Chinas

Huawei’s problem against Nvidia is that China’s own companies prefer to continue using Nvidia

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Chinese companies that are dedicated to the development of large models of artificial intelligence (AI) are trapped. On the one hand they are being forced to deal with the export restrictions of the GPU imposed by the US government. And, in addition, they are subject to His own dependence on American technology. A priori the optimal solution for them would be to stop buying Nvidia and other US companies their chips for AI, and getting “comparable” GPUs proposed by Huawei or Moore Threadsamong other Chinese companies. However, as explained in your article to Foreign Policy The American analyst Kyle Chan, the scenario they face is more complicated than it seems. And it is that abandoning Nvidia in practice is very difficult. According to ChanTencent, Bytedance, Alibaba and other Chinese companies prefer GPUs for NVIDIA because their performance is greater, especially when facing the training processes of their AI models. However, they especially opt for the chips of this American company thanks to CUDA (Compute Unified Device Architecture). CUDA is the most devastating Nvidia weapon to continue leading in AI Hardware Most of the AI projects that are currently being developed are implemented on CUDA. This technology brings together the compiler and development tools used by programmers to develop their software for NVIDIA GPUs, and replace it with another option in the projects that are already underway it is a problem. Huawei, who aspires to an important portion From this market in China, it has Cann (Compute Architecture for Neural Networks), which is its alternative to CUDA, but for the moment CUDA dominates the market. “China must develop an alternative system to achieve self -sufficiency in AI” This declaration of Li Guojie, a computer scientist from the Chinese Academy of Sciences that is considered an authority in China, Express clearly how important are the tools that I just mentioned in the AI models development ecosystem: “China must develop an alternative system for achieve self -sufficiency in AI (…) Deepseek has had an impact on the CUDA ecosystem, but has not completely overcome it because barriers persist. In the long term we need to establish a set of software tool systems for the controllable that exceed CUDA. “ This is undoubtedly one of the great challenges that China faces in this area, and probably its best option is Cann. During the last five months Huawei has launched two GPU for Ia Very competitive and is about to take a very important step: Cann will position as an open source tool kit. Its purpose is, According to Eric Xu ZhijunRotary President of Huawei, “to accelerate the innovation of developers and get the chips of the Asce Family to be easier to use.” Xu Zhijun does not mention it expressly, but what his strategy pursues in the background is to increase the competitiveness of the Huawei ecosystem attacking Nvidia where he is stronger. In addition, it has already begun to discuss with the main actors of the AI industry of China, as well as with its business partners, universities and research institutions How to build your ecosystem Open source ascend. If this initiative thrives, and presumably will, it will represent a very important step forward on the road to China’s technological independence. Image | Nvidia | Huawei More information | Foreign Policy In Xataka | Nvidia has to deal with the absolute distrust of several US legislators. His plan in China is in danger In Xataka | The US wants to end the chips for the Chinese that are sold abroad. And China knows how to defend oneself

China’s first avant -garde lithography machine is not the biggest US problem. They will be the other two that are on their way

