Month: May 2026

The superapp model that dominates in China never caught on in the West. something is changing

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Superapps are mobile applications that offer many unified services, from messaging to mobile payments and much more. In Asia, especially China, They are the default formula that has been successful for years with apps like WeChat, Meituan or AliPay. In the West we are more into specialized apps, but the market is beginning to show clear signs of approaching the Chinese model. The Uber case. Uber just announced the integration of hotel reservations in your app through its alliance with Expedia. In this way, in the same app we have car reservations, food delivery and hotel reservations, a solution that is quite similar to the model of a Chinese super app like WeChat, which integrates all types of services under one umbrella. Uber’s goal is that, by offering more services, the Uber One subscription will be more attractive to consumers and thus increase its income. An important detail: Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi was previously CEO of Expedia, so this alliance does not seem coincidental. TikTok Shop. Uber is not the only one that is following this strategy, there are other proposals that also point in the direction of consolidation. We have the clearest example with TikTok and the integration of the marketplace. ByteDance has managed to export a very Asian model: see a product in a video and buy it without leaving the app. TikTok Shop has been in Spain since the end of 2024 and, at the end of 2025, there is already a TikTok account more than 12,000 stores operating on its platform. The adoption data is positive, but the model is still very far from the penetration it has in China. There have been attempts. The creation of a super app that succeeds in the West was Elon Musk’s obsession when he bought Twitter. The bet did not work out and today X continues to be what Twitter was: a microblogging social network. PayPal also tried its superapp version integrating hotel reservations with little travel. Years ago there was talk that WhatsApp could be the WeChat of the West, but despite having been adding functions, it is still a messaging app. Looking to the future, we have the case of ChatGPT and its path to a super app that integrates the chatbot with the Atlas and Codex browser. Why in China yes and here no. It is not a question of simple preferences, but has a structural explanation: Internet penetration in China was much slower and, in some ways, skipped the era of the personal computer. While Western consumers came to the smartphone with already formed habits (a browser to search, an email program, an online store), the Chinese did so directly from the mobile phone. By not having already created habits, this made the creation of these “everything apps” much easier. Likewise, the penetration of credit and debit cards was also slow and many consumers switched from cash to mobile payments, hence apps like WeChat or AliPay have become the default standard for paying everywhere. Another factor that plays in favor of the adoption of these apps is that they had no competitors. With the entire Google and Facebook suite blocked by the Chinese government, these apps did not have to compete, but rather filled a void. And of course there is the regulatory issue and institutional support. in China you can pay taxes from WeChatapply for a business license or pay a traffic fine without leaving the app, because the Chinese government actively integrated its public services into these platforms. In the West, the merger between a private company and the State would generate immediate political and regulatory scrutiny. something is changing. On the one hand, the perception we have of China from the rest of the world has been changing in recent years. The success of TikTok, the Labubu, the popularity of electric cars… are symptoms that China has become a cultural reference and technological. This opens a new opportunity for success. On the other hand, there is a new variable: AI. The arrival of AI tools is already changing our information-seeking habits and has the potential to function as a layer on top of everything we already use, connecting services that previously lived separately. Image | IlgmyzinUnsplash In Xataka | The US has made an almost total commitment to enormous AI models. China is showing another way

