china

China closes the helium tap and the US becomes the great beneficiary of the Iran war

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The US has become the main supplier of helium to Japan, South Korea and Taiwan, and its market share will likely continue to grow. This is the conclusion of the analysis of customs data that has been done Nikkei Asiawhich places Washington as the great beneficiary of a crisis that combines the war of USA and Israel against Iran and the export restrictions imposed by Beijing. Be that as it may, it is not a minor trend. Helium is an irreplaceable gas during the chip manufacturing process because it is necessary for cooling wafers and in plasma etching or photolithography. In this context Japan, South Korea and Taiwan are three of semiconductor ecosystems most important on the planet, with TSMC, Samsung and SK hynix at the helm, all of them redirecting part of their supply towards the United States. The trigger has been twofold. On the one hand, the crisis in the Middle East has cast doubt on the Asian supply chain amid fears that a de facto closure of the Strait of Hormuz further complicate access to helium and liquefied natural gas. And on this already unstable ground, China has decided to tighten the screws as much as possible. China has turned off the tap at a very delicate moment The Chinese Government announced on July 10 a temporary veto with immediate effect to helium exportsrelying on its Foreign Trade Law and without giving further explanations. The Ministry of Commerce and the Chinese Customs Administration frame this measure in the escalation of the conflict in the Middle East, which threatens to cause new bottlenecks in a gas essential for manufacturing integrated circuits. China only produces domestically around 15% or less of the helium it consumes However, at this juncture we are interested in specifying China’s real weight in this market. This country only produces internally around 15% or less of the helium it consumes, so depends on imports from Qatarwhich generates approximately a third of the world’s supply. For this reason, its dependence on the outside borders on critical levels, with estimates that range between 80% and 90%. A quick note before moving forward: Helium is irreplaceable in semiconductor manufacturing because it cannot be synthesized industrially. It is extracted from natural gas deposits with unusually high concentrations of this element, and is used in wafer cooling, plasma etching, chemical and atomic layer deposition, lithography support, and leak detection. Japan and South Korea, exposed in a very different way The exposure of each country to this scenario varies significantly. In 2025, Japan was already obtaining around 60% of its helium imports from the US and 37% from Qatar, which has allowed it to pivot relatively quickly. South Korea, on the other hand, depended on Qatar for 64.7% of its importsa fact that has forced Samsung and SK hynix to move urgently and accept higher prices in new long-term contracts with Linde and Air Products. Helium now joins the rare earths, gallium, germanium and graphite as another chapter in the geopolitical struggle The manufacturing of memory chips is very demanding with the consumption of this gas due to the repeated high-temperature etching and deposition processes required by advanced 3D stacking. Many semiconductor industry analysts expect that American industrial supplierssuch as Air Products, Linde or ExxonMobil, are the big beneficiaries of the tightening of global supply. Be that as it may, helium now joins the rare earths, gallium, germanium and graphite as another chapter in the geopolitical struggle for the resources that support the semiconductor industry. Image | Yuri Shkoda More information | Nikkei Asia In Xataka | Yttrium is another of the many “rare” metals that only China exports. The US just found out the hard way

China conquered the European cheap tire market. The EU has just put the brakes on it

