Tech Insider: China’s Cloud Giants Look Overseas, Tencent Exec Cedes Key Role
Mass rollout begins of EVs powered by lithium-ion alternative, Nvidia’s China customers to get hobbled version of gaming chip
China’s leading cloud service providers are betting big on overseas expansion as profits dwindle in their saturated home market. Photo: VCG
Cloud giants look overseas as margins dwindle at home
Cloud computing has become a new battleground in the China-U.S. fight for tech dominance.
China’s biggest cloud service providers, including units from Alibaba Group Holding Ltd., Tencent Holdings Ltd. and Huawei Technologies Co. Ltd., are betting big on overseas expansion as profits dwindle in their saturated home market. To gain an edge, they are increasingly targeting regions less plumbed by their U.S. counterparts, such as Southeast Asia and the Middle East.
But as Chinese companies push overseas, they are encroaching on the territory of global players such as U.S. giants Microsoft Corp. and Amazon.com Inc., which dominate many markets around the world.
The push abroad comes as Chinese companies are facing slowing growth and fierce competition at home, which triggered a price war in early 2023 that has squeezed profit margins. They are also feeling the pressure of Washington’s ever-tightening restrictions on Chinese access to advanced technology.
Mass rollout begins of EVs powered by lithium-ion alternative
Two Chinese state-owned carmakers have begun mass-producing mini electric vehicles (EVs) powered by sodium-ion batteries, considered a possible alternative to the lithium-ion batteries currently used in most EVs.
The first batch of the Huaxianzi passenger EVs equipped with Hina Battery Technology Co. Ltd.’s sodium-ion batteries, rolled off the production line on Wednesday, Hina said in a statement. Large-scale deliveries are set to begin in January.
On Thursday, Jiangling Motors Corp. Ltd. celebrated the rollout of its first passenger EV running on sodium-ion batteries, according to a statement from the battery developer Farasis Energy (Ganzhou) Co. Ltd.
Some industry experts consider the sodium-ion battery a possible alternative to the lithium-ion one because they can recharge faster and perform better at low temperatures.
Tencent executive cedes key role amid China gaming turmoil
David Wallerstein, Tencent’s chief exploration officer is leaving his management role as the company struggles with China’s ongoing efforts to curb technology, entertainment and gaming companies.
Wallerstein will move into a senior adviser role from Jan. 1, a company spokesperson confirmed. In an internal memo on late Friday seen by Bloomberg News, Wallerstein said he planned to continue contributing on topics such as climate and human health.
In more than two decades at Tencent, Wallerstein was responsible for finding “Moonshot” investments for the Shenzhen-based company. His team at one point invested in at least 40 companies outside China, including startups focusing on space ventures. He was promoted to his current executive position in 2014, according to his LinkedIn profile.
Nvidia’s China customers to get hobbled version of gaming chip
Nvidia Corp. is selling a less-capable version of its best graphics product for video gamers in China after the U.S. government tightened restrictions on what the company can market in that country.
The version of the GTX 4090 D chip that is listed for sale on Nvidia’s China website has about 10% fewer processing cores than the 4090 that is sold in other countries.
CEO Jensen Huang has said he would produce versions of his market-leading products for China that comply with rules imposed by the Biden administration on exports to that country. The U.S., seeking to slow down the advancement of China’s artificial intelligence capabilities, is limiting access to specialized chips in that market.