Unamuno and Borges in all homes in Spain for 25 pesetas

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If you have lived in Spain (or someone in your family has done so) at the end of the sixties of the last century, there is a very high chance that copies (perhaps all of them) of the Salvat RTV Library that were sold in newsstands from 1969 passed through your house. Aesthetically unmistakable (paperback covers in light tones without photos or illustrations, low quality paper, very rough binding), this collection did a lot to introduce a series vast amount of essays and fictions, many unpublished, in Spanish homes. It is probably the most shared cultural object in the country’s recent history. Government origins. At the end of the sixties, the Ministry of Information and Tourism, then directed by Manuel Fraga, called a competition among private publishers to finance and distribute a literary collection of mass reach. The project had the explicit support of Radio Televisión Española, whose initials would appear on the cover of each issue. What emerged from there was a collection of one hundred books that would end up selling more than thirty million copies. The contest. The Ministry ended up choosing the joint proposal of two companies with very different profiles: Salvat Editores, founded in Barcelona in 1869, with decades of experience as a publisher of enclopedias; and Alianza Editorial, newly born in 1966 at the initiative of José Ortega Spottorno (son of the philosopher José Ortega y Gasset, future founder of ‘El País’) and with the no less legendary collection ‘The Pocket Book’ already underway. The importance of television. The ‘RTV’ label was of great importance in promoting the dissemination of the collection. National Radio of Spain and Spanish Television authorized the use of their initials as official support, which gave the collection visibility and institutional legitimacy that was very important at that time. Furthermore, the books were advertised on television just when the progressive penetration of the appliance in Spanish homes was making it one of the main leisure options for Spaniards. Photo by Alberto Haj-Saleh Spain reads. The Spain that saw the birth of books was still suffering the echo of the decades of post-war cultural isolation, and many foreign authors were still circulating in imported or clandestine editions. The Press Law of 1966promoted by Fraga himself, had partially lifted the weight of censorship, but it still continued to exist. The researcher Francisco Rojas Claros states in ‘Cultural management and editorial dissidence in Spain (1962-1973)’ that the Salvat Basic Library was for many families the first real opportunity to access notable works from different periods, with correct translations and at a price that did not leave out the working classes. What was in the collection. The committee that selected the books (here the complete list) was made up of Dámaso Alonso, the Guatemalan Nobel Prize winner Miguel Ángel Asturias and the French writer Maurice Genevoix. Each volume included a prologue signed by a figure linked in one way or another to the work, and the selection combined universal classics (Shakespeare, Dostoevsky, Molière, Swift, Tolstoy, Dickens, Stevenson) with Spanish literature from the Golden Age (Quevedo, Calderón, Lope), Spanish authors of the 20th century (Unamuno, Baroja, Machado, Delibes, Cela) and a Latin American selection (Borges, Cortázar, Vargas Llosa, Onetti, Asturias himself). And yes, somehow Orwell’s ‘1984’ passed the censorship filter. The magic of 25 pesetas. The RTV seal was important for the popularization and dissemination of the collection, yes, but nothing was more important than the price of 25 pesetas (with adjusted inflation, we would be talking about a little less than five euros today). At that price, books were within the reach of an expanding middle class and working-class families with a stabilized salary after the years of developmentalism. They were not as cheap as newsstand novels were, but they were affordable if bought week by week. Mine. Let’s finish with a personal note: I only have one book from that collection where I first tasted Poe, Wilde, Hammett and Clarke. As everyone who has come to touch it knows, over time the glue of the binding became worn and the pages began to come off (note in the header image how the owner has had to re-stitch the spines of some copies). The book that I read and reread dozens of times was ‘Spanish graphic humor of the 20th century’, number 46 in the collection, an absolutely monumental anthology of cartoons, satirists and graphic humorists, to the point that I would say that it has not been surpassed. Many of those books (those mentioned in the previous paragraph, without going any further) I have subsequently read in better and more convenient editions, but this volume remains unique, has not been reissued and is among my favorite volumes in my library. Furthermore, since so many copies were distributed, it is relatively easy to buy it second-hand at a ridiculous price, so you know: let it not be said that we only recommend things with a built-in microchip here. In Xataka | The justified text has been trying to get you to pay attention to it for centuries. You do very well to hate him with all your soul

The animal testing of the elixir for future warfare has been a success. Now the most difficult thing remains: making it work in humans

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In 1667, the French doctor Jean-Baptiste Denis performed one of the first transfusions of history using lamb’s blood on a human patient, convinced that it could calm his behavior and save his life. The experiment generated such controversy that ended up being banned in several countries for decades, leaving a lesson that has accompanied medicine since then: when it comes to replacing blood, each advance opens a door… and also a risk that is difficult to foresee. An experiment that redefines war medicine. A lot has happened since that test by Denis, but now it is making strong noises again with the development of a powdered blood substituteone that marks one of the most ambitious advances in military preparation for future conflicts, where conditions no longer guarantee rapid evacuations or immediate access to hospitals. In this context, the idea of ​​transforming blood into a portable and stable resource ceases to be science fiction and becomes a solution, or perhaps an operational necessity. They counted on Insider that, for the Pentagon, what is at stake is not only improving logistics, but changing the way soldiers’ lives are saved in environments where every minute counts and medical infrastructure may not exist. The “elixir” that seeks to change war. The program powered by DARPA has managed to turn a complex concept into a potentially revolutionary solution: a powdered blood substitute that can be stored, transported and activated in a matter of seconds. This system is presented as an alternative to the current model, where fresh blood is limited, perishable and difficult to move in combat zones. The key, they say, is in its operational simplicity: mix the contents with sterile water and have a vital resource at the exact moment it is needed. Success in the laboratory. The initial results have been promising enough to generate expectations within the military and scientific field. After demonstrating its viability in controlled environments and later in animal models, the project has overcome one of the most complex phases of biomedical development. In other words, the advance suggests that the concept works in biological termsopening the door to real applications in scenarios where conventional transfusions are not possible. The great challenge. There is no doubt, despite of the advancesthe final jump remains the most difficult of all. The next step is to overcome the regulatory processes and demonstrate that the system is safe and effective in humansa long path that involves clinical trials, medical validation and approval from regulatory bodies. In fact, this is where many promising developments stall, not because of a lack of technology, but because of the complexity of ensuring that they work in real conditions without unexpected risks. A necessity. They counted in their report in Insider that interest in this type of solutions does not arise in a vacuum, but as a response to a profound change in the nature of conflicts. Conflicts have shown that air superiority no longer guarantees rapid evacuations, and the wounded can be trapped for hours without access to advanced medical care. In these contexts, the immediate availability of blood becomes a critical factor that can make the difference between life and death. Limitations of the current system. In the absence of alternatives, the armed forces have resorted to methods such as emergency transfusions among soldiers, known as “living blood banks.” Although effective in specific situations, these solutions depend on the availability of donors and cannot scale in scenarios with multiple casualties. Again, this highlights the need for a more robust solution, capable of responding to high-intensity situations without relying on improvised resources. Beyond science. The future of this technology announced by DARPA depends not only on its medical effectiveness, but also on its economic viability. The production, distribution and adoption of synthetic blood require significant investments in a sector where margins are traditionally low. Without a sustainable model that incentivizes companies and hospitals, even the most promising advances can remain in the experimental phase, never reaching the battlefield. Be that as it may, the objective set is more than ambitious: to turn development into an operational tool before end of the decade. To achieve this, almost nothing: coordinate science, regulation and industry in an accelerated process that avoids the usual blockages in such complex projects. But if successful, this sort of modern “elixir” could redefine war medicine, bringing the ability to save lives directly to where it is needed most. Image | DARPA In Xataka | Four years later, the Ukrainian war is the first war in history where humans are spectators In Xataka | In 1914, submachine guns forever changed the way war was waged. In 2026, it’s algorithms’ turn

