Chinese researchers and telecommunications engineers have launched what they claim is the world’s first internet service with line speeds over one terabit per second. Called the backbone network, the 3 000-kilometre fibre optic line runs from Beijing to the southern city of Guangzhou, via Wuhan in central China, and transmits data at 1.2 terabits per second…
Chinese agricultural experts have announced they intend to help boost the quality and yield of cassava varieties in Africa. The project was announced at the second Forum on China-Africa Cooperation on Agriculture, held in Hainan province in early November. Often referred to as the bread of the tropics, the carbohydrate-rich tuber, known as tapioca in…
A Shanghai-based pharmaceutical company has developed a novel medication that could offer hope to those suffering from a rare form of throat cancer. The innovative antibody drug is the first Chinese-developed cancer treatment approved by the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and could be made available for clinical use as soon as next…
LONGi Green Energy Technology Company has set a new record with its state-of-the-art silicon-perovskite tandem solar cells, achieving an efficiency rate of 33.9 per cent. The breakthrough was independently verified by the United States National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) in early November 2023, according to a press release by the Xi’an-based photovoltaics firm. LONGi edged…
Chinese aerospace firm, iSpace, has reportedly tested their first full-scale reusable rocket in what is a landmark moment for the country’s space programme. The Beijing-based company successfully conducted “hop tests” with its Hyperbola-2Y rocket in the Gobi Desert, paving the way for further experimentation on the firm’s larger Hyperbola-3 rocket systems as soon as 2025,…
China has reportedly exceeded three million fifth-generation base stations, continuing its dominance as an internet and communications technology powerhouse, outpacing the US in annual 5G installations. Data released by the Chinese Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) indicated that the Asian superpower has reached a total of 3.19 million stations – an average of…
In a landmark moment for urban passenger mobility, Chinese authorities have green-lit the world’s first flying taxi. Designed and manufactured in Guangdong province, southeast China, the EH216-S uncrewed aerial vehicle (UAV) loosely resembles a scaled-up hobbyist drone. Passengers sit in a car-sized protective bubble above the UAV’s propulsion and lift system of 16 powerful rotors…
Chinese renewables giant, Ming Yang Energy Group, continues to push the limits of what’s possible in the offshore wind industry, this time announcing plans to build a world-record 22-megawatt turbine with Eiffel-Tower-sized blades. The engineering and design team expects to complete early prototype models within two years, according to Ming Yang insiders. Companies like Ming…
Chinese tech behemoth, Baidu, claims the upgraded version of its AI chatbot is as sophisticated as OpenAI’s ChatGPT-4. On October 17, the Beijing-based internet and artificial intelligence firm unveiled ERNIE 4.0 which its developers say is comparable, if not better, than GPT-4. Speaking at the company’s flagship event, Baidu World 2023, CEO Robin Li put…
A team of Chinese geologists has uncovered a deposit of rare metal ore that could revolutionise the country’s steel, aviation, energy and medical industries. The substance has been dubbed niobabaotite by its discoverers, researchers from the Beijing Research Institute of Uranium Geology of the Chinese National Nuclear Corporation (CNNC). The metal, which consists of several…