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The European Commission has approved antidumping tariffs definitive rates on tires for passenger cars and light vans from China, which range between 4.3% and 45.3% depending on the manufacturer. The measure comes after an investigation opened in November last year and adds another blow to the growing trade tension between the EU and Chinawhich already affects multiple sectors, including (and one of the most famous), that of electric cars. What has happened? The European Commission maintains that Chinese tires were entering the community market at artificially low prices, a practice known as dumping, and assures that this has harmed the European industry in the sector, which employs more than 80,000 people in 14 EU countries, according to has explained the institution itself. In detail. Tariffs are not the same for all manufacturers. Shandong Yongsheng Rubber Group, a producer focused on more economical tires, receives the highest tariff45.3%. Another 64 companies (including Chinese factories of brands such as Pirelli, Goodyear, Continental or Sumitomo) will have to pay 24.4%. The most striking case is perhaps that of the South Korean company Hankook, which manufactures in China but has escaped with a tariff of only 4.3%, since its researchers concluded that its tires are sold at much higher prices than those of its Chinese competitors and that their impact on the European market was less. Why does it matter? The European market for tires of this type moved more than 18,000 million euros in 2024, with a consumption of about 330 million units, according to data of the European Commission. Of them, almost 93 million came from China, which represents a market share of 28%, a percentage that has been growing strongly from 18% in 2021, according to collect Carscoops. The Commission itself states that indicators such as sales, employment or profitability of European manufacturers showed “a clear negative trend” during the period analyzed. Between the lines. More than 90% of imported Chinese tires are concentrated in the cheapest segment of the market, the so-called “tier 3”, according to data of the Coalition Against Unfair Tire Imports, the association of European manufacturers that filed the initial complaint. This organization assures that the dumping margins detected ranged between 41% and 104%, and that Chinese prices were below European prices by between 30% and 65%. To calculate whether there was dumping, the Commission needed to compare Chinese prices with reliable “reference” prices. The problem is that, according to Brussels, prices within China do not serve as a reference because the State has too much influence over companies in the sector. Therefore, the Commission has decided to use Turkish prices as a proxy to make that comparison. This decision has not pleased the Chinese producers or the South Korean companies Kumho Tire and Hankook, which they argue that Türkiye is not a valid example either, since it imports steel from Russia. The Commission, however, has rejected this argument and has maintained its choice. What China says. The Chinese Chamber of Commerce before the EU has warned that tariffs could place an additional cost burden on the automotive sector. In a statement Quoted by the South China Morning Post newspaper, the organization points out that tariff differences between manufacturers “may have implications for the competitive position of companies operating in the same market”, including European and Asian companies with plants in China. What does it mean for the pocket? According to calculations According to the German media Automobilwoche, tariffs are applied to the import value of the tire, not its final sales price. In 2024, this average value was 30.30 euros per unit. With the 45.3% tariff, the extra cost would be around 13.70 euros; with that of 24.4%, about 7.40 euros. Adding VAT, the increase for the buyer could be between 9 and 16 euros per tire, before the stores apply their own margins. And everything indicates that the entry segment will be the one that will notice the impact the most. And now what. This measure does not close the chapter between the EU and China in this sector. And there is also a parallel investigation for possible illegal subsidies to Chinese manufacturers, also focused on tires, whose conclusions are expected in December of this year. Citi analysts, cited by SCMP, consider that tariffs can help stabilize the European tire sector and anticipate a positive reaction on the stock market for manufacturers such as Goodyear, Michelin, Continental and Pirelli. Cover image | François Genon and Robert Laursoo In Xataka | The camera that watches you while you drive is already mandatory in new cars. And no one guarantees what happens with that data.

China has reached the asteroid that has been driving astronomers crazy for a decade. And your first photo is already changing the answer

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After 400 days of travel, the Chinese Tianwen-2 probe has reached your goal: object 469219 Kamo’oalewa (2016HO3). The entire world astronomical community has its sights set on this trip, for the answers it can provide to a mystery that has been going on for more than a decade. However, as usually happens with missions carried out by China, we had little information about the journey until the ship was already at its destination. This occurred on July 4, although the Chinese National Space Administration, CNSA, announced it this July 6. Be that as it may, the important thing is that China has reached Kamo’oalewa, that terrestrial “minimoon” that has given scientists so many headaches since it was discovered in 2016. Now comes the good. Tianwen-2 was released on May 29, 2025. 400 days later, it has reached its first stop, just 20 kilometers from Kamo’oalewa. There, he has taken the first photos, which will help him map this object, in order to determine the best places for sampling. Then, it will be time to get down to work, to collect a series of samples that will be sent to Earth in 2027. Then, we will have a definitive answer to the million-dollar question: Is Kamo’oalewa an asteroid or a fragment that was ejected from the Moon? The instruments. This probe has 11 payloads, including instruments that will allow it to study both Kamo’oalewa and its next target: comet 311P/PANSTARRS. These instruments include cameras, laser measuring devices, spectrometers, sonar radars and particle analyzers. It also includes the DIANA dust analyzer, developed in Italy. First mission: map the surface. Currently, the Chinese probe is taking photographs from different angles to create a 3D model that will allow establishing the best places to take samples. Broadly speaking, these places must meet two requirements: be scientifically interesting and not pose risks for sampling. The latter includes, for example, no unstable ground or loose rocks. Second mission: take samples. Since the mission left without knowing exactly what the surface of Kamo’oalewa will be like, Tianwen-2 travels prepared to take samples through three different methods: suspension, touch and match and anchor and coupling. The first consists of keeping the probe in hover, without landing on the object, and taking out a robotic arm that will skim the surface to obtain the samples. The second method, on the other hand, uses a disc-shaped, gas-powered head that briefly but more strongly touches the surface. Afterwards, rotating brushes are released that, together with bursts of air, sweep away the material released with that blow of the disc. Finally, the anchoring and docking method consists of releasing four robotic arms that are fixed to the surface to extract material for a longer period of time. It would be the first time this method has been used in deep space. Tianwen-2 has been traveling for 400 days Third mission: send them to Earth. The samples will be sent to Earth in 2027 for analysis. However, during Tianwen-2’s flyby of Kamo’oalewa, some inquiries are already being made about it. Asteroid or lunar fragment? Until now, all that was known about Kamo’oalewa were hypotheses or estimates. It was believed to measure between 40 and 100 meters in diameter and that It had to be a fragment released from the Moon after a collision or an asteroid. The first hypothesis arose from a study using spectrometry, in which it was concluded that its surface is rich in silicates, like that of the Moon. The second has several origins, although gained weight after another study in which several collisions were modeled on a simulated Moon. In very few cases the released fragments became quasi-satellites of the Earth, so the asteroid would fit better. In its first days in the vicinity of Kamo’oalewa, Tianwen-2 has made a measurement of the surface reflectance of the object, which suggests that it has a high geometric albedo. That of the Moon is quite low, so the asteroid hypothesis would still fit. On the other hand, the first data indicate that Kamo’oalewa measures 20 meters in diameter. It is less than what was originally estimated, but practically the same as what was calculated with observations made by James Webb. According to a study published on July 1in these it was calculated that it would measure 18 meters and, again, it was suggested that it be an asteroid. Specifically, one of type E. What is this about quasi-satellites? Kamo’oalewa is considered a quasi-satellite of the Earth because, when viewed from our planet, it appears to revolve around us. But it’s not true. In reality, this object revolves around the Sun, like the Earth. What happens is that it has a period similar to that on Earth. It also takes about a year to completely circle the sun. This, together with the geometry of its orbit, creates that optical effect that it is actually a kind of terrestrial mini-moon. Now we know that, possibly, in addition to not being a mini moon Due to its orbit, it is not made of fragments of our satellite either. At least, it seems most likely, although, of course, we will have to wait for the samples to reach Earth. Then we can definitively put the mystery to rest. Image | CNSA In Xataka | The Earth has moons that we don’t know about: exploring them is key to revealing the secrets of our solar system