that the birds recover their original song

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Noise is an invisible pollutant, but its effects can be seen. To begin with, the natural soundstage changes, altering the behavior of animals and affects health of humans and other species. It is true that in cities noise pollution is usually overshadowed by other pollution such as air or water quality, but its consequences are equally tangible. At the beginning of this century, studies on urban birds They found that noise caused by human activity causes birds to sing at higher frequencies to avoid masking traffic, a source of low-frequency noise. What Paris has achieved. As collects the paper published in Oxford Academicthe French capital has been fighting noise for decades directly and indirectly, especially focused on traffic, which shows a transformation in its urban mobility: it has gone from having 250 kilometers of bicycle lanes in 2003 to 800 kilometers in 2023, recycling traditional traffic lanes, with sound-absorbing asphalt, lowering speed limits, the expansion of electric vehicles and the installation of acoustic chambers capable of detecting and fining the noisiest vehicles (the famous “Medusa radars“). The result is obvious: the government agency Bruitparif demonstrates that Paris is today approximately three decibels quieter than it was almost 20 years ago (since 2008). It may not seem like much, but it is worth remembering that the decibel scale is logarithmic and that in practice this reduction represents approximately half of the previous sound intensity. Why is it important. The WHO is clear: Noise is the second most harmful environmental stressor for health in Europe (behind air pollution) and prolonged exposure to it increases the risk of cardiac ischemia, hypertension and sleep disorders in humans. The European Environment Agency details in its 2025 report that noise contributes to 49,000 new cases of ischemic heart disease annually on the continent. The prestigious The Lancet states in this paper that nocturnal noise causes sleep fragmentation, which raises blood pressure and, in the long term, damages the endothelium. If we stick to birds and their song, it is something like human language: they are culturally transmitted from generation to generation and changes in song are also learned by individuals of the same species in the environment. But it goes beyond changing a sound: it affects your ability to attract a mate, warn of danger, defend your territory or simply communicate. And be careful because this also affects other species such as whales because of the noise of the boats either the bats. This other one study published in Proceedings of the Royal Society B which analyzes 160 species of birds since 1990 found that noise significantly impacts communication, risk behaviors, feeding, aggression and physiology, with a clear negative effect on reproduction. Context. He Noise Prevention Plan in the Environment of Paris seeks to transform the French capital into a more livable city, becoming a living laboratory where urban planning and sensory planning combine to try to curb the impact of decades of acoustic degradation due to automobile dependency. For the study of Parisian birds, the great tit is the sentinel, using recordings of its songs both in the center of Paris and in the Fontainebleau forest as a wild reference. This observation is not new: already in 2006 a study showed that the chickadees that sing under the Eiffel Tower did so with a minimum frequency 400 Hz higher than those that sang in the Fontainebleau forest. This pattern has been replicated in other cities and species and the result is the same: it is common for birds to increase the minimum frequency of song in response to urban noise. The pending subject. Even though noise has decreased, Parisian tits continue to sing with significantly higher minimum frequencies than non-urban birds, and these frequencies have not decreased along with noise reduction. The explanation, according to the research teamis the cultural mechanism: young birds learn to sing by imitating the adults in their environment and for decades the only adults available to teach them sang high because it was the only way to make themselves heard. Now the city is quieter, but there are no teachers who sing gravely to learn. The habit persists even if the original cause has diminished. San Francisco in COVID-19 leads the way: during the pandemic background noise was reduced by about seven decibels and the white-crowned sparrow responded by singing at lower frequencies. Nature is speaking loud and clear: the reduction achieved by Paris is real but insufficient. In Xataka | China was the great polluter of the planet: now it is emerging as the first “electrostate” in history In Xataka | If the question is whether a skyscraper can be erased without demolishing it, Paris has the answer: yes, in exchange for a fortune Cover | Noureddine BOUABDALLAH and Alexander Kagan

