factories

There are more robots working in Chinese factories than in the rest of the world together. Beijing’s strategy is already a blow of global authority

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Close your eyes for a moment and imagine The country with more robots in its factories. The logical thing would be to think of Japan, and not a few would also include the United States in the quiniela. However, the most recent figures point out another destination and do it clearly: China, where robotics has ceased to be an experiment to become the daily pulse of production. It should be specified from the start: we do not talk about showcase humanoids, but of industrial welding robots, manipulation and assembly, which are transforming how it is already manufactured what speed. The last report From the International Robotics Federation offers the clearest photograph of this phenomenon. In 2024 alone, Chinese factories installed about 300,000 industrial robots, a figure higher than the rest of the combined world. In parallel, the total park exceeded two million active units, well above any competitor. In contrast, the United States added 34,000 new robots in its production and Japan lines around 44,000, confirming the magnitude of the Chinese jump. China not only competes, already dominates China’s hegemony in industrial robotics has not appeared out of nowhere. Since 2017, its factories have installed Between 145,000 and 295,000 annual robotswith a especially strong jump from 2021. Pandemia barely slowed that progression, and in 2024 the figure was again located around 300,000 units. In contrast, the United States, Japan, South Korea and Germany not only started from much more modest volumes, but also registered declines in the last statistics. The next step in the Chinese strategy was not only to install robots, but to manufacture them on a large scale. For the first time, Chinese suppliers sold more than foreigners in their own market: 57% of the 2024 facilities were of local origin. On a global scale, Japan remains the main manufacturing country (around 38% of the world supply, according to IFR). This turn reduces dependence, although it does not equals full technological autonomy Chinese industrial policy has been decisive to accelerate the transition to automation. The initiative Made in China 2025 marked the first great milestone in 2015, with the aim of REducate dependence of imports in key sectors. Six years later, in 2021, the country adopted a specific plan to multiply the deployment of industrial robots. This planning added loans at low interest from state banks and support for technological purchases abroad. The result has been a fertile terrain for the expansion of Chinese robotics. When talking about robotics, the most common image is that of humanoids as Optimus either Figure. However, the figures that place China in the lead correspond only to industrial robots: mechanical arms that weld, assemble or move materials in the production line. The report leaves humanoids out, still in an experimental phase and with very small sales. Even so, the state impulse has generated an ecosystem of humanoid -centered startups, such as UNITREEalthough its weight in the industry remains marginal. The figures that place China in the lead correspond only to industrial robots. The integration of artificial intelligence into the factory is not exclusive to China: Japan, South Korea, Germany or the United States also apply with vision systemsautomated failures and quality control algorithms. What distinguishes Beijing is the scale with which this practice has spread, until it becomes a usual component of its industrial strategy. In many plants, the AI ​​monitors real -time machines, anticipates breakdowns and adjusts processes. This broader and more coordinated deployment has multiplied the impact of automation. The technological jump also depends on the people who make it possible. China has a large number of specialized technicians, from programmers to industrial electricians, capable of installing and maintaining robots in complex environments. Even so, the demand exceeds the supply and salaries of the installers have shot, already around $ 60,000. This talent gap reflects a global bottleneck: automation does not advance with capital and machines, it needs professionals who integrate it into the factory. Chinese leadership in industrial robotics still has clear borders. Although the country already manufactures a third of world robots, it continues to depend on foreign supplies for some key components. High precision sensors and advanced semiconductorsfor example, they are still domain from Japan and Germany, with decades of technological advantage. This deficit limits China’s ability to assemble higher range robots, especially humanoids. Even with a thriving ecosystem, technological autonomy is not yet complete and marks one of Beijing’s pending challenges. Although China continues to depend on foreign suppliers, the weight of its market already conditions global dynamics. By producing and installing more robots than anyone, it achieves economies of scale that reduce automation projects and pressing international prices. Its volume also gives it the capacity to influence technical standards and equipment interoperability. In the supply chain, the center of gravity moves to Asia, forcing other countries to adapt to an ecosystem in which China marks the rhythm, even without still controlling all technology. The map of industrial robotics is no longer understood without China in the center. In the next two years, the attention will be to verify whether to reduce its dependence on key components and if it maintains the rhythm of 300,000 new annual facilities. Beijing does not hide that he wants to extend this model to emerging sectors such as humanoids and reinforce their weight in global chains. For the rest of the world, the question is not whether China will continue to lead in volumebut how to respond to a strategy that combines scale, industrial policy and technological ambition. Images | Simon Kadula | Arthur Wang In Xataka | Qualcomm believes that the 6G will be the final network for AI and has already set it: the reality is that 5G is still in diapers

