SoftBank’s ‘crazy guy’ canary-in-coalmine role in AI

For Masayoshi Son, the AI boom has been both a blessing and a curse for a conglomerate that had lost its way. In June, AI…

China extends trade boom as global AI tech demand surges

Chinese exports and imports soared in July, official data showed Friday, as the manufacturing powerhouse benefits from a global AI boom lifting overseas demand for…

Pacific nations fail to agree on statement condemning China missile test

Pacific diplomats gathered in Fiji failed on Friday to agree on a joint statement condemning China’s recent test of a nuclear-capable missile in the region,…

5 years after arrests, passports returned to 8 figures not charged in Hong Kong 47 subversion case

Eight people who were not prosecuted in the landmark Hong Kong 47 national security case have been given back their passports by the authorities, more…

Hong Kong’s Lingnan University Students’ Union disbands after 59 years

The student union at Hong Kong’s Lingnan University has announced it has disbanded, citing “changes in circumstances inside and outside school” as it becomes the…

Kyrgyzstan’s Dordoi Bazaar, a world made from shipping containers

When I left Ainura’s container-shop at the Dordoi Bazaar in Bishkek, the capital of Kyrgyzstan, I found the market eerily quiet. I had not noticed…

Elon’s SpaceX promise just crashed

China’s bamboo growth model vs. India’s eucalyptus growth model

Nature offers unexpectedly good lessons in strategy. As a child, I was fond of bamboo shoots, though none grew in our farmland. My mother, noticing…

Hong Kong police arrest 16 over bar fight murder

Police have arrested 16 people over the killing of a 32-year-old businessmen during a Tsim Sha Tsui bar fight. The police initially arrested nine men…

America is 80% out

AI age demands a new political system 

“Dig the Well before you are thirsty,” says an old Chinese proverb. The world has debated China’s rise through the lens of ideology. Some believe…

Hasina baits and jabs Dhaka from the safety of New Delhi

Nearly two years after fleeing Dhaka in disgrace, ousted Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina made her first live public address on Wednesday (August 5). Speaking…

US polysilicon tariffs to move solar makers to domestic materials

The United States is moving to impose a 15% tariff and a series of price floors on polysilicon and its derivative products, a step designed…

Japan’s missile leap marks shift from defense to counterstrike

Japan’s successful Tomahawk and Upgraded Type-12 tests mark a decisive shift beyond interception-only defense toward a more assertive counterstrike posture. Last month, multiple media outlets…

America’s biggest leak yet

Hong Kong lyricist Peter Lai dies at 76

Renowned Hong Kong lyricist Peter Lai, who spearheaded the city’s golden era of Cantonese pop music, has died aged 76, his family and friends said…

Pro-democracy retailer ordered to make multiple rectifications as Buildings Dep’t threatens court

A pro-democracy retailer in Prince Edward has been ordered by the government to rectify multiple defects at its ground-floor shop and replace its signboard. As…

China announces ‘countermeasures’ after US trade sanctions

China announced restrictions on drone exports to the United States and blacklisted six companies on Wednesday in response to trade sanctions imposed by Washington over…

HKFP Lens: 8 compete in Hong Kong ‘Sperm Race’ to highlight declining fertility rates

Hongkongers gathered at a Japanese wine bar in Central on Wednesday to witness eight men compete in Sperm Race Hong Kong. The event, which aims…

‘Isolated incident’: Hong Kong halts investigation into jailed media tycoon Jimmy Lai’s Next Digital as liquidation proceeds

The Hong Kong government has formally closed an investigation into jailed media mogul Jimmy Lai’s Next Digital, the parent company of the defunct newspaper Apple…