more than 2,000 years without hair and a sacred mission in the underworld

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When I did the 1930s Mexican nationalism began to reclaim its pre-Hispanic past and rescue icons of the country. one in particular which stood out for its symbolism: the xoloitzcuintle. His name may not mean much to you, but you’ve probably seen him in photos or movies like ‘Coconut’by Pixar. He xoloas it is commonly known, is a dog breed originally from Mexico that stands out for two great reasons. First, because of his appearance, bald and athletic. Second, because of its history, which dates back to several millennia ago and connects with the Aztecs. For them the xoloitzcuintle was not just a pet, but a symbol associated with death and the last companion of the deceased on their journey to Mictlanthe Mexican underworld. A name that says it all. It seems like a tongue twister, but “xoloitzcuintle” is not only the name of a breed of dog native to Mexico. The word, from nahuatlthe language of the ancient Mexica, is in a way a description. There is who believes which is the combination of ‘Xolotl’the god of fire and death, and ‘itzcuintli’, which means dog. Others consider that the first part of the word is more of a nod to the hairless appearance of the animal, so it would be translated as “strange or wrinkled dog”. In either case, it is a fantastic business card for the ‘xolo’, a breed that has been linked to Mexico for millennia and stands out both for its exterior appearance and for its history and symbolic value. Hence, in the 1930s, the country’s nationalist movement “exalted her as a national symbol,” comment Raúl Valadez Azúa, from the Anthropological Research Institute (IIA) of the National Autonomous University of Mexico, UNAM. No hair or premolars. Its symbolic value may not be obvious, but as a breed the Xoloitzcuintle is unmistakable. Although there are examples of different sizes and varieties with and without hair, usually their specimens are distinguished by two characteristics: They are hairless and lack premolars. The reason must be sought in their genetic pool. During their first embryonic phase, three layers are formed in the xoloitzcuintle, like remember from the UMAN: the endoderm, mesoderm and ectoderm. The latter, however, is affected by a mutation that affects the teeth and fur. “It cannot be denied that a hairless dog is at a disadvantage. For example, when fighting with other dogs or in the face of climate changes. Despite this, after 2,000 years, it is still here,” reflect Valadez. Its peculiar condition also presents some advantages that have favored its bond with humans. Since it lacks hair, it is easy for us to feel its heat, which in the past caused xolos to be used with therapeutic purposes to relieve rheumatism or muscle pain. Just like huge hot water bottles. “A decision of the gods”. “The people of the region considered that, although the bald dog was a strange animal, its appearance responded to a decision of the gods and that therefore it was not up to them to kill it or decide its fate. Thus, they accepted it like the other dogs and called it xoloitzcuintle,” duck the UNAM expert. The result is fascinating: a characteristic that a priori could have represented a disadvantage compared to other races, ended up becoming a sign of identity that strengthened its symbolic value and the bond with men. An ancient race. If the appearance of the xolo is peculiar, its history is no less so. Experts believe the breed can date back to at least 2,000 years ago (there are those who place it even further back, to 3,500 years ago), emerged in western Mexico and after 500 years it began to disperse following two routes: one took it to South America, the other to Tula, Teotihuacán and Mayan territories. Its link with humans is also very old. Researchers have found remains dating back to 7th century and they seem to associate it, already at that time, with funerary contexts. They even suggest that he was attributed a role as guardian of sacred spaces. The Aztec dog. The remains of bones and ceramic fragments have allowed experts to better understand the role that dogs had in pre-Hispanic Mexico, where they were used for both eminently practical and symbolic purposes. Valadez remember For example, there are testimonies that speak of ritual sacrifices of hairless dogs in times of drought or during mass ceremonies, as well as others that reveal how their scavenging habits ended up associating them with death. “These animals were linked to the underworld because somehow what they ate in the underworld was converted into fecal matter, organic waste that was incorporated into the earth to pass to the underworld and, subsequently, returned to the earth as fertilizer that nourished the plants and, therefore, life,” reflect the expert However, if the xolo stands out for something, if something has earned it the nickname ‘Aztec dog’is the spiritual role that was attributed to it. The last companion. Its role in pre-Hispanic religiosity was so relevant that even today they highlight it the Mexican authorities, who have even designated the October 27 as ‘National Xoloitzcuintle Day’. Mythology claimed that when a person died, their essence undertook a journey to the underworld (Mictlán) that forced them, among other things, to cross the river Chiconahuapan. For that journey, however, he needed the help of the xolo, who would lend him a hand (or not) depending on how he would have behaved in life. Over the last few decades, researchers have found remains of dogs in graves, which has allowed them to confirm the belief that the deceased should be buried accompanied by a dog. Of course, with an important nuance: although at first it was believed that xolos were the favorite breed for that rite, the really relevant factor was the color of the coat. It had to be toasted. Other meanings were attributed to white or black hair that made them invalid for the journey to the afterlife. … Read more