Now he wants to turn off factories to save his industry

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China is the undisputed leader of world solar energy. Its factories produce almost 90% of the solar cells of the planet and have left European and American competitors out of play. But that overwhelming domain has resulted in a monumental problem: prices for soils, millionaire losses and an excess of panels that the world does not need. Now Beijing prepares a shock plan to “reset” its solar industry. The solar bubble exploded. Between 2020 and 2023, Beijing redirected resources from the real estate sector to what he baptized as “the three new growth industries”: solar panels, electric cars and batteries. The result resulted in a flood of factories and an unprecedented production. In a report for Financial Timesthe Asian giant has registered a manufacture of 588 GW of solar cells last year, more than double the 451GW world demand. The immediate consequence was a price collapse: companies sold below cost to release stock, What caused losses With more than 60,000 million dollars. The solar grade polisilicio – key premium material – sank up to about 50 yuan per kilo. In addition, the social impact was not less. The five largest photovoltaic companies They reduced their templates in 31 %, which represents 87,000 silent layoffs. Of success to venom. The diagnosis is clear: excess capacity and wild competence. What once was the recipe of success – hipercompetitiveness and mass production – has ended in a downward race. Bo Zhengyuan analyst He explained it at FT: “That same ‘animal spirit’ that succeeded in industry is now destroying it.” In addition, the state strategy played a central role. The central government encouraged factories and solar parks as a growth engine, while provincial governments, evaluated by employment and production, resisted any closure of deficit plants. The self -regulation attempt did not work either. In 2024, giants such as Longi, Tongwei and Ja Solar signed a “self -discipline” pact to limit production, imitating oil OPEC. But the agreement was not binding, and while some expected others to fulfill, many increased their production further to gain market share. The result was the opposite: historical excess of supply and sunken balances. Beijing’s plan. With the sector in red numbers, Beijing has decided to intervene. According to Bloomberglarge producers, with state support, plan a fund of at least 50,000 million yuan (7,000 million dollars) to acquire and close more than one million tons of polysilicio capacity. The movement seeks an immediate objective: stabilize prices. Ming Yang, Financial Director of Daqo New Energy, has declared Bloomberg that the sector “already touched background” and should return to profitability before the end of the year. His words were enough for solar actions to shoot: Daqo rose 14 % in Shanghai and the sector dominated the highest increases in the CSI 300 index. In parallel, Gcl Technology proposed to close a third of the industry’s capacity. Its financial director He has recognized Reuters There are no guarantees that the reform is implemented this year, but acknowledged that Spot prices have already begun to rise after the signal of regulators to curb “excessively low” sales. For its part, the Ministry of Industry has summoned executives from 14 companies to demand the closure of underutilized factories and promised stricter controls on new environmental projects and requirements, As Financial Times has pointed out. A geopolitical and technological dilemma. The Chinese solar reset not only has an economic, but also political and geostrategic dimension. According to FTon the one hand, the avalanche of cheap exports has tensed relations with the United States and Europe, while Beijing continues to promote sales to developing countries within its Strip and Route initiative. On the other hand, the sector has not stopped its technological commitment. Despite the losses, the six largest companies invested 3.4 billion yuan in R&D in the first half of 2025 and maintain almost 17,000 employees dedicated to research. In just five years, the conversion efficiency of solar cells has gone from 20 % to 30 %, According to UBS cited in the British media. But the paradox persists: analysts They estimate that it would be necessary to eliminate Between 20% and 30% of the production capacity for companies to be profitable again. An adjustment of this caliber collides with the interests of the provincial governments, which depend on local employment and investment, which complicates the execution of the plan. The light and the shadow of leadership. China built its solar hegemony with speed, scale and low prices. That same recipe today with destroying it. The country faces an uncomfortable decision: let the ultra -opening continue to sink its champions or assume a painful adjustment that closes factories and entertain prices. “In no other sector dominate more than in this one,” Economist Alicia García-Herrero has warned FT. Precisely because of that, Beijing seems willing to reset his sun, although it hurts. Only in this way can it prevent its greatest success story from becoming another victim of its own excess. Image | Unspash Xataka | China broke the solar panel market. Now their companies have had to say goodbye to a third of their employees