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The semiconductor industry is strategic for great powers. Without exception. Its technological development is closely linked to its ability to manufacture or acquire avant -garde chips, hence the US and its allies are deploying Successive packages of sanctions They pursue stop the technical progress of China. In this situation the country of Xi Jinping only has one option: invest in its chips industry for become independent of foreign technologies. And he is doing it. Two of its largest investments They arrived in 2014 and 2019before the technological war of which we are witnessing was unleashed. In 2014, the Chinese government injected about 19,000 million dollars into its chip industry, and in 2019 this figure increased to touching 27.5 billion dollars. However, these investments pale in front of China at the end of 2023. And it is that just two years ago the government approved An investment of 41,000 million dollars expressly dedicated to manufacturers of lithography equipment. The achievements are beginning to arrive. As we explain yesterdayPulin Technology, one of the many Chinese photolithography machines, has sent one of its clients its first avant -garde team using nano -impression lithography technology (it is known as NIL by its denomination in English Nanoimprint Lithography). On paper this machine will initially produce 5 nm chips, and in the future You can reach the 2 nm. However, this is not all. China has at least two other extraordinarily ambitious and promising projects. Nil lithography is already ready. And the UVE photolithography is on its way NIL lithography is not entirely comparable to the extreme ultraviolet photolithography (UVE) implemented by the Dutch company ASML in its most advanced machines. Its operating strategy is very lowered by the cost of these equipment, but also entails the execution of several sequential processes that make it slower than UVE and UVP lithography. For this reason, the Pulin team is not the end of the road to China. And all probability during the next months will see other photolithography solutions developed by Chinese companies. In the middle of last March several Asian media collected a photograph taken at the Huawei Research Center in Dongguan, in the province of Canton, in which it appeared The prototype of a UVE lithography team Designed and manufactured entirely in China. Presumably this machine is similar to those produced by ASML, which invites us to anticipate that for 2026 the country led by Xi Jinping will have the ability to produce on a large scale advanced chips using this technology. However, China’s plans do not end here. Greater resolution in practice implies that it is possible to produce semiconductors with more transistors, and, therefore, more sophisticated and powerful And it is that the Chinese Academy of Sciences is finishing the one that is undoubtedly the most ambitious project of those who are developing the Chinese semiconductor industry. According to Dr. Kiman expert in the manufacture of integrated circuits who has worked in Samsung and who currently investigates for TSMC in the US, China is about to reach a “Deepseek” in the field of integrated circuit industry. This simply means that it is preparing to reach a disruption that has the potential to place this Asian country at the same height as the US, Taiwan or South Korea. However, China’s strategy to produce avant -garde chips is very different from what their rivals have used until now. Each of ASML UVE machines incorporates its own ultraviolet light source, but the Chinese Academy of Sciences seeks to generate this important radiation to produce advanced chips using a syncrotronwhich is nothing other than a circular particle accelerator that is used to analyze atomic level the properties of matter, such as various types of materials, or even proteins. It’s called heps (High Energy Photon Source or high -energy photons source), it is in Beijing and we can see it in the cover photography of this article. An important note before moving forward: the ultraviolet light (UV) is responsible for transferring the geometric pattern that contains the design of the chips to the Silicon wafer. This means, in broad strokes, that the UVE light has the ability to make possible the manufacture of integrated circuits with a greater resolution than the deep ultraviolet light (UVP) that use the previous generation lithography machines that China has in their hands. And a greater resolution in practice implies that it is possible to produce semiconductors with more transistors, and, therefore, more sophisticated and powerful. A priori we can think that a particle accelerator has nothing to do with the manufacture of integrated circuits, but we would be overlooking something very important: the Heps syncotron has the ability to produce high power UVE light. In fact, it is a source designed to generate a large amount of radiation. China’s plan is to place several semiconductor manufacturing plants around the particle accelerator to which the syncotron will deliver the UVE light in the same way that a power plant delivers electricity to its customers. That simple. The date on which China plans to start this megaphabric avant -garde semiconductor, but, as we can see in the photograph, is already very advanced, so we can take it for granted, will not be leaked soon. Image | Dr. Kim In Xataka | TSMC acknowledges that it has been considered taking its factories out of Taiwan. It is impossible for a good reason

China’s sky has just given us another track of its air ambition. A plane so radical that costs to guess its function