The CEO of Nvidia believes that we are in a new industrial revolution where AI will not replace us: it will micromanage us

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Artificial intelligence has been available to users and companies for a few years now and we are at a point where they converge several ideas about AI and the future of work. There are several open fronts such as if AI will replace usif it will only be a tool or if, instead of freeing ourselves from the workload we carry, will add more to us. But the CEO of Nvidia, a Jensen Huang who has no trouble spilling his tongue, has another opinion. AI is going to micromanage us. Micromanager. A few days ago, Huang attended a talk at Stanford Business School. At these events, company CEOs usually leave motivational messages and talksbut I don’t know if in this case it would motivate someone who is looking for a job. During his panel, the Nvidia boss commented that, right now, “we are doing things faster, on a larger scale and we can think to do things we never imagined.” That part of the speech is fine, but he went on to note that “AI agents will harass you, micromanage you, and you will be busier than ever.” Like a good 1st century Roman baptisterywho wouldn’t like having an AI agent egging you on? Will create more jobs. Lately, Huang has chosen to blurt out headlines and vaguely elaborate. At the event, he also commented that these agents we have help us explore new avenues of work, do that work better and make it more profitable. He also addressed the great controversy, that of the supposed great replacement. On this, his opinion is that there will be some jobs that will be redundant because AI will be able to do the same as a human, but he considers that, in general, there will be humans with new jobs to adapt to. “I think we are going to create more jobs. There will be more people working at the end of this industrial revolution than at the beginning of it,” he says. Insecurity. It is curious that you compare it with the industrial revolution at a time when there is concern, above all, about the instability of the labor market. Huang ha commented that computer engineers are busier than ever and it makes sense, the problem is what happens next and what is happening with all those who are not dedicated to tasks strictly related to AI. In an article by Fortune published a few weeks ago, the issue of layoffs directly related to artificial intelligence was addressed. An example is Jerome Powell, president of the United States Federal Reserve, who warned that AI is quietly impacting the labor market as job creation is practically at zero. Another is that of Dario Amodei, CEO of Anthropic, who believes that “entry-level” jobs will be reduced by half in the next 18 months. And then Microsoft’s AI chief, Mustafa Suleyman, predicting that AI will cause many white-collar jobs to collapse in that same time frame. AND Meta is going to do without 8,000 employees as it transforms into an AI company. All this while, on short video networks there is a lot of content of young people saying that they have a university degree and are rejected at Target or McDonalds. The AGI has already arrived. Well no. HE esteem that, during 2025, some 55,000 people in the US will lose their jobs directly due to AI. It is only 4.5% of all layoffs, but a significant number that, if forecasts are met, will multiply by several figures over the coming months. For now, so far in 2026, esteem that technology companies have laid off 92,000 people, not all of them must be related to AI, but a scary number if we take into account that, during 2025, the total was 120,000 people. Just 28,000 less in just four months. But, beyond that, the prediction that an AI agent will not take our jobs, but rather will be a tiresome second boss, is not the only thing that Huang has commented recently without going much further. A few weeks ago, on Lex Fridman’s podcast, he already commented on things like that workers must be clear about the purpose of their work and that the tasks and tools they use to do it are related, but they are not the same. Also He commented that we had already arrived at the AGI (artificial general intelligence) giving an example that it has nothing to do with an AGI that, for now, remains theory. A black hole of money. Byan Catanzaro is the vice president of deep learning at Nvidia and has commented that AI currently costs more than human employees. “For my team, the cost of computing far exceeds that of employees.” It must be taken into account in this that AI is not an abstract entity: it is a huge investment in hardware, data centers and energy. According to the calculations According to Keith Lee, professor of AI and finance at the Swiss Institute of Artificial Intelligence, AI expenditures will be $5.2 trillion by 2030 in a conservative estimate and $7.9 trillion in a more aggressive one. But more interesting is what he comments about the fact that fixed subscriptions are not making money for companies because they do not cover operating costs. And that, at a time when companies like OpenAI and Anthropic should not take long to go public, is something to take into account because they will stop receiving millions from other private companies to have to respond to investors with their product and benefits. In Xataka | There are programmers from Meta and Microsoft competing to be the one who uses the most AI and wasting millions of dollars along the way