Taking the Chinese machines out of their factories

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TSMC and the US government have been stormy relationship for many years. Probably since this Taiwanese chips manufacturer, The Major on the Planetsnatched the leadership of the semiconductor production industry to Intel. “Our goal is to be number 1. Without exception. And to be it you have to spend three times more than your next competitor. ” Morris Changthe founder of TSMC, He pronounced these words In 1997. Intel dominated the chips industry. Currently the market share of this Asian company Broken 60% And in its client portfolio Nvidia, Apple, AMD, Broadcom or Qualcomm, among other US companies are sheltered. This is the reason why the US market is very important for TSMC. However, today This country cannot do without this company. Intel It has advanced lithography nodesbut the competitiveness of his Taiwanese rival is difficult to match. Even so, the Trump administration is exerting pressure on TSMC difficult to support. TSMC has decided to stop using Chinese machines in its avant -garde nodes He has just confirmed it Nikkei Asia. According to this means of Japanese communication, the TSMC Board of Directors has decided to stop using wafering processing equipment of Chinese origin in its most advanced lithography nodes. Its integrated circuit manufacturing plants are full of machines of the Dutch company ASMLthe Japanese Tokyo Electron and the American Apply materialsbut TSMC also uses Chinese equipment. TSMC is a customer at least of the Amyc and Mattson Technology companies Pulin Technology, Naura Technology, Amec (Advanced Micro-Fabrication Equipment Inc. China), Mattson Technology or Piotech Inc. are some of the Chinese manufacturers of lithography equipment and most important wafering processing machines. TSMC is customer At least from Amec and Mattson Technologybut it seems that it will not be for a long time. The decision to dispense with their machines seeks to avoid possible US restrictions that could in interrupt the production of semiconductors. Until now the US government He is doing everything in his hand to prevent the most advanced chip manufacturing equipment from arriving in China, but, according to Nikkei AsiaHe is about to take another step. And it is that several US legislators led by Senator Mark Kelly have proposed to put a law that will prohibit companies that receive federal support and tax loans buy teams of “worrying foreign entities.” There is no doubt that they are very serious. Otherwise TSMC, which He has received subsidies of the US administration, I would not have made this decision even before Senator Kelly’s law thrives. More information | Nikkei Asia In Xataka | Intel was about to snatch Apple as a client from TSMC. Having achieved its story would be another

Intel is closer than ever to be chopped. A giant is interested in buying its chips factories

