-U.S.-blacklisted-chip-suppliers">Nikkei Asia</a>. It has been republished here as part of 36Kr’s ongoing partnership with <a href="https://www.kr-asia.com/nikkei-teams-up-with-36kr-in-asia-tech-news-coverage/">Nikkei</a>.

China's state-backed labs provide a lifeline for US-blacklisted chip suppliers

Deep Tech

Semiconductors

Picking a gift for your mum? L'Oreal Paris probably wouldn’t be the first brand that comes to mind.
But this year, the beauty giant took an unusually bold approach to its Lunar New Year campaign. Against a backdrop of red and gold, L'Oreal Paris’ gift boxes appeared in iconic moments throughout history, accompanied by a tagline urging consumers to “bring L'Oreal Paris” home for the holidays. As millennials reach an age where they can afford to buy gifts for their parents, this nostalgia-infused campaign struck a chord—emotionally resonant while keeping the message down-to-earth.
The timing is critical. L'Oreal’s struggles in North Asia continued in fiscal 2024, with its China business posting its first-ever revenue decline. The company framed the drop as a single-digit decrease, highlighting the strong performance of its luxury cosmetics, dermatological beauty, and professional products divisions. The weak spot? Its mass market beauty business—including L'Oreal Paris.
This campaign wasn’t just a seasonal gimmick, signaling a strategic shift as L'Oreal Paris looks to reignite growth. But will it work?
<h3>The brand that started it all</h3>
L'Oreal Paris isn’t just the group’s flagship brand. It’s the only one it ever built from scratch.
When L'Oreal entered China in 1997, its first skincare launch was L'Oreal Paris Revitalift, endorsed by actress Gong Li. At the time, urban disposable income barely exceeded RMB 5,000 (USD 700) per year. A celebrity-endorsed skincare set costing a few hundred RMB was undeniably a luxury—and a perfect gift.
The 2000s brought the rise of television, and L'Oreal Paris capitalized on the shift. By 2012, the brand accounted for nearly half of L'Oreal’s total annual sales in China.
Then came the e-commerce boom. As incomes rose and mobile payments took off, China’s luxury skincare market exploded. By 2019, premium beauty products outsold mass-market options for the first time.
L'Oreal pivoted, prioritizing high-end brands like Lancome and YSL Beauty, competing fiercely with Estee Lauder for prime retail space. Xiaoyu Ma, now L'Oreal China’s vice president, once led Lancome’s aggressive expansion in China, recalling how securing top department store counters became a winner-takes-all battle between rivals.
L'Oreal Paris, meanwhile, underwent its own premiumization. But in an era where anti-aging creams routinely cost RMB 1,000 and up, its RMB 200–400 (USD 28–56) price range still made it feel accessible—so much so that some consumers began seeing it as an affordable alternative to L'Oreal’s luxury lines.
<figure id="attachment_152060" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-152060" style="width: 360px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="wp-image-152060" src="https://console.kr-asia.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/LOreal-Lancome.jpg" alt="" width="360" height="360" srcset="https://console.kr-asia.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/LOreal-Lancome.jpg 640w, https://console.kr-asia.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/LOreal-Lancome-300x300.jpg 300w, https://console.kr-asia.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/LOreal-Lancome-150x150.jpg 150w, https://console.kr-asia.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/LOreal-Lancome-600x600.jpg 600w" sizes="(max-width: 360px) 100vw, 360px" /><figcaption id="caption-attachment-152060" class="wp-caption-text">L’Oreal’s Youth Code and Lancome’s Advanced Genifique serum share similar active ingredients but come with a price gap of nearly fivefold.</figcaption></figure>
For years, analysts categorized L'Oreal Paris as a masstige brand, targeting consumers in their 20s. Then suddenly, the market shifted.
Luxury beauty’s dominance faltered in 2023. Meanwhile, L'Oreal’s newly rebranded dermatological beauty division gained traction—but remained a niche player.
L'Oreal Paris stepped in as the company’s emergency responder. In 2023, the brand’s division led the rebound, reclaiming its position as L'Oreal China’s largest segment.
<h3>Reclaiming the mass market, but not quite there yet</h3>
L'Oreal Paris belongs to the company’s consumer products division, alongside Maybelline, Garnier, NYX, 3CE, and MG. Historically, this division has been L'Oreal China’s biggest revenue driver.
But not all brands thrived. Garnier pulled out of China in 2014, with L'Oreal internally dismissing it as a non-mainstream brand. A decade later, NYX exited as well, with staff reassigned internally.
Today, L'Oreal Paris and Maybelline account for nearly all of the division’s revenue in China. Yet, even RMB 200–400 (USD 28–56) is considered expensive by mass market standards.
Across major e-commerce platforms, beauty prices trended downward in 2024. In May, Tmall data from Syntun showed that the average price of skincare products fell 9% to RMB 136 (USD 19), while cosmetics prices dropped 7% to RMB 53 (USD 7).
Faced with this shift, L'Oreal Paris made a sharp U-turn. The brand that once aspired to go upmarket is now racing back to reclaim the mass market. But shifting gears takes time.
Beyond L'Oreal Paris, the company has been expanding its affordable skincare portfolio.
In late 2023, it acquired Dr.G, a budget-friendly South Korean skincare brand. In its announcement, L'Oreal emphasized that Dr.G’s clinical-grade products are “positioned to meet the rising demand for K-Beauty and scientifically developed, effective yet affordable skincare solutions.” The brand is already gaining traction across Asia and holds global expansion potential. In Taiwan, Dr.G’s price range hovers around RMB 100–200 (USD 14–28).
L'Oreal’s dermatological beauty division is also doubling down on affordability.
CeraVe, a key brand in this unit, is now targeting college students. According to Vox, a L'Oreal market executive, the brand plans to increase campus promotions to attract younger consumers.
"Plus, CeraVe is made in China, so its production costs are low," Vox added. "That allows us to keep pricing competitive."
Despite its success overseas, CeraVe has yet to introduce some of its global bestsellers to China—including its purple-packaged anti-aging line.
Anti-aging is one of the biggest drivers of premium skincare pricing.
But even if CeraVe’s anti-aging range enters China, it won’t carry a premium price tag.
"There’s a ceiling to how much we can charge," Vox said. "Everything will stay under RMB 100 (USD 14)."
KrASIA Connection features translated and adapted content that was originally published by 36Kr. This <a href="https://36kr.com/p/3159039428532736">article</a> was written by He Zhexin for 36Kr.

L'Oreal refocuses on the mass market as China's beauty trends shift

… investors and private banking customers.
Yeo said wealth clients account for four in five transactions involving crypto options trading or structured notes, with institutional investors making up the rest, suggesting a broader trend of Asian high-net-worth individuals' mounting exposure to digital assets.
"The US election was a catalyst, with requests for quotes and trading volumes for these options and financial products by wealth clients growing around 20% since the election," the DBS executive added.
At Sygnum, Goh and his team plan to introduce new yield-generation products this year for the wealthy to get more lucrative returns on their crypto holdings.
Independent Reserve, meanwhile, said it is building its network with private banks and family offices to push its platform to ultra-high-net-worth individuals for digital asset investments.
Euphoria over the crypto boom has made it tempting to overlook the fact that it remains a highly volatile asset class. The rich Asians increasingly getting in on the action also risk significant losses should another massive crash occur in a sector many still see as on the fringe of finance.
"Over the past few years little progress has been made in terms of crypto reaching the level of mainstream acceptance as its proponents would like," Nicholas Lauw, head of IP and technology for Asia at law firm RPC Premier Law, told Nikkei. "Investing in crypto at current prices isn't without its risks."
Analysts watching Trump's second White House tenure have warned of looming uncertainly to financial markets stemming from the firebrand leader's policies, and virtual currencies are not immune from this despite expectations of a more crypto-friendly era.
This was highlighted on February 3 when Bitcoin fell to a three-week low and ether, another cryptocurrency, tumbled 24% to its lowest level since early September 2024 on market jitters about a global trade war triggered by Trump's imposition of tariffs on Canada, Mexico and China. Both assets then recovered some of their losses.
"Many high-net-worth individuals have built wealth through traditional sectors like real estate and manufacturing," Forest Bai, co-founder of crypto venture capital outfit Foresight Ventures, told Nikkei. "The cultural emphasis on wealth preservation can conflict with crypto's inherent volatility."
This article first appeared on <a href="https://asia.nikkei.com/Spotlight/ASEAN-Money/Rich-Asians-fuel-Singapore-crypto-craze-on-Trump-bitcoin-hype">Nikkei Asia</a>. It has been republished here as part of 36Kr’s ongoing partnership with <a href="https://www.kr-asia.com/nikkei-teams-up-with-36kr-in-asia-tech-news-coverage/">Nikkei</a>.

Rich Asians fuel Singapore crypto craze on Trump, bitcoin hype

Fintech

Blockchain

Digital Banks

Cryptocurrencies

Cash is rapidly disappearing in consumer transactions across Asia, replaced by QR codes and other smartphone-based technologies. Physical money is forecast to make up just 14% of total transactions by 2027, down from around 47% in 2019, according to Worldpay, a US-based payment processing company.
The shift to cashless payments is also driven by efforts from India and other countries to promote domestic digital settlement systems and reduce the dominance of Western credit card brands.
In Mumbai, motorcycle couriers now deliver food and daily necessities quickly, often within ten minutes, with the entire transaction completed via smartphone. Many of these services do not welcome cash payments. The share of cash settlements by value is expected to drop to 10% by 2027, down from 71% in 2019.
In 2016, the Indian government, working with financial institutions, introduced the Unified Payments Interface (UPI), a mobile payment system that allows users to make real-time payments. The system underpins app-based delivery services and other businesses. More than 131 billion transactions were made via UPI in fiscal 2023, according to PwC India.
In mainland China, where over one billion people already use Alipay and other digital payment apps, the share of cash transactions is expected to drop to just 3% by 2027.
Douglas Feagin, president of Ant International, operator of the Alipay service outside China, said the company plans to expand its merchant network in Asia and other markets. The number of overseas shops that accept Alipay has already exceeded ten million.
The cashless trend is advancing rapidly in Asia. The average share of cash transactions across 14 countries and regions is expected to fall 33 percentage points from 2019 levels to 14% in 2027, just above Europe's 12%.
French consultancy Capgemini forecasts there will be 1.46 trillion cashless transactions in the Asia Pacific region annually by 2028, more than four times as in North America, where credit cards are widely used.
Growing use of smartphones is fueling cashless transactions in Asia. Cashless payments were slow to gain traction in Southeast Asia, where fewer bank accounts meant less credit card use in the region compared with the US and Europe. But smartphones have changed that. With just a phone number and a few other details, transactions have become easier, enabling more people to go cashless.
Worldwide, the average share of smartphone-based payments at storefronts is expected to reach 46% by 2027, more than double the 22% share of credit card payments.
Nationalism is another driver of cashless payments in Asia. The Indian and Chinese governments are promoting their own payment networks to challenge international credit card brands like Visa and MasterCard, which charge fees of a few percent per transaction and collect large amounts of data from both cardholders and merchants.
In Southeast Asia, countries are collaborating in QR code-based digital payments. Users of Thailand's PromptPay and Singapore's PayNow can transfer money between the two countries. Studies are underway to create a cross-border real-time settlement system in the region.
"Southeast Asian nations are working to establish an 'Asian settlement bloc' by creating a system independent of foreign payment networks," said Akira Yamagami, a fellow at NTT Data Institute of Management Consulting in Tokyo.
However, many of these initiatives are government-led and aim to keep user fees low through regulation. To ensure the settlement systems' sustainability, operators must be able to make enough money to innovate, while keeping fees at levels acceptable to both consumers and retailers.
This article first appeared on <a href="https://asia.nikkei.com/Spotlight/Datawatch/Asia-goes-cashless-as-countries-push-for-digital-payments">Nikkei Asia</a>. It has been republished here as part of 36Kr’s ongoing partnership with <a href="https://www.kr-asia.com/nikkei-teams-up-with-36kr-in-asia-tech-news-coverage/">Nikkei</a>.

Asia goes cashless as countries push for digital payments

Payments

India

… also means some areas still need refinement.
Every time I switch from the SU7 back to my Model 3, I realize how much I’ve gotten used to voice control in the Xiaomi. Tesla requires more manual operation, making it feel like a step backward.
In the end, it’s all about personal preference. If I’m driving alone, I prefer the Model 3. But if I have passengers, I’d rather take the SU7.
In a few years, I’ll likely replace one of them with an SUV. Whether I sell the Tesla Model 3 or the Xiaomi SU7 will depend on resale value and long-term reliability.
Ultimately, looks and performance influence buying decisions, but affordability and practicality shape long-term satisfaction.
KrASIA Connection features translated and adapted content that was originally published by 36Kr. This <a href="https://36kr.com/p/3121955520123141">article</a> was prepared by Xu Caiyu for 36Kr.

Driver’s diary: Tesla Model 3 and Xiaomi SU7—how they compare on the road

Xiaomi

Tesla

East Asia

Ride-hailing app Tada is making inroads in Asia, as a no-commission model that lets drivers keep more of the money they earn proves popular with passengers as well.
A 50-year-old woman living in Singapore heard from a driver she hailed that other drivers are using Tada because they do better financially off the app. Afterward, the woman switched from another ride-hailing app to Tada.
Tada, based in Singapore, was launched as a subsidiary of MVLLabs, a blockchain mobility firm. The service has expanded to Thailand, Cambodia, and Vietnam.
When drivers use a ride-hailing app to find customers, they generally pay a platform fee, along with a commission proportional to the cost of the trip. Commission fees vary depending on the platform, but are typically 10–20% of the transport charge.
Tada's biggest advantage is the absence of any commission. Drivers pay only a platform fee of SGD 1.05–1.25 (USD 0.78–0.92) per trip.
For riders, the fares on the Tada app appear to be lower. Based on price comparisons for a weekday ride from downtown Singapore to the Night Safari wildlife park on the outskirts, Grab cost around SGD 32 (USD 23.8) while Tada was less than SGD 30 (USD 22.3).
Drivers are prioritizing customers who use Tada. Sometimes an individual who is unable to hail a ride through another app can book a ride immediately using Tada.
"We launched Tada ride-hailing out of Singapore, and as a latecomer, we cannot compete in the same way against [early players] like <a href="/company/uber">Uber</a>, <a href="/company/grab">Grab</a>, and <a href="/company/gojek">Gojek</a>," said Sean Kim, CEO of Tada Mobility. "Their business model is basically taking high commissions in return for offering a job to the drivers."
Tada forgoes commissions as a point of differentiation.
"We don't take a percentage cut from their earnings," Kim said.
Tada considered, but rejected, using crypto assets as a sales incentive.
"We decided to focus more on organic growth, instead of relying on some fancy terms," Kim said.
Tada became popular among drivers as a service offering reasonable fees.
"It's always better for drivers to choose our platform, as it reduces the need for us to spend as much as competitors might need to spend to retain drivers," Kim said.
In December 2024, Tada expanded into Hong Kong, its first market outside of Southeast Asia. Uber is known for a large footprint in Hong Kong. Though Tada will be taking on one of the biggest names in ride-hailing, Kim is matter-of-fact about the opportunities.
"Whichever market has a dominating player … they tend to charge very high commissions," Kim said. "We naturally have a better competitive weapon in such markets. In Asia, especially Southeast Asia, Tada is doing well, and that's why we can also perform well with the same model."
Major ride-hailing apps have expanded beyond just ride-hailing. Grab and Uber field food delivery services. Gojek merged with <a href="https://asia.nikkei.com/Business/Technology/Gojek-and-Tokopedia-merge-into-new-tech-giant-Five-things-to-know">e-commerce provider Tokopedia</a>, and the superapp handles finance as well.
Tada distances itself from those areas and focuses on ride-hailing. The group manufactures electric two-wheelers and three-wheelers, but those vehicles are made for the ride-hailing arm.
"Using blockchain, we are now exploring more, like the decentralized finance model, so that we can support drivers who need to rent a car," Kim said. Such an initiative would focus on developing countries like Cambodia and Vietnam where drivers lack the credit history to finance vehicles through conventional means, he said.
"If we were to consider listing, of course we would aim for markets like the US," Kim said, citing Nasdaq and the New York Stock Exchange.
This article first appeared on <a tabindex="0" href="https://asia.nikkei.com/Business/Technology/Singapore-ride-hailing-app-Tada-innovates-by-putting-drivers-first" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-token-index="1">Nikkei Asia</a>. It has been republished here as part of 36Kr’s ongoing <a tabindex="0" href="https://www.kr-asia.com/nikkei-teams-up-with-36kr-in-asia-tech-news-coverage/" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-token-index="3">partnership with Nikkei</a>.

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