competes with all of Asia. And he is losing

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The race to develop models of artificial intelligence (AI) that the US and China maintain in their struggle for world supremacy is entering a new phase. And the physical applications of AI are gradually gaining prominence. By “physical applications” we mean the integration of one or more AI models into a mechanical device, such as a humanoid robot or a machine for industrial automation applications. The interesting thing is that the rules that will determine which countries will lead this emerging industry are different from those that currently govern competition in the field of AI models and software applications. And they are so for a reason: the robustness of the supply chain plays a fundamental role when the product stops being immaterial and takes the form of a cutting-edge hardware solution. In this scenario, Taiwan, Japan, South Korea, and, above all, China, have a great advantage over the US and Europe. China is committed to the strategy with which it has managed to dominate the electric car Before continuing to investigate the industry specialized in the development of physical applications of AI, we are interested in diverting our gaze for a moment to the semiconductor market. At the moment in Asia they are manufactured 90% of memory chips, 75% of microprocessors and 80% of silicon wafers. These figures are overwhelming. So much so, in fact, that in the medium term they remain absolutely out of reach of the West. It will be very difficult for the US and Europe to compete with the Chinese companies UBTech Robotics, Agibot or Unitree Robotics The electric car market also clearly illustrates the strength of Asia in general and China in particular. The country led by Xi Jinping leads it with a global market share of 62%. On the other hand, the South Korean companies LG Energy Solution, SK On and Samsung SDI accumulate a joint global quota in the market for batteries for electric cars of 16%. And the Japanese Toyota produces more than one million hybrid vehicles per year. Japan’s position is peculiar because leads the production of hybrid carsbut it is lagging behind in the pure electric car market. Whatever China’s strength in the electric car market and Asia’s leadership in the integrated circuit manufacturing industry have been built on a very robust supply chain and overwhelming production capacity. Jixun Foo, the senior director at venture capital firm Granite Asia, which specializes in technology investments in Asia, ensures that “AI is not just about models or software applications (…) If we look towards Asia our advantage is in the supply chain, hardware and engineering capabilities.” That’s the key. China has opted for the same strategy in the physical applications of AI industry that has led it to lead the electric car market. Its meticulous control of the entire supply chain, its high manufacturing capacity and its cost optimization in all probability They are giving you a very important advantage in the industry of humanoid robots and machines for industrial automation applications. And not only in its struggle with the United States; It will be very difficult for Europe to compete in a market in which Chinese companies such as UBTech Robotics, Agibot or Unitree Robotics are already fully established. Image | UBTech Robotics More information | SCMP In Xataka | The US is doing everything to drown China. China has already achieved that 35% of its chip machines are its own

The megacity you haven’t heard of is in China and aspires to be the largest in the world

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In the world there are big, huge, huge cities and then others that are almost a country in themselves, like Jing-Jin-Jithe huge conurbation that has been taking shape in northern China for years. And “country” can be taken in its most expansive sense. If they are fulfilled the forecasts launched by its promoters more than a decade ago, the megalopolis will host between 110 and 130 million of inhabitants, in addition to a robust business muscle. Its size will also take away the hiccups: is spoken of more than 200,000 km2double that of all of Portugal. It may sound like science fiction, but there is a very simple explanation: Jing-Jin-Ji is not a city founded from scratch, but a new way of understanding and organizing Beijing, Tianjin and the province of Hebei to shape an urban titan. Rethinking Beijing. Although it does not reach the levels From Tokyo, Delhi or even Shanghai, Beijing is one of the most populous cities on the planet. Its stable population easily exceeds 20 million of people, more than all Romania or Netherlands. That huge number of people move every day to go to school, the doctor and of course to companies that may be close by. several hours of their houses. If we add to that the role of Beijing as the capital of one of the greatest potentials in the world, the result is an (almost) impractical megalopolis, polluted and in which complications the services. To face such a challenge and prevent the exodus from the countryside from ending up collapsing the city, in recent years the Government has resorted to several solutions. One has been limit the population. Another is to rethink Beijing itself so that it is no longer just the capital of China or a mere metropolis, but part of a much larger conurbation. The objective is twofold: to relieve pressure on the capital and to promote a new industrial hub, one capable of replicating the success achieved in the Yangtze River Delta or Guangzhou and Shenzhen area. A new giant: “Jing-Jin-Ji”. With this premise, a decade ago the Chinese authorities decided to go for what is probably one of their most ambitious projects: Jing-Jin-jia word that hides a nod to the cities of Beijing, Tianjin and Ji, which is how the province of Hebei is traditionally known. That business card speaks for itself idea. The idea is strengthen the bond between those three territories in northern China, distributing part of the crushing burden that now falls on the capital, improving communications and betting on a distribution of specialized roles. The story of Jing-Jin-Ji can soar at least to the National New Urbanization Plan presented by the Government for the period 2014-2020. In it, China, a nation already accustomed to megacities, advocated the promotion of a dozen “urban clusters.” The greatest of all would be Jing-Jin-Ji, in which Beijing would embrace (in an almost literal sense) with Tianjin, which is another of the biggest cities of the country and nearby cities in Hebei province. More than theory (and politics). The project received Xi JinPing’s blessing just 12 years ago, in April 2014and was sold with a display of astonishing data. Its objective was neither more nor less than to bring together a region of more than 215,000 km2 in which some 130 million people would live in 2050, generating a powerful industrial and commercial hub. It could have remained just that, an ambitious idea, but a quick review of the newspaper library confirms the extent to which China was determined to push it forward. The following year, in 2015, The New York Times confirmed that Jing-Jin-Ji was beginning to become a reality. Shortly after Guardian informed of the plans to create Xiongan, a large city located just under 100 km from Beijing that would allow the urban framework of Jing-Jin-Ji to be articulated. It was just one of the measures to consolidate the new megalopolis. The most effective of all was the reinforcement of rail and road communications. In 2016, China actually approved an ambitious investment plan to build kilometers and kilometers of roads and reach the middle of the century with about twenty of railway lines. Is it just infrastructure? No. Improving communications is a fundamental part of Jing-Jin-Ji, but not the only one. Another, equally important, is the distribution of roles between the regions. He starting point It was simple: Beijing would consolidate itself as a political, cultural and technological center while Tianjin would establish itself as an export port and manufacturing hub. As for Hebei, there was a commitment to also orient it towards industry and wholesale trade. In the background, slide China Briefingthere was the desire to bet on industrial clusters focused on emerging sectors, such as electric vehicles, the biopharmaceutical industry or robotics. To achieve this distribution, of course, it was not enough to set guidelines on paper. In 2015, the Beijing authorities announced his plans to refocus the capital, moving certain services, such as wholesale markets and administrative offices, out of the urban center and moving some services to suburban areas or even to Hebei province. The importance of gestures. Perhaps the best proof of the extent to which the Government wants to keep the project alive is that, from time to time, the Chinese press publishes articles reviewing the progress in the creation of Jing-Jin-Ji. It happened in April 2024coinciding with the tenth anniversary of the presentation of the plan, and it happened again in 2025, when CGTN He published an article to make it clear that Beijing’s suburban dream is advancing little by little. His chronicle highlights the increase in economic production in the region, the opening of new stretches of road that allow travel times to be cut, the reinforcement of public transport or collaboration at an economic level and when providing services. The local press also highlights that the region “has become an innovation center” capable of attracting companies. Of course, there are also important challengeshow to achieve greater … Read more