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In the month of June Some images In the sky of China they went viral. The future furtive hunt for the nation appeared on the scene, The J-36and did it clearly leaving behind the clues and indications of a technical ambition rather than remarkable. Now, a month later, another figure has just appeared thundering the sky of Beijing. But this time it seems something else. A new device without a tail. Yeah, Recent images They have revealed the existence of a new furtive combat apparatus in the test phase in China, whose Design without tail You have aroused doubts about whether it is a man -generated manned plane or an advanced combat drone with functions From “Loyal Wingman”. Although it is not clear if the aircraft has a cabin, the model presents features of a design of great sizepossibly manned, with wide fuselage and significant fuel capacity and internal armament. The absence of cola vertical surfaces, the wings in configuration with a “W” -shaped escape edge and the integration of twin air inputs suggest an effort by Maximize rankiness. The double wheel front landing train and the data probe in the Morro point to an early test of tests, but also to a considerable weight design, even suitable for aircraft carrier operations. Odds. The fact that the device shows similar characteristics TO CHENGDU J-36but in a seemingly more compact format, it has led to speculate that it could be a direct competitor of the SHENYANG J-XDS/J-50as part of the struggle between the two main aeronautical houses of China. This hypothesis makes sense if it is considered that The J-36due to its size and conception, it does not compete in the same segment as the J-XDs. A derivative smaller, bimotor And optimized as more traditional mission hunting, would fit in Chengdu plans to diversify its range and rival Shenyang. The possibility that it is an optimized design is also considered For aircraft carrier or of a sixth generation hunt in medium version, although the scale of the device cannot be determined with the available images. Another image of the new device The alternative of a drone. Another interpretation indicates that this model could be one of several Chinese projects inspired by the American program of Collaborative combat aircraft (CCA). In that case, it would not be a manned plane but A high performance UCAV With advanced autonomy, designed both to operate together with manned fighters and for independent long -range missions. Experts like Andreas Rupprecht They have identified Similarities and differences with other designs “without a tail” detected recently, which reinforces the idea that China simultaneously develops multiple prototypes of furtive drones, informally known as “tea cups”in contrast to the manned fighters nicknamed “teapots”. The diversity of configurations (from Deltas modified to diamond wings and mixed configurations) suggests that the country experiments with several solutions before consolidating an operational fleet. Tests and indications. Plus: The revelation of this new plane coincides with satellite images taken in Yangfangnear Beijing, where at least five different designs of CCA drones were identified in preparation for the September 3 parade, on the occasion of the 80th anniversary of the victory over Japan in World War II. Among them you can see models 9 to 12 meters long, some without tail and others with more traditional configurations, partially camouflaged under canvases. The same base also houses Balistic and UCAVS missile launches already known, such as the GJ-11 Sharp Swordwhich reinforces the idea that the parade will publicly exhibit the new generation of unmanned combat systems. In parallel, another large fuselage appeared in Shenyang’s plantwith a modified Delta design, which adds more unknowns about the different ongoing programs. China vs.euu. It We have counted. The accelerated rhythm of the Chinese military aerospace industry It is undeniableand this new plane (whether or not manned) demonstrates Beijing’s ability to generate Strategic surprise In a recurring way. In this field, the comparison with Washington is inevitable: the American Air Force currently develops The YFQ-42a of General Atomics and YFQ-44a de Andurilwith flights planned for next year and with an approach based on iterative design and deployment cycles. China seems to be emulating this modelmultiplying prototypes and moving rapidly in autonomy, AI and swarm capabilities. The biplaza fighters J-20s They have been profiled as drone swarm controllers, while early alert planes KJ-500 either H-6 bombers They are intended to become key nodes of this manned-nokened collaborative network. The strategic importance. Although it is not yet known with certainty if the new plane is a sixth generation hunting or An advanced UCAVthe truth is that China is developing a Range of platforms ranging from disposable drones to long -range pools. If it is confirmed that it is an unmanned plane, the model could constitute a more powerful and autonomous version than The GJ-11with the ability to accompany To the futures H-20, J-36 and H-6 in Missions of great action radius. If instead it was a new manned fighter, industrial rivalry would be consolidated Between Shenyang and Chengdu and would reinforce China’s jump towards a diversified fleet of sixth generation. In both cases, the message is clear: Beijing accelerate your advance In air combat technologies and seeks to reduce the gap with the West, positioning itself as a power capable of combining furtive aviation, AI and collaborative operations in a single air war ecosystem of the future. Image | X In Xataka | China seems to be molding a huge poaching plane called J-36. This image is emerging as proof of its ambition In Xataka | A number has revealed what was a secret until now: China already has its “invisible hunt” ready for action, and double

Now you have to deal with the US pressure and China’s distrust

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Nvidia is dealing with one of the biggest challenges in its recent history. How do we tell you yesterdaythe administration of the cyberspace of China, usually known as CAC for its English denomination (Cyberspace Administration of China), he has decided Thoroughly investigate the H20 GPU. This institution is the main Internet regulatory body in China and is responsible for the censorship and control of the contents published in the Network, the supervision of technology companies and compliance with the Data Security Law and the Personal Information Protection Law. Currently the chip for artificial intelligence (AI) H20 It is the best option that NVIDIA has to maintain its leadership in the Chinese market. The reception that Chinese companies initially gave to this GPU was very good despite the fact that the capacities of this chip are clearly lower than those of the other proposals for this company. In fact, the US Department of Commerce allowed its sale in China because this integrated circuit fulfilled the restrictions that had imposed. The problem that Nvidia faces now is that The CAC has decided to investigate it Because he suspects that the H20 chip could incorporate a rear door of difficult location by Chinese experts. If so, the possibility of China to use this GPU could be possible. At the moment the CAC has limited himself to questioning those responsible for NVIDIA in China and ask them to demonstrate that the H20 Chip does not represent a threat to the interests and security of the country led by Xi Jinping. Nvidia has already responded to the Chinese government As expected, Nvidia has immediately responded to the Chinese authorities and is collaborating to dissipate as soon as possible the doubts that loom about the H20 chip. According to SCMPthose responsible for the company in China have assured CAC researchers that the GPUs for Ia that they develop do not incorporate any “rear door” implemented to facilitate espionage by the US government. “Cybersecurity is of vital importance for us”, has declared A NVIDIA executive. “We have no rear doors in our chips that can give someone remote access or the ability to control them.” During the last Chinese fiscal year it represented approximately 13% of the total income of Nvidia For Nvidia this conflict is very important. His presence in the Chinese market is at stake. During the last fiscal year, which expired on January 26, 2025, China represented approximately 13% of total income of the company led by Jensen Huang with a figure of some 17,000 million dollars. Losing this source of income would lead to a serious problem for this company, hence the distrust of the Chinese government cannot be allowed to extend. However, this is not the only challenge that Nvidia faces. During the last two years the commercial war between China and the US has intensified, which has forced Nvidia to deal with the changing regulation of the US Department of Commerce. This organism establishes what conditions the chips must meet for the produced by US companies so that they can be sold in China. These requirements are increasingly restrictive, so Nvidia has been forced to redesign its GPU for the purpose of expressly adapting them to the Chinese market. Their engineers have been working on 2024 A new GPU with Blackwell microarchitecture The latest generation that is destined to occupy in China the place of the H20 chip, but right now its future is uncertain. Image | Nvidia More information | SCMP In Xataka | The US gives Huawei a great opportunity: to get its new chip for AI with the Nvidia market in China