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The possibility of intelid for a long time. Two years before get out of this companyPat Gelsinger, the former Director General of Intel, He acknowledged that he saw with good eyes The possibility that the network of integrated circuit factories is somewhat broken down from the company’s matrix. At that time, More than three years agothis was already an interesting option to increase the competitiveness of its chips production plants, and in current circumstances it seems even more advantageous. At the beginning of last April Reuters and The Information assured that the Board of Directors of Intel and TSMC had reached a principle of agreement that was pursuing to constitute a joint company that would be responsible for the management of Intel semiconductor factories. Its plan was that TSMC would have a 20% participation in the new company, so presumably Intel would maintain a majority participation. Finally, this initiative did not come to fruition, but the possibility of splitting the Intel chips factories of the company’s matrix is still on the table. And now it is the Japanese investment group SoftBank who, According to Financial Timesis interested in controlling the Intel Integrated Circuit Production Infrastructure. SoftBank has something very important: the support of the US government As we explain yesterday, SoftBank has injected into Intel 2,000 million dollars, which has consolidated it as the sixth main shareholder of this company. According to Reutersthis Japanese company has promised not to participate in the Board of Directors, and it will not buy integrated circuits produced by this American chip manufacturer. However, SoftBank’s plan does not end here. And is that, According to Financial TimesMasayoshi Son, the general director of this investment group, is interested in Intel chips factories. SoftBank has promised not to participate in the Board of Directors of Intel In fact, again according to this means of communication of British origin but currently in the hands of the Japanese company Nikkei Inc., before formalizing the injection of 2,000 million dollars in Intel, SoftBank communicated to the board of directors of this company its interest in its interest in Buy the full semiconductor production subsidiary. A priori it is reasonable to anticipate that the US government would not see with good eyes that a foreign company is done with the total control of Intel chips factories, but SoftBank is not any company. The most important initiative of how many has launched the Trump administration to protect US leadership in the field of artificial intelligence (AI) is The Stargate project. And this plan is led by an American company, Openai, and another Japanese: SoftBank. The company directed by Sam Altman is responsible, in broad strokes, for the development of technology and infrastructure management. And Masayoshi’s company are responsible for financial administration. Stargate will cost no less than 500,000 million dollarsand it is evident that the US government Trust SoftBank. During the next few weeks we will check if the purchase of Intel Prosper Chips factories, but all likelihood the administration will not be an obstacle. Image | Intel More information | Financial Times In Xataka | The next revolution of the chips is approaching. Intel, Samsung, TSMC and AMD already work on glass substrates

thousands of layoffs and goodbye to factories in three countries

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It is no secret that Intel is going through a complicated stage. The historic processor firm It has been dealing with a crisis for years that can no longer hide, and whose consequences begin to become visible. Since last March 18, the new CEO, Lip-bu Tan, has taken the helm After the departure of Pat Gelsinger. And he has done it with decisions that mark a turning point. The layoffs are only part of the plan: what comes behind points to a deeper transformation. A silent cut (and wide) Intel has not announced dismissals as such. But just read between the lines. In its financial report of the second quarter of 2025the company makes it clear that its goal is to end the year with a template of some 75,000 employees. That is a significant reduction with respect to the 99,500 workers with whom it closed 2024, According to Reuters data. In that interval there were already discreet cuts – Intel himself speaks of “template actions” already completed -, so the exact number of layoffs cannot be specified. But the magnitude of the cut speaks for itself. The plan is part of a broader strategy to reduce operating expenses, gain agility and improve efficiency. In fact, the company has recognized 1.9 billion dollars in restructuring positions only in the second quarter, and those measures are already directly affecting its global operations network. Intel adjustment is not limited to reducing template. He has also begun to cut his presence in countries where he had key projects in progress. In Germany and Polandthe company has decided not to move forward with the expansion plans announced in recent years. They were strategic movements with which he sought to strengthen his manufacturing capacity in Europe, but now they are left out of the new map. In Costa Rica, the withdrawal goes one step further. Intel will consolidate its assembly and test operations, moving part of the activity to larger centers that it already has in Vietnam and Malaysia. The message between the lines is clear: less dispersion, more cost control. The company has also announced that it will slow the works in Ohio, one of its star projects in the United States to adapt the expense rhythm to the real market demand. It remains to be seen if that turn will be enough to recover land in front of rivals such as AMD, NVIDIA or TSMC, who have not stopped gaining muscle while Intel retreated. For now, the steps that are taking a transformation process that will be long, uncomfortable and With global implications. Because when a company like Intel shrinks, it is not only about numbers: it is an impact. Images | Intel | Thufeil m In Xataka | Intel’s fall symbolizes the end of an era: the model that dominated technology for 50 years has died

We knew that humanoid robots would reach factories. Nvidia has already chosen where and when to start, according to Reuters

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When did humanoid robots stop being a spectacle to become a tool? Maybe that’s right there. Sources consulted by Reuters They assure that Nvidia and Foxconn are in conversations to display them in a server manufacturing plant of artificial intelligence in Houston. Nvidia has trusted the Taiwanese giant to lift a new server manufacturing plant in Houston, Texas. The objective: produce the GB300its new AI servers based on architecture Blackwellwithin the ambitious plan for relocate part of its production in US territory. As Reuters has advanced, both companies are in conversations to display humanoid robots in this factory. The intention would be that they begin to operate in the First quarter of 2026. If concrete, it will mark a double milestone: it would be the first time that a NVIDIA product is manufactured with the help of these tools, and also the first use of this technology by Foxconn in a production line of AI servers. Houston is not any factory: something new is prepared here For now, the details are scarce. It is not known how many robots will be used, how will they look or what exact functions they will perform. But there are indications. In an internal presentation of May, Foxconn showed how he was training humanoid robots for tasks such as manipulating objects, inserting cables or making basic assemblies, usual activities in the manufacture of servers. Houston’s choice is not accidental. Being a new plant, spaces are being designed with margin to integrate these technologies From the beginningsomething much more complex to achieve in already operational facilities. According to one of the sources consulted, that design would facilitate the incorporation of humanoid robots in the line. NVIDIA GB300 has a rack scale design That Nvidia bet on humanoid robots in its production chain is not just a logistics movement. It is also a declaration of intentions. Until now, no company product had been manufactured with the help of this type of robots. And Foxconn, the largest manufacturer on the commission of the world, had not used them in a production line dedicated to AI servers. The decision, according to what the sources have told Reuters, would mark the beginning of a new stage for both companies. In the case of Foxconn, it would also serve to show the world the advances in robotics who has been developing with Nvidia, although third -party models such as those of China Ubtech have also been tested. For Nvidia, the movement fits with its broader strategy. The company not only designs chips for AI models training: it also offers A development platform Specific for humanoid robots, with visual, motor and cognitive abilities based on their own architectures. In March, Jensen Huang himself He predicted that The generalized use of humanoid robots in industrial environments would come “in less than five years.” They are not alone: ​​Tesla, Mercedes, BMW, China The idea of ​​incorporating humanoid robots into the assembly lines is no longer a rarity. Although its deployment is still limited and experimental, several manufacturers have been testing this technology for some time in controlled environments or in very specific tasks. Among them BMW stands out, that has made trials in American plants. And it is known that Teslawhich has developed its own humanoid robot called OptimusHe has put at least two units to work in a production line. But interest is not limited to the great western brands. China has converted humanoid robotics into a national strategic priority Within its Made in China 2025 plan. Companies like Ubtech – whose model has also been evaluated by Foxconn – are being driven directly by the government with a view to transforming the country’s industrial fabric. Strategic alliances are part of this mission Like Huawei and Ubtech Specified this year. This possible deployment of humanoid robots in Houston does not occur in a vacuum. Is part of a broader movement, driven by political pressure and the strategic need of Relocate production Technological on American soil. In April, Nvidia announced its intention To manufacture AI infrastructure of up to 500,000 million dollars in the US in the next four years, with partners such as TSMC, Wistron and Foxconn itself. For many companies, automating is a matter of survival. The Houston factory, still under construction, is part of that strategy. But producing locally implies facing at least one new problem: the shortage of labor. And that is where automation would come into play. Perhaps not essentially for these factories, but as a test field for possible future expansions. For many companies, automating is no longer a matter of improvement. It is a matter of survival. Thus, more and more local actors are developing humanoid robots designed specifically for the industry. Tesla, Figure, Apptronik or Agility Robotics They are among the companies that have opted for this new generation of machines. Jeff Burnstein, president of the Association for Advancing Automation, summed up axios The new industrial reality: “This is how it competes today”, so “you have to take advantage of the best available tools.” Humanoid robots lived for years with skepticism: beautiful exhibitions, Little useful in practice. Now, that perception is turning. We are faced with a change that aims to be important, but whose real range we will know only over time. Images | Nvidia | Boliviainteligent In Xataka | The US is willing to do anything for advanced chips not to reach China. And Malaysia is an obstacle

Intel will fit one of the toughest blows in its history. One directed directly to its chