As I write this week's edition, NASA's Space Launch System rocket is undergoing a second countdown rehearsal at Kennedy Space Center, Florida. The outcome of the test will determine whether NASA has a shot at launching the Artemis II mission around the Moon next month, or if the launch will be delayed until April or later. The finicky fueling line for the rocket's core stage is the center of attention after a hydrogen leak cut short a practice countdown earlier this month.
"Pew, pew, pew!" a woman wearing sneakers and high-waisted pink trousers says cheerfully in a video uploaded to TikTok. She is standing on what appears to be an industrial rooftop while demonstrating how to use a black device resembling an oversized laser tag gun. "Jamming gun, good," she adds, flashing a thumbs up. "Contact me!" These days, nearly any product imaginable is available for purchase on TikTok straight from Chinese factories, ranging from industrial chemicals to mystical crystals and custom pilates reformers.
At the annual Spring Festival Gala, the Lunar New Year show in China, humanoid robots from Chinese startup Unitree Robotics flipped, lunged, and swung swords and nunchucks just feet from child performers in a tightly choreographed kung fu routine.
Researchers in China have reportedly tested a new, gravity-defying wind turbine system that they say could generate power from the airspace above cities. The turbine is called the S2000 Stratosphere Airborne Wind Energy System, or SAWES. Held up by what is essentially a helium blimp, the machine reportedly generated 385 kilowatts of electricity from 2,000 meters (more than 6,500 feet) above the city of Yibin in China's province of Sichuan, according to a recent Euronews report.
For most, this stuff feels like some far-off future envisioned by tech bros and Wall Street guys, not something they'll ever really have to deal with day-to-day. But amid the last few months of news, including the headlines at CES 2026 and even some key features of the Volvo EX60's recent debut, it's clear that artificial intelligence is pretty much the name of the game right now.
Last week, news broke that Meta is buying Chinese AI startup Manus for around $2 billion. The company is known for its AI agent that can handle everything from job interviews to stock analysis. Meta plans to integrate Manus' AI agent into its own products. Now, the Financial Times reports that China's Ministry of Commerce has decided to review the purchase to determine whether the deal violates the country's export control rules for technology.
Chinese authorities have signalled they'll likely probe Meta's planned acquisition of made-in-China AI platform Manus. Meta announced the acquisition on December 29, 2025, and said Manus will become part of its consumer and business products. On Thursday, a spokesperson for China's Ministry of Commerce said Beijing intends to investigate the acquisition to ensure it won't infringe China's export controls or foreign investment laws.
Open source - that might be the clearest signal of how China wants artificial intelligence to reshape its economy. Hisham Alrayes, the group CEO of Bahrain-based GFH Financial Group, said China is prioritizing open models and broad deployment to spread AI's gains across the economy, instead of funneling them to a few tech giants. Speaking at a Davos panel on China's "AI+ Economy" strategy on Wednesday, Alrayes said the country's approach reflects a fundamentally different economic philosophy.
China's market is crowded with many EV brands, many of them not turning a profit. Nio says that focusing on branding and customer experience is the way to stand out in a very crowded market. There are a lot of car brands in Chinatoo many of them. Despite the scale of China's car market and its level of innovation, a reset is bound to happen soon.