You cannot climb to the Madrid subway with an electric scooter. In China’s, robots are already a passenger

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In October 2023, An incident with the battery of an electric scooter It caused the closure of a subway line in the capital of Spain for three hours. That led the authorities to prohibit The entrance of these devices to public transport Until 2027. In China, there are other battery devices that are already driving at ease by the subway network: robots. Which until not long ago was science fiction material, Today is a reality. The world is pushing the development of robots and, while until recently the demonstrations by companies such as Boston Dynamics They were limited to bailongos robots focused on professional environmentstoday what come to us are machines created for all types of ends. Boxing robots, football robotshumanoid robots that We can buy for what a car costs and even Robot dogs for blind people. And something that everyone has in common is that they are already being tested, one way or another, In China. The latter is an army of robots that already go from side to side for the Shenzhen subwaytaking trains and rising in elevators. And it has all the meaning of the world. Robots assault the subway A few days ago, 41 company robots VX Logistics They began to circulate through different Shenzhen Metro lines. They have a processor that allows artificial intelligence tasks, have Lidar sensors With “viewing” panoramic and that AI work allows them to make decisions in real time to make the best decision when it comes to their destination. The goal of this robot squad is to bring supplies to stores 7-Eleven located inside the stations and, for this, they not only take the subway: they are also capable of going up and down in a totally autonomous way and without supervision by the elevators of the stations. With considerable size and an aesthetic that resembles that of Robots-Camareros They are appearing in some Spanish restaurants, these machines They can load up to 130 kilos of weight. At the moment, it is a pilot program to see how they manage to distribute among the more than 100 stores 7-eleven distributed by the Shenzhen network, with nine million of daily customers, but the goal is to expand their scope. There are elements to take into account in all this. VX Logistics is part of Vanke, a Chinese real estate giant who is also co -owner of the Shenzhen Metro. But, beyond the marketing that has “free” more than 40 autonomous robots for the subway, as we read in SCMP It is something focused on solving a classic network problem: the refueling of stores. Li Yanyan is a manager of one of these stores and, as he explains to the local medium SZ News, “the distributors had to park on the surface, download the merchandise and take it manually to the inside. Now, with the robots, it will be easier and more comfortable.” They don’t say What will happen to those deliverymenif they will be in charge of providing the goods to the robots or if their function will be reduced more. What is known is that, as the company itself has communicated, the robots will be perfected based on their real -world performance. Now, apparently, These robots only operate in valley hoursin which less people are using the network. And less bad that they only operate in valley hours, because agile, what is said agile, are not. What has caused is that the first days of robots work, travelers are They will look or take pictures. The robots were already prepared for this, with a screen that shows a friendly “face” when it crosses someone. We will see how they develop and how long it will take to see similar robots in other stations, but what is clear is that China is pushing strong in the robotics segment For the “day to day” and Shenzhen is one of the lungs of his industry, with approximately 1,000 robotics companies only in that city, 18 of them Focused to humanoid robotics. Images | VX Logistics In Xataka | A Chinese firm has just presented a quadruped that challenges the limits. Boston Dynamics no longer has a clear path

China’s domain is spreading far beyond rare earths. Even where the US had no rival: the sea

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While the United States is has launched yet to the search of those minerals and rare earths that China governs well above the rest of the planet, even with the pentagon and the Apple very Inverting a stratospheric sum, Beijing has been adding and building A small empire that begins to make many nations nervous. To Japan and Taiwan, who believed the seas as nobody: Washington. Maritime ambition. In a context of growing strategic rivalry with the United States, China has intensified their Naval operations long range as part of an explicit demonstration of its global ambition. Already We tell it: Between May and June, the aircraft carriers Liaoning and Shandong They carried out combined exercises in waters near Japan, operating beyond the so -called “First Islands Chain” and entering the “Second Chain”, including Guam in Equation, an important military enclave United States. Nerves The presence of these two aircraft carriers in the Western Pacific not only caused Concern in Japanbut also revealed the New scope of the Chinese Navy, which seeks train their units To operate independently, far from the continental coasts, both in peace and war times. The ability to perform air operations from ships in open sea (including Removal and landings of fighters and helicopters up to 90 times a day) provides China an operational experience that, although still incipient, anticipates a future use of these assets as force projection instruments beyond their immediate influence areas. Shandong Inroads under construction, in 2019 Aircraft carrier as a message. Beyond its military utility, Chinese aircraft carriers represent a powerful status symbol international. For the Government of Xi Jinping, the possession and deployment of these ships constitutes an affirmation that China has left behind the limitations of a regional power and progressly advanced towards the image of global power. Even though Three Chinese aircraft carriers current (the liaoning, the Shandong and the still inactive Fujian) operate with conventional propulsion and are below technologically of the Eleven nuclear aircraft carriers From Washington, his exercises are promoted in official media as an unequivocal signal of the country’s maritime rebirth. And one more when falling. In addition, the possibility that The fourth carriercurrently under construction, use nuclear propulsion and electromagnetic catapults indicates a gradual but ambitious evolution. Plus: The recent opening to the public Shandong in Hong Kongafter completing their maneuvers, reinforces that nationalist propaganda approach aimed at strengthening the legitimacy of Chinese leadership through military power. CNS FUJIAN Dispute for the Pacific. China’s aircrafts not only serve for training or to project distant influence, they also constitute a Operational tool Within the framework of Territorial disputes Activated in the Sea of South and Eastern China. Analysts agree that Beijing could use them to reinforce your claims in front of Japan, South Korea or Southeast Asian countries, or even to exert coercive pressure on Taiwan through A maritime block that prevents the flow of goods and communications. Although in a direct conflict with the United States the aircraft carriers would be vulnerable to missiles and torpedoes (and would probably have a limited role in a immediate confrontation by Taiwan), its value lies in the control of broad areas, surveillance, political intimidation and support for combined naval operations. As He pointed out A Japanese academic to NYT, these platforms allow pressure on both military and civil vessels, becoming a hybrid instrument of economic and military coercion. Evolutionary logic. From the Strait crisis from Taiwan in 1996, when the United States deployed two combat groups Of aircraft carriers to deter Beijing, China understood the need to develop its own naval response capacity. The starting point was the acquisition of the helmet of An old Soviet aircraft carrier In Ukraine, converted into the Liaoning and incorporated in 2012. Since then, the advance has been progressive but constant. The Shandong, released in 2017was the first built entirely in Chinese shipyards, while The Fujianeven in the test phase, it incorporates for the first time a system of Electromagnetic catapultkey technology to operate heavier and better armed aircraft. A long way. Despite these advances, experts like Narushige Michishita They warn in the New York Times That Chinese naval operations are still in a rudimentary phase, marked by a slow but disciplined learning curve. China prefers to avoid expensive errors and seeks, however, consolidate a coherent maritime doctrine and functional that allows, in a few decades, to compete from you to you with the great naval powers of the world. The Indo-Pacific Theater. Plus: the simultaneous display Of the Liaoning and Shandong in deep waters, it has a double value: it allows the Chinese fleet to operate in unknown environments and reinforces its capacities for future intervention scenarios in critical areas, such as the Indian Ocean, the Persian Gulf or even the Mediterranean. According to him Timothy Heath researcher of the Rand Corporation, the aircraft carriers will offer China the ability to project aerial missions in any balloon area Where your Navy sails, beyond the only foreign base that currently maintains in Yibuti. In that sense, the control of routes to the Middle East or the Strait of Malaca, vital for Chinese economic and energy interests, will probably be one of the Strategic objectives in the medium term. A symbols war. I remembered the Times that, as Beijing builds More warshipsconsolidated alliances with African countries and reinforces its port diplomacy in Asia and Africa, the Indo-Pacific converts On the board where a new naval power competition is outlined, with the aircraft carriers as a tool of that Geostrategic ambition. While the aircraft carriers do not guarantee maritime domain (especially in front of a power with Interdiction capabilities as the United States), its value lies both in its operational function and its symbolic weight. In other words, Beijing is no longer satisfied with defending their coasts, but with drawing routes on waters that, until recently, only dominated Your main rival. Image | RHK111, Tyg728, Ministry of National Defense The People’s Republic of China/ Li Gang/ Xinhua In Xataka | China … Read more

China’s boom in the world of technology, visit to the headquarters of Byd in Shenzhen and much more in 1×14 crossover

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China has gone from being The world factory To be not only the world factory, but Pioneers in the world of technology. In a matter of just a few decades the Chinese market has made a huge quanti and qualitative leap, see His advances in the world of artificial intelligence, consumption devices, The appliances either vehicles. That leads to ask a question: In what situation is the West right now? It is a most interesting debate and with many edges, edges that we address in the 14th crossover episode. In the program, conducted by Carlos Santaengrandencia and Jaume Lahoz and already available on YouTubewe talk about this growth of China, how (and why) has taken so many giant steps and in what situation are currently both the United States and Europe. It is an episode, in fact, very focused on China. Both Carlos and our partner Alberto de la Torre They were recently in Xi’an (Shenzhen), home of the Central Headquarters of Byd. Not only did they have the opportunity to visit the area, but they could enter the factorysee how the firm’s electric cars are produced and test the fast loaders first hand. Fast, level: 400 kilometers of autonomy in just five minutes. In short, a very interesting program that helps us better know the world of technology, As geopolitics defines this market and the peculiarities of a country that advances at the speed of lightning. All this and much more, as always, in the new Crossover episode. On YouTube | Crossover

Thus the antimony arrives in the US mocking China’s veto

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The antimony may not appear in the holders as Lithium either cobaltbut it is equally crucial. It is used in batteries, semiconductors, military equipment and flame retarders. Its availability determines the rhythm of entire industries. And at this time, his supply is at the center of a Geopolitical stuff Between China and the United States. Since Beijing prohibited its export To Washington in December 2024, everything seemed to indicate that American factories would run out of mineral. However, commercial records show another reality: the US continues to receive tons of antimony, only now they arrive under another flag. The unexpected redirection. In response to new sanctions imposed by the Biden Administration – the toughest to date against Chinese companies – China officially vetoed the exports of antimony, Galio and Germanio to the US. All of them essential minerals for strategic technologies: chips, telecommunications, renewable energy and defense. Chinese sanctions made alarms jump in the industry. In a matter of months, the price of the antimony quadrupled: it went from about $ 13,000 to more than $ 60,000 per ton, According to Reuters. Battery companies and manufacturers of military teams were forced to look for alternative sources not to stop their production. However, commercial data told a different story. Between December 2024 and April 2025, the United States imported 3,834 metric tons of antimony oxides from Thailand and Mexico. Two countries that, until then, almost did not appear on the global map of the antimony. Creative transfers. A Reuters Report has pointed out That there is no direct evidence in the sending documents that it is Chinese antimony, but commercial flows point to an ingenious transhipment system: the mineral leaves China, passes through third countries, and ends in the US with a different label. The process may include re -designing as innocuous materials – Hierro, Zinc, even “art material” – and the use of intermediaries in Asia. Chinese companies, such as Youngsun Chemicals, have proven to be experts in avoiding regulations. His Thai subsidiary, Thai Unipet Industries, has multiplied by 27 his shipments to the US in six months. The great Asian intermediary. As He has collected Reuters, Thailand does not produce antimony in significant volumes and has only one smelting. However, between January 2024 and May 2025, it has become a key receiver of Chinese antimony exports. Thai Unipet, in particular, has sent more than 3,300 tons to the United States, according to commercial platforms such as Importyeti and Export Genius. Documents do not reveal the origin of the mineral, but analysts and export patterns point to a systematic use of the country as a legal bridge. And Mexico as a key piece. With a single antimony cast iron –Repeat only in April 2025– And without significant extraction of the mineral, now is among the three main Chinese export destinations. In 2023 it did not even appear in the Top 10. As explained in the news agency, the phenomenon is explained by the chain mounted around Youngsun & Essen, the Texan subsidiary of Youngsun Chemicals, which previously received antimony directly from China. Today, the mineral travels via Thai Unipet and enters the US through Mexico or Thailand, in a difficult operation to track, but clearly designed to overcome the Chinese veto. The problem multiplies. The antimony crisis is not exclusive to the United States. In Europe, The situation is equally tense. This metal, considered strategic by the European Commission, is key to weapons, defense, aerospace, electronics and medical systems. His shortage has created a bottleneck that threatens the technological supply of the continent. According to analyst Ellie Saklatvala, from Argus Media, Europe faces fierce competition for accessing minerals such as antimony, renio and hafnio. While prices scale, the European Union has approved plans to diversify its supply and finance own mining projects, such as rare earths in Extremadura. But those solutions are still far from materializing. Global reconfiguration of the mining map. The pressure is forcing structural changes. In the US, the outgoing administration of Biden approved the reopening of a historic mine in Idaho, closed since 1996, which could cover up to 35% of the national antimony demand. The perpetual company Resources, backed by billionaire John Paulson, plans to operate at full capacity in 2028. In addition, companies like Clarios They plan to build A critical mineral processing plant for $ 1 billion, while Nyrstar seeks to produce antimony in Australia, although it requires government support. China, meanwhile, Intensifies surveillance about transford and smuggling. Chinese companies that do not make due diligence on the fate of their products can face fines, prohibitions or even prison sentences of more than five years. Both sides of the game. The antimony case is not unique. China is also playing a similar asset, using the same approach to obtain latest generation artificial intelligence chips, whose export has been expressly prohibited by the US. As my partner explained In this report, Chinese military and academic entities have accessed graphic processing units (GPU) of manufacturers such as NVIDIA, AMD and Intel through intermediaries located in Malaysia and Singapore, which have emerged as neuralgic centers of technological smuggling towards the Asian country. This pattern – eating sanctions through third countries – reflects the real difficulty of containing a power like China in a hyperconnected world. Just as the US continues to receive antimony under other flags, China continues to feed its development in thanks to indirect routes. On both fronts, intermediaries are key actors. The challenge is evident: in this new commercial war, no blockade is airtight, and each loophole becomes an access road. Lessons of an invisible war. The antimony case illustrates how a globalized economy can find routes even under block. But it also highlights the fragility of supply chains and the urgent need to relite, recycle and diversify. Because this time was the antimony. Next time, it could be the bismuth. Or the cobalt. Or lithium. And when it comes to technologies that define the economic and military power of a nation, … Read more

China’s “Peak Oil”

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In the middle of the war escalation between Iran and Israel, a scene attracted all global attention: China ordered his oil tankers Leave the Ormuz Strait, the artery where a fifth of global oil travels. It was a cautious reaction, yes, but revealing. More than 80% of the Iranian crude is destined for Chinese refineries, and yet Beijing opted for diplomatic silence rather than confrontation. The urgent yielded to the strategic. And maybe there is the true story. Because while moving away from tensions in the Middle East, China is approaching – step to a pace – to an energy milestone that reconfigures the global board: its oil demand is about to reach the peak. Or maybe he has already done it. From global leader to consumer in pause. For more than two decades, China promoted a good part of the global oil growth. From YOUR INCOME TO THE WTO In 2001, each stretch of highway built, each inaugurated refinery, each expanded city or megaproject launched added pressure on the world’s world demand. According to the Financial TimesChina has been responsible for more than 50 % of the increase in global demand since 2000. Its economic expansion was also an energy expansion. However, that trajectory begins to be invested. The International Energy Agency estimates that the demand peak It will be reached in 2027while key actors in the sector in China advance it considerably: Sinopec foresee which could happen before 2027 and CNPC claims that it has already surpassed in 2023. An accelerated paradigm shift. China’s energy turn does not occur in a vacuum. It is part of a much deeper technological, social and economic transformation, which manifests itself at all levels of daily life. Just see how tourist videos have been viralized by paying with the palm of the hand In supermarkets either Metro stations. What until recently seemed science fiction, in China it is already routine. That same vertiginous rhythm is happening in the energy system. On the one hand, an internal technological revolution: electric vehicles, heavy transport electrification, trucks that work with natural gas and high -speed trains. On the other, a structural change: the real estate crisis has reduced the demand for heavy machinery, construction materials and petrochemicals, sectors historically linked to oil consumption. The consequence is clear. Crude imports fell in 2024 for the first time in two decades – exchanging the pandemic -, According to Financial Times data. An unequivocal sign that oil is ceasing to be the growth engine that was for more than 20 years. But there is a production record. Paradoxically, China is producing more oil than ever. In March 2025, it reached a historical maximum: 4.6 million barrels per day, According to Global Times. Besides, He has just completed The drilling of the deepest vertical oil well in Asia, with 10,910 meters deep. Contradiction? Not exactly, since China drills when there is need. The point is that 72% of the oil it consumes is imported. For Beijing, that dependence is a weakness. Therefore, for years, more than 80,000 million dollars investigate annually to revitalize old deposits. The objective is not to grow without brake, but to guarantee a stable domestic supply. CNOOC has assured in Reuters Having reached a replacement ratio of 167%reserves, which allows to maintain internal production for at least a decade. In other words, less oil to consume, but more own oil to control. The end of an era. According to Bloomberg analystsis finishing the oil supercycle that defined the markets for more than 20 years. As China decoupled from intensive raw growth, pressure on OPEC, large oil companies and exporting countries – as Saudi Arabia, Iraq or Russia – becomes stronger and louder. Morgan Stanley lo has clearly summarized for the Financial Times: “The world we knew, where oil rose every time China grew, is disappearing.” To begin: an electro -speaking. China is not only slowing its crude oil consumption, it is building an economy driven by electrons. Since Xi Jinping assumed power in 2013, the country launched a “Energy Revolution” based on electrification, technological innovation and energy sovereignty. Today, 10% of your GDP It is linked To clean industries: electric vehicles, batteries, solar panels, intelligent networks, wind turbines. Today, the Asian giant is the world’s largest producer of electric cars, and its two great champions —Byd and Catl – reinvote about 5% of their revenues in R&D. Also, like have detailed in Bloomberghas already deployed 40 tension ultraalt transmission lines, which connect the mega west solar plants with the east industrial centers. The country plans to invest another 800,000 million dollars in the next five years to consolidate its electricity network. The goal? Reduce oil dependence without compromising growth. After the peak. With China outside the center of demand, India and other emerging countries will absorb part of the growth, but without reaching the scale of the Asian giant. According to the IEAthe global oil demand will reach its maximum in 2029, but without China, the market will lose its main engine. “Even if other economies continue to grow, the Chinese decrease marks the beginning of a structural decline in world demand for crude oil,” He explained Ciaran Healy, an IEA analyst. While their ships turn around in Ormuz, their economy accelerates in another direction. Not towards a price war. But towards a model where power is not measured only by fossil reserves, but by transformation capacity. The oil era does not end, but its dominant role in the world economic model is retreating. The rules of the game are changing. Image | Unspash Xataka | The hope against the increasingly extreme heat waves comes from China: a material that lowers the temperature automatically

The key to China’s success with rare earths are not the rare earths: it is the magnet

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The response of the Chinese administration to the tariff pressure to which the United States wanted to submit in early April was immediate: significant restrictions on the export of rare earths. A measure that ended up relaxing this week, with the granting of licenses of export for six months. A truce to which the United States accessed by lowering another of the key elements in this commercial war: The admission of Chinese students in American universities. These are one of the most important pieces of the geopolitical board: they are scarce chemical elements, difficult to extract and refine, and a key resource For the technological, automotive and energy industry, among many others. China is controlling access to these elements to defend their interests, but the key is not just to isolate its rivals of this precious material: is in the disability outside China to take advantage of them. China is the fundamental piece in its prosecuted. China controls rare earth production by 70% and 90% processing them. In the case of heavy strange earth, a subgroup of them even more scarce, their participation in the refining is 99%. According to the newspaper The New York TimesChina has up to 39 university programs so that its students can train and develop their career in the chemical industry specializing in this field. It is just a sample of the importance it has for the country led by Xi Jinping to continue controlling this geopolitical weapon. This graph is the best visual test of China’s domain in rare earths. The access toll. Although the focus on how they are affecting the restrictions on the export of rare earths to the supply chain is currently, there is a key that has gone unnoticed: the real problem is not access, it is the difficulty of working even in the case of obtaining them. When the Ministry of Commerce of China and the General Administration of Customs They imposed access controls for the export of medium and heavy rare earthsthe supply chain staggered. From their entry into force, all exporters were obliged to obtain specific licenses for each shipment, even if they are products in which they have already been refined, such as magnets. Why touch the rest. These licenses are a complex bureaucratic process, slow and studied case by case. Although the primary political objective is the United States, European companies that need heavy land (or materials manufactured with them, such as magnets), are seeing supply interruptions. Suzuki has already arrested swift production in Japan Due to the scarcity of pieces, Musk You are having trouble building your robots and, in Europe, the secretary general of CLA (European Association of Automation Suppliers) made an urgent call: production is entering the paralysis phase. “With a deeply interconnected global supply chain, China’s export restrictions are already paralyzing production in the European supplier sector.” The magnet as geopolitical treasure. William Huo, ex-intel and one of the most prominent figures in the critical analysis of Western industrial policy, summarizes it in the best possible way: West has been focusing on optimizing spreadsheets instead of factories, And now he is not able to manufacture a single magnet. The industry depends on the Chinese refining of rare earths to manufacture high performance magnets. Without them, there is no competitiveness in electric cars, defense, nuclear or consumer technology. The rest is not prepared to refine rare earths. “Middle East has oil. China has rare earths.” They are words of Den Xiaoping in 1992, who was the top leader of the People’s Republic of China. The country has been acquiring the necessary knowledge to extract and refine these materials, while the rest of the world enjoyed a comfortable (and economic) dependence. West has tried to self -abuse with at least 10% of the remaining rare lands. Countries like Norway and Sweden are finding new deposits, and have confirmed the intention of exploiting them not beyond 2030. None of this is enough. Refining is the main bottleneck for the use of rare earths in industry, an expensive, sensitive process and with complex waste management. In Xataka | China has built the most elegant economic power lever in modern history: rare earths

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