the incredible history of the largest castle in the world

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Europe is full of castles, but there are castles and castles and the one of the Teutonic Order in Malbork plays in another league: more than just a building, it is actually a superb Gothic brick complex built in the 13th century. In fact, It is the largest castle in the world on surface. To get the idea, it is four times that of Windsor. Furthermore, it is UNESCO World Heritage Site. The Castle of the Teutonic Order in Malbork stands imposingly on the southeastern bank of the Nogat River in northern Poland, and as interesting as its impressive construction and size is its history. Beyond being a witness to Central European history, this building was built by the Teutonic Knights, a militarized German Catholic religious order of crusaders that served to Christianize the entire Baltic coast for centuries. Among other things. A masterpiece of architecture. The intro has served to whet our appetite, but the Ordensburg Marienburg complex is architecturally a marvel: it comes with a huge palace, a monastery, three different castles and hundreds of auxiliary buildings. In essence, they are three castles separated by moats and towers, three castles in one. The castle began to be built around 1274 and reached its maximum splendor in 1406, that is, it took just over 130 years. The complex that had to expand to provide shelter to 3,000 brothers of the Order, thus becoming the largest fortified Gothic building in Europe. For its construction they were needed 30 million bricks. It was impressive inside and out: inside there were amazing innovations for the time, such as hot air central heating and an advanced sewage system. Its large halls have ribbed vaults that are authentic masterpieces of engineering secular gothic Entrance. Diego Delso Why was it built?. The construction of the Castle of the Teutonic Order in Malbork goes hand in hand with the history and future of said militarized religious organization. And at that time, the Teutonic Order was looking for a new Headquarters after its withdrawal from the Holy Land. After a time in Venice, in 1309 Grand Master Siegfried von Feuchtwangen transfer the seat of the Italian city at Malbork, in newly conquered Prussia. The main objective was to reinforce control over the area after the repression of the Great Prussian Revolt of 1274. Thus, that border area became the nerve center of a Monastic State that would govern much of the Baltic. In addition to its religious and military function, the castle was instrumental in establishing a monopoly on amber. thanks to your strategic location along the Nogat, allowing the Teutonic Knights to collect tolls from ships transiting the river to finance their military campaigns against the pagan peoples of Lithuania and convert the fortress into a commercial center integrated into the Hanseatic League. All this allowed them to ensure their economic power of the Teutonic State in the region. Historical context: the Baltic Crusades. Malbork reached its peak during the Baltic Crusades, a period when Germanic military orders sought the forced Christianization of the northeastern peoples of Europe. In this context, the castle not only acted as a military base: it was also its best visual propaganda. A complex of such dimensions is a financial and military ostentation to potential enemies. Come on, such an impressive architectural work shows that you have God on your side. Malbork became the most powerful manifestation of the Crusades in Eastern Europe. From 1309 it was the headquarters of the Order, a role it played until its decline at the beginning of the 15th century. This period coincides with the height of Teutonic power in the Baltic, with the fortress as the political, military and religious epicenter of a sovereign monastic state. Decline, destruction and rebirth. The Teutonic Knights were finally defeated decisively in the Battle of Grunwald on July 15, 1410 at the hands of the armies of Poland and Lithuania with the support of the Tatars. In 1457, during the Thirteen Years’ War, a Bohemian mercenary they sold the castle to King Casimir IV of Poland, becoming a Polish royal residence until 1772. However, the darkest chapter in its history dates back to 1945, on the verge of the end of World War II: the forces of the German army and the Red Army reduced more than half of the structure to rubble, as can be seen. see yourself in these photos. The landscape was so desolate that restoring it seemed like an impossible mission, but the process began in 1947 and is still continuing. Thus, with the passing of the year and the good work of specialists who have used historical documentation for a detailed restoration, they have managed, among other things, to recover the interior of Saint Mary’s church. In 1997 it was declared a World Heritage Site and since 1961 it has housed the Malbork Castle Museum. In Xataka | That Christian Friedrich von Kahlbut died in 1702 is nothing exceptional. That his corpse has not decomposed, yes In Xataka | We just discovered that a semi-legendary Nile king really existed thanks to a 17th century document found in trash Cover | Gregory