It took China a decade to stop coal through renewable megaprojects. It took him a year to reactivate it

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For years, China has been the absolute reference in renewable energies: they have managed drive down the prices of solar panelsride offshore wind farms or colossal photovoltaic parks flourish in such incredible places like the tibetan plateauwhere also is building mega hydroelectric plants. And its strong commitment to renewables is being noticed: after a decade, coal-fired electricity generation fell for the first time. However, in 2026 China has taken a step back from coal. what’s happening. Between January and May of this year, electricity generation from coal and gas has risen 3.4% compared to the previous year, according to official data from the Chinese National Bureau of Statistics, from which Reuters echoesstanding at 2.53 billion kWh. The North American media collects estimates from S&P Global Energy and by Wood Mackenziewhich estimate the growth of coal-fired thermoelectric generation in China between 1.5% and 2%. The consulting firm Kpler estimates a 3% increase in coal consumption in the electricity sector, reaching 2.7 billion tons. Why it is important. The first reading of this reality is that the Chinese machinery does not stop, no matter what happens. And several things are happening that explain why the Asian giant resorts to an old acquaintance: El Niño is reducing rainfall in the hydroelectric dams of southwest China, so coal and gas have come to the rescue to compensate in those regions. On the other hand, the war in Iran and the consequent blockade of Hormuz have made access to liquefied gas more expensive and difficult, so China pulls coal and old pacts with Russia to optimize its use. On the other hand, renewable have grown at a slower rate than in 2025so something has to fill that gap in demand. And that something is coal. And this shift is important because China is the country that consumes the most electricity and more carbon dioxide emitted of the planet. In fact, India and China are responsible for more than 90% of the increase in emissions between 2015 and 2024, according to Carbon Brief. If China turns to coal, the global goal of reducing emissions becomes black. And also his promise to reach the emissions ceiling before 2030. Context. In 2020, China stepped on the accelerator in its energy transition towards renewables: fulfilled six years ahead of schedule its goal of 1,200 GW of wind and solar by 2030 and renewables by mid-2023 they surpassed to coal in installed capacity. In 2025 the share of coal in the generation mix fell to 51.4%, according to the think tank Agora Energyalthough this was also helped by the fact that the growth in electricity demand went from 7% in 2024 to 5% in 2025. In detail. This slowdown in the growth of renewables in 2026 also has several reasons: there has been less wind ( according to CREA has been the weakest in a decade), solar panels in the western provinces are being used less and fewer new panels have been installed than the previous year, partly due to the high installation base of the 2025 “boom” and partly due to the growing network congestion and forced discharge that affects wind, solar and even nuclear. On the other hand, in an interview for Inside Climate NewsCREA analyst Qi Qin gives an additional explanation: recently created coal plants: in her opinion, the rebound in coal is more due to the fact that China has commissioned too many new plants since 2024 than to geopolitical tensions in the Strait of Hormuz. Qin also points out that many of these plants operate under medium and long-term supply contracts that guarantee a minimum level of utilization, which places them in direct competition with renewables for limited electricity demand; In his own words, it is “a competition, and coal plants have an institutional advantage.” Yes, but. Although the rebound in coal in 2026 is currently a documented reality, it is important to highlight that it is more of a temporary alternative and that situations such as El Niño, drought, weak wind or the Hormuz blockade will pass, so this return is more of a plan B than a setback in its energy strategy. In fact, his own CREA May 2026 report underlines that, were it not for the exceptionally weak wind in those months, the growing supply of clean energy would probably have reduced, not increased, coal and gas generation. Of course, given the recent permits and construction of coal plants, the reality is that unless political measures are taken, coal will continue to have a say and will continue to be the lifesaver in emergencies. In Xataka | In its efforts to break all energy records, China is taking wind farms 100 kilometers offshore In Xataka | China manufactured more solar panels in one year than the planet can absorb. Now the market is devouring itself Cover | ダモリ and Chris LeBoutillier

After the floods in China, the vice president of BYD has had to remember that their cars are not boats. Its owners have not cared

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Dozens of BYD electric cars have circulated these days on completely flooded roads in the Chinese region of Guangxi, transporting food, water and emergency supplies to villages isolated by the rains. The striking thing is that it was not a decision organized by the brand, but those who left with their cars for the affected areas were volunteers, and they did so just when a senior executive of the company asked for caution regarding the risk of driving through floods. What has happened? Guangxi has suffered historic rains caused by Typhoon Mesaak, with roads and entire municipalities under water. According to collect According to Chinese media, 163, owners of vehicles from brands such as Denza and Fang Cheng Bao, both from the BYD group, organized themselves through networks of owners to form civil rescue convoys. These groups voluntarily entered the areas most affected by the flood, ignoring the recommendations for driving in extreme weather conditions. In detail. Chinese electric cars they usually boast of a construction designed to resist water, including batteries with a highly protective seal and reinforced chassis to cross flooded areas. In the case of Fang Cheng Bao, its independent chassis architecture allows, according to factory data, to cross up to 800 millimeters deep thanks to a specific structural sealing on the underside of the vehicle. And it is not the first time that we see this type of vehicle going out for a ride in extreme conditions. Last year we already saw vehicles like the Yangwang U8 and the Jetour Zongheng G700 do the goat crossing rivers or in flooded areas. There is certainly no better advertising. The notice that arrived late. While the owners were already circulating through the flooded areas, He Zhiqi, senior vice president of BYD, published a message on social networks reminding that an electric car “is not a boat”, according to his Weibo account. The manager explained that, although the Blade Battery of the brand has watertightness certifications IP67 and IP68and that from the factory it is guaranteed that the vehicle can withstand being submerged up to one meter deep for 24 hours without suffering electrical leaks or risk of fire in the battery, driving through deep water is still a real risk that should be avoided. Models on the ground. Among the vehicles that have been seen in the images, the Denza N9 stands out, the brand’s large luxury plug-in hybrid that, according to account CarNewsChina managed to move through areas of mud and water thanks to its all-wheel drive system with several independent motors. The Fang Cheng Bao Bao 8 has also been seen circulating, an all-terrain vehicle with a harder profile with a suspension designed to better distribute the load, in addition to the Denza B5 and B8, which incorporate active body control systems capable of adjusting the height on the fly to avoid obstacles. The money has also moved. In addition to help on the ground, several Chinese brands They have allocated funds to the reconstruction of the area. The BYD Charitable Foundation has donated 10 million yuan (about 1.47 million U.S. dollars) to fund emergency equipment and repair public infrastructure. Xiaomi has contributed the same amount in cash, and the Chery group has donated another 10 million yuan divided between financial aid and supplies. Cover image | CarNewsChina (Bilibili) In Xataka | Sky Nomad is a reality: Xiaomi’s second car brand aims at one of the jewels in BYD’s crown

“This is the first time China has proposed a new principle for the chip industry.” Not everyone is convinced

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Huawei’s path in recent years has been most curious. After being ostracized by the West and being the target of the trade war between the US of Trump’s first term and China, has become the company that thank the United States because of how vetoes have boosted Chinese technology. Because Huawei has become one of the pillars of all the technology companies in the country and they are not satisfied with making chips: they want to lead a new paradigm with a Tau Law that challenges the Moore’s Law. But behind the promises, there are those who can only see one thing: marketing. The Tau Law. My partner Laura exemplified it perfectly. If the chip is a city, the transistors are the buildings, and the cables are the roads, Moore’s Law says: “make buildings smaller to fit more into the same space.” What Huawei proposes, however, goes in another direction: “buildings can no longer be much smaller, so instead let’s make cars travel faster on the roads, and redesign the urban layout so that they travel less distance.” Huawei’s bet is that cars take much less time to go from one building to another, reducing times tremendously so that the chip, without the need to work on smaller lithographs, is much faster. Inside that Tau LawHuawei proposes the LogicFolding architecture, focused on shortening the wiring of the critical paths to increase the density of the transistors. Qionists. And the company is tremendously proud of this to the point that He Tingbo, Huawei’s chip director, affirms that “it is the first time that China proposes a new principle for the global chip industry.” Because, until now, Moore’s Law was the one that prevailed in lithography leaps, but if instead of concentrating on achieving the very complicated objective of making everything smaller, companies focus on shortening the “routes”, the density objective can be achieved in other ways. In fact, Huawei maintains that, before LogicFound, it took three years to go from 126 to 155 million transistors per mm2. In 2026, and with the new architecture, they jumped directly to 238 per mm2. Equivalence, not parity. And if the question is why Huawei is pushing this when there was already another viable way, the answer is that that proven way was not as viable for Chinese companies. Due to the technological veto, they cannot access the most sophisticated machines in Europe ASMLso they can’t “print” chips in advanced lithography as easily as TSMC can, for example. Thus, they have looked for another way to achieve that density, but something important is the terms. Because there is talk that Huawei would reach a transistor density “equivalent” to that of 1.4 nm processes, by 2031, and that is the key. They would be “equivalent” in density and there would be no lithographic parity. With raised eyebrow. In any case, Tingbo is proud of the logo and believes that it can benefit the entire Chinese technology ecosystem, but it makes an appeal. The directive states that “there remain many open questions that no organization can address alone. The tool chain, standards and economic models require contributions from more than one company.” For its part, and as we see in The Registerthere are those who do not see that revolution in the Tau Law. Although they see what the Chinese company is proposing as interesting, they affirm that it is more of a hybrid movement between reality and marketing because “Huawei had to get creative” to overcome the limitations and “they are going in the right direction, but this density is created through packaging and not by making smaller transistors“Indeed, this is what we already had, but they point out that the result will not be equivalent to a true 1.4 nm node from TSMC or Intel in issues such as energy efficiency and temperature. Future. In fact, as our colleagues point out Xataka Mobileit is in thermal management where Huawei is encountering some major problems. But well, the company’s intention is that the results of this Tau Law allow massive AI clusters that they behave as a single chip by 2035 and that the upcoming Kirin chips for consumption also benefit from it. Image | IBM (edited) In Xataka | While the industry obsesses over power, TSMC is clear about where the future of chips lies: in efficiency

Scientists threw a cow into the depths of the China Sea. They discovered eight unexpected guests at the feast

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The ocean is full of surprises. Sometimes, as happened several years ago in Canada, enigmas appear floating in a of human feet adrift. However, in others, the majority, you have to go down to the depths to try to solve the mysteries. That was precisely what a group of researchers proposed. It all started by throwing the carcass of a cow. A cow at 1,600 meters. In one of the most unusual marine experiments in recent years, a group of scientists threw a dead cow 1,629 meters deep on a continental slope of the South China Sea, off the Chinese island of Hainan, with the aim of simulating the sinking of a whale and studying the scavenger behavior of deep waters. What they found surprised even the most experienced researchers: eight sleeper sharks of the Pacific (Somniosus pacificus) appeared at the site, marking the first documented observation of this species in the region. The discovery not only unexpectedly expands the distribution map of this elusive shark, but also provides valuable information about its behavioral patterns, feeding hierarchies, physiological adaptations and its possible geographical expansion. An unexpected visitor. Although the Pacific sleeper shark is a species with a wide distribution in the northern Pacific Ocean (from Japan to Alaska and south to Baja California), its detection in waters off southern China was not only unexpected, but raises questions about the actual extent of its habitatits possible displacement due to the effect of climate change or even the existence of a stable and not yet registered population in that region. Food label. The recorded images The underwater cameras not only confirmed its presence, but also revealed unusual behavior for large predators: a kind of shift systemin which the sharks lined up to feed on the corpse, giving way to other individuals that approached from behind. This type of “food label”rarely observed in predatory species, suggests that feeding order could be determined by the competitive intensity of each individual, rather than a chaotic struggle for resources, which would indicate a more complex level of social organization than previously suspected in these animals. New clues. He study also documented variations in behavior depending on body size. The specimens that exceeded 2.7 meters in length were very more aggressive and direct in attacking the carrion, while the smaller sharks opted for cautious movements, circling the carcass before approaching. The pattern suggests that even in an environment where food is scarce and opportunities are random, sleeper sharks could have developed a coexistence strategy with hierarchical ranks that minimize direct conflict. One more thing. Another notable finding was a behavior of eye retraction observed during feeding. Since this species lacks nictitating membrane (the protective “third eyelash” that other vertebrates such as cats or certain reptiles have), researchers believe that this retraction reflects a evolutionary adaptation to protect the eyes during bites or struggles, which provides new information about the defensive physiology of these sharks in their natural environment. The unknown. And more, since the recordings also showed other revealing aspects. To wit: several sharks carried visible parasites in his eyes, identified like copepodsalthough it was not possible to accurately classify the species. This detail reinforces the biological parallel between Pacific sleeper sharks and their better-known relatives, the Greenland sharkswhich also tend to harbor parasites in their visual organs. Aside from sharks, the experiment attracted a surprising variety of deep-sea fauna, such as snail fish and numerous amphipodsall attracted to the source of decaying organic matter. These records confirm that the deep areas of the South China Sea not only host a biodiversity that is still poorly documented, but could be more productive than previously believed, contrary to the idea that the tropical depths are biologically poorer than their polar counterparts. The great unknown. Ultimately, the presence of these sharks raises a crucial question: is this a recent expansion of their range due to global warming, or has it always been part of their habitat and simply never been observed? The species is known to have occasionally appeared in such remote regions like Palau or the Solomon Islandssuggesting that there could be more southern populations than the scientific literature indicates. However, the “frequent occurrence” in the southwest China Sea, according to the team itself researcher led by Han Tian, ​​suggests rather a structural lack of data in an underexplored region rather than a recent change in the distribution pattern. In that sense, the experiment with the cow corpse has not only provided a specific observation, but has also opened a way to review key concepts about the marine biogeography of abyssal species. The new discovery. In February 2026, it was documented, for first time in historya shark (of the sleeper family, possibly a southern sleeper shark, a very close relative of the Pacific sleeper shark) off the South Shetland Islands, in Antarctic waters, 490 meters deep. This is the first time that an elasmobranch has been filmed in the Southern Ocean, and several experts suggest that warming waters could be facilitating the movement of this family of sharks to areas where they were not previously expected, although they also warn that they could have been there for a long time without having been detected. Know the depths. All these findings They highlight the usefulness of simple but carefully designed experiments to obtain data about remote, inaccessible and often poorly understood environments. The idea of ​​simulating a whale sinking with a cow not only proved effective, it proved to be a powerful ecological magnet capable of revealing complex biological interactions. In a context where the climate change and human activity are altering ecosystems even at great depth, this type of research is crucial to understanding the invisible functioning of the deep ocean. The appearance of eight sleeper sharks where no one expected them, behaving with order, measured aggression and sophisticated adaptive mechanisms, is further proof that the deep sea they keep secrets that we are only beginning to understand. A version of this article was published in July … Read more

China has erected two mysterious “rectangles” in the middle of the desert that point to Taiwan

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Aerial photographs played a decisive role during the Cuban Missile Crisis. It was the images taken by American spy planes that revealed the installation of launch ramps Soviet forces on the island and unleashed one of the most dangerous moments of the Cold War. Since then, many of the great military advances have begun as a handful of strange shapes detected from the air long before there was official confirmation. Two rectangles that don’t fit. The latest images from the Chinese base of Jilantai, in Inner Mongolia, have focused on two mysterious structures Hardened rectangular with retractable roofs. The facility is not just any base: since the late 2010s it has been one of the main centers testing and expansion of China’s new ICBM silos. Precisely for this reason, the appearance of two constructions that do not resemble the known silos has aroused enormous interest among military analysts. The dimensions point to another very different mission. He prepared report by analyst Eli Tirk argues that these structures are too small and shallow to house intercontinental ballistic missiles like the DF-31 either DF-41. “These structures appear to be shallower than the silos intended for intercontinental ballistic missiles,” explains. Its dimensions, therefore, fit better with smaller weapons, such as short and medium range ballistic missiles, cruise missiles or even hypersonic systems. like the DF-17. Although there is still no official confirmation about their function, the measurements, the design of the roofs and their configuration clearly differentiate them from the nuclear silos that China has built during the last few years. Satellite image of the site in question The great hypothesis looks at Taiwan. They remembered the TWZ analysts that the explanation that is gaining the most weight is that Beijing is developing a new rapid conventional attack capability. Instead of serving as a nuclear deterrent, these facilities would allow launching large quantities of missiles during the early stages of a crisis to saturate enemy defenses. According to the tirk reporta massive deployment of this type of launchers could facilitate a rapid escalation from a naval blockade to a campaign of attacks against targets in Taiwan, US bases located in the first island chain or even naval groups deployed in the region. Close-up of one of the new reinforced structures with a retractable roof, as seen on January 28, 2026 An infrastructure designed to survive. Regardless of the type of missile they can house, the design reflects a trend that is spreading through the Chinese armed forces. The retractable roofs They allow launch systems to be kept hidden until the last moment and protected against precision attacks or drones. Researchers believe they could be part of a vertical launch system capable of using different types of ammunition from the same platform, increasing flexibility and reducing the time needed to execute consecutive attacks. A satellite image shows what appears to have been a new air defense emplacement pattern, with reinforced structures and retractable roofs It is not an isolated case. These new structures add to a much broader process of hardening of the chinese military facilities that we have been counting. During the last years have appeared hundreds of new silos for nuclear missiles, reinforced shelters for aircraft, completely closed hangars and protected facilities both inside the country and in strategic areas near the border with India or the South China Sea. The war in Ukraine and the growing prominence of drones have reinforced the need to protect any fixed infrastructure against increasingly cheaper and more precise attacks. A mystery far from being solved. The own authors of the report They recognize that there are still many unknowns. It is possible that these structures have a different function, that they are related to testing of new systems or even that they hide underground facilities deeper than the available images show. However, satellite photographs have been enough to put on the table an idea that is difficult to ignore: China appears to be building a new generation of military facilities that do not seek only to increase its arsenal, but to accelerate the speed with which it could use it in a hypothetical conflict. As Tirk ditch at work“if built in sufficient numbers, these systems would allow the Chinese military to quickly move from a quarantine or blockade of Taiwan to a massive campaign of preparatory strikes against targets on the island, US bases in the first island chain, or US naval groups.” Image | Google, China Aerospace Studies Institute In Xataka | Satellite images leave no doubt: China has launched an underwater creature into the sea that defies naval engineering In Xataka | The US Navy warns Congress: China is erecting the largest nuclear barrier in its history under the sea

The US taught that access to advanced AI can be cut off. China is studying the same thing, according to Reuters, and Europe is watching from the outside

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When the United States activated export controls which ended up leading Anthropic to deactivate Fables 5 and Mythos 5 For all its users, a reality that was difficult to ignore was exposed: access to advanced AI may be cut off. Not because the model disappears, nor because it stops working technically, but because a national security decision can convert an available tool into a conditioned capability. Things have changed slightly since then: controls on Fable lifted after new safeguards and Mythos was limited to a few trusted American organizations, but the precedent is still there. Now that question returns from the other side of the board. Reuters reports that Chinese authorities have held meetings over the last month with the country’s major technology companies to study possible restrictions on foreign access to their most advanced AI models, including some that have not yet been launched. Alibaba, ByteDance and Z.ai participated in those meetings, according to three people familiar with the conversations. At the moment there is no approved measure, no fixed calendar, nor definitive scope. Perhaps more revealing, Beijing is discussing how far it wants to open up its most advanced AI products. What was discussed in those meetings goes beyond closing an API or limiting access to a specific product. According to the agency, participants talked about putting limits on the most advanced models, both closed and more open versions, and also about toughening the consequences for what they call leaks or thefts of proprietary AI technology. One of the sources consulted indicated that these leaks could be treated as crimes linked to China’s strict national security law. New restrictions were also raised on who can fund domestic AI startups. Advanced AI enters the logic of strategic control There are several reasons why what was mentioned does not remain solely within Chinese borders. Since the emergence of DeepSeek R1, remember, AI developed in China has gained ground outside the country thanks to a very attractive combination for many companies: low costs and increasing capabilities. Alibaba has Qwen, ByteDance features Doubao and Z.ai has attracted attention in Silicon Valley with GLM-5.2a model that comes close to leading American offerings at a fraction of the cost. If Beijing limits that access, many businesses and users could find themselves with fewer options and, presumably, higher bills. The Chinese AI sector also seems interested in developing cybersecurity-oriented systems equivalent or superior to those in the United States. Zhou Hongyi, founder of 360, a cybersecurity company with weight among government and enterprise clients, has said that China needs to develop its own Mythos. The company came to present Tulongfeng as a Chinese response to that type of system, stating that it is capable of detecting a large number of vulnerabilities. This is where the most delicate part of the debate appears when viewed from Europe. When the Anthropic case brought to the table the possibility that access to American models would be conditioned by Washington, some raised the Chinese models as a possible alternative: cheaper, increasingly capable and, in certain cases, available through API or with open weights. The new information from Reuters introduces an important nuance in that reading. Changing suppliers can reduce costs or open up new technical options, but does not eliminate the dependency if the critical capacity continues to live under a foreign jurisdiction. Europe, moreover, had already been thinking about this kind of risk before Anthropic and China occupied the center of the discussion. The Commission has defended the need to reduce dependencies on cloud, artificial intelligence and semiconductors, and has linked that agenda with the autonomy and digital resilience of the continent. In that discussion, Brussels has come to warn of the risk of “kill switches”: the possibility that a foreign supplier or a government with the ability to pressure can interrupt essential technological services. That is why Europe looks from the outside. The United States preserves some of the most advanced models in the world and has already made it clear that access to them may be conditioned by a political or national security decision. China, for its part, has gained ground with cheaper and increasingly capable modelsand now I would be studying my own restrictions. The Old Continent is in another place: it has regulation, sovereign ambition and promising companies, but it does not yet seem to have an equivalent in commercial weight, global adoption and strategic capacity to the products that today set the technological bar. Images | Xataka with Nano Banana | Arthur Wang In Xataka | Alibaba’s Qwen AI model is the new crown jewel. The only problem is that they don’t make money from it.

This is how China dominates car shipping

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Guangzhou Shipyard International, one of the largest Chinese shipyards, has just delivered its third ship of the same series with capacity for 10,800 vehicles. These are figures that do not clash much with the current panorama, where China exports its new energy vehicles at full speed. But this data also hides one of the most interesting transformations in automotive logistics in recent years. And it explains how China has gone from depending on South Korean and Japanese shipping companies to building itself the ships that today transport its cars around the planet. What has happened? The shipyard we mentioned, a subsidiary of the state-owned China State Shipbuilding Corporation (CSSC), has delivered its third ship in a series of “megaships” designed to transport 10,800 vehicles on each trip. The first, named Glovis Leader, was delivered last April and was the first in the world to overcome the barrier of 10,000 cars in a single journey, according to they counted in The Maritime Executive. This third ship in the series, whose name we still do not know, was delivered at the end of June and will follow the same fate as its siblings, operating under the umbrella of the South Korean shipping company Hyundai Glovis. In detail. These vessels belong to a very specific category within maritime transport: PCTC (Pure Car and Truck Carrier), that is, ships designed exclusively to load vehicles and not other types of merchandise. They do not carry cranes or containers, since cars They are stored through a rear ramp and they park inside as if it were a parking lot of various heights. In this case, the ship measures 230 meters in length (length) and 40 meters in width (width), and distributes its load over 14 decks, five of which can be elevated to also be able to transport buses, trailers or larger heavy machinery, depending on technical data shared by Baird Maritime. This megaship can be powered by both liquefied natural gas (LNG) and conventional fuel. Why it is important. Until relatively recently, much of the maritime transport of Chinese cars depended on foreign shipping companies, mainly South Korean, Japanese and Norwegian. The problem is that demand has skyrocketed, as China has become in the world’s largest exporter of carsespecially electric vehicles, and there were not enough ships available to take them out of the country. This shortage ended up skyrocketing freight prices, so China decided to correct that dependence by building its own fleet. In just a decade, the average capacity of these ships has grown strongly. If in 2014 a typical ship was around 6,000 or 7,000 vehicles, today Chinese shipyards routinely deliver ships capable of exceeding 10,000. Ships with record numbers. Chinese shipyards have engaged in a race that they have been waging among themselves for years. Before the Glovis Leader and its siblings, the record was held by the Anji Soundness and the Anji Ansheng, two sister ships of 9,500 vehicles operated by Anji Logistics, the logistics subsidiary of automobile giant SAIC Motor. BYD, the largest Chinese manufacturer of electric cars, already has its own fleet of eight ships that allows it to export more than a million vehicles a year, according to data collected by CnEVPost. GSI, the shipyard responsible for this third vessel, has already accumulated more than 40 orders and has completed 26 deliveries, more than 95% of them for foreign customers, which gives an idea of ​​the extent to which the Chinese naval industry has become a supplier to the rest of the world. Between the lines. The Glovis Leader and its sister ships will operate on sea routes connecting South Korea with Southeast Asia, North America and Europe, serving mainly Hyundai and Kia, according to they counted from Baird Maritime. That is to say, although the ships are built in China, they will not transport Chinese cars, but rather South Korean cars. And China not only exports its own vehicles on its own ships, but has also become the reference shipyard to which other automotive powers turn to solve their own capacity problem. And now what. GSI has another eleven more under construction, with deliveries scheduled until 2028, according to they claim from Shippax. And the record for the highest capacity will not last long either, since the Norwegian shipping company Wallenius Wilhelmsen has already announced that it will expand four of its Shaper series ships to 11,700 vehicles. Cover image | ShanghaiEye (X) In Xataka | “Incredibly cruel”: this is how Shenzhen taxi drivers define the new law that gives the green light to more robotaxis in the city

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