the savior of world energy

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When the price of fossil fuel tightensthe answer is not long in coming. The Iran war caused breaking the barrier of 100 dollars per barrel WTI. It was not surprising considering that the closure of the Strait of Hormuz led to the loss of 20 million barrels per day of crude oil and refined products, leaving the market with a net deficit of about eight million barrels per day. The world did not sit idly by watching the price of fuel rise and the reaction was immediate: buy solar panels at industrial levels. And, in that scenario, there is a very clear winner: China. Bottleneck. When the war startedsome of the first objectives had to do with energy. Through the Strait of Hormuz It moves more than 20% of the oil consumed by the world, being a strategic element and, therefore, vulnerable. With the closure of the Ras Tanura refinery and with the collapse of the strait itself, a brutal traffic jam was caused in which hundreds of vessels They moved at the speed of a bicycle. According to Bloombergthere were more than 800 stuck boats, and an Al Jazeera investigation pointed out that, in the first 40 days of conflict, 206 million barrels disappeared from the market. With that amount, 103 supertankers would be filled. The reaction of the governments was to begin releasing millions of barrels from their emergency reserves, as well as to call on citizens to spend as little as possible. Chinese panels. This is when countries have accelerated the transformation of their electrical network. As we read in Electrekwith data from Ember, China exported 68 GW of solar energy in March alone. The graph prepared by Ember speaks for itself, but that amount is double February’s total and 49% more than the previous record, set in August 2025. It is estimated that the solar energy installed in Spain is about 42 GW by the end of 2025and being Spain one of the powers in this sensespeaks volumes about the extent to which the world has turned to Chinese solar when the fossil fuel belt was tight. It goes through neighborhoods. The largest clients have been the logical ones: those most exposed to fluctuations in fossil fuel prices. Imports from Africa increased by 176%, reaching 10 GW with Nigeria, Kenya and Ethiopia being the largest importers. India imported 6.6 GW, Malaysia 1.8 GW and, in total, other Asian countries added 39 GW. Panels were also purchased in Europe, Japan and Australia, but the study points out that capacity was lower due to work carried out previously, and in the Middle East things were more complicated due to trade restrictions due to the war. Trend change. Something that the study points out is that, although entire panels continue to be purchased from China, there seems to be a turning of the tables because imports of solar cells are increasing, which are subsequently assembled in the destination country. For example, of those 68 GW exported, 32 GW belong to pre-assembled panels and 36 GW to cells and wafers. One is going down, the other is going up. And something important: it also means a relief for a China whose panel companies they were dying of success. Not just the panels. And this commitment to new energy not only translates into a greater amount of solar energy exported. Batteries and electric vehicles They are also booming and it is estimated that, as a whole, they increased by 70% year-on-year and by 38% compared to February. The Spanish lifeguard. Going down the data, the global implementation of solar energy is growing and it is being seen that it is not only a way to pollute less, but also to cushion the blow of the fossil fuel price increase that can suffer turbulence due to war, geopolitical issues or by accidents. It also shows that the fact that much of the world’s oil passes through a single point is something that can strangle the market in the event of a catastrophe, explaining why countries seek this transition to renewable energies that make them more self-sufficient. Images | Jenikir In Xataka | For the first time, 100% of Spain’s energy has been covered by renewables. The question is whether we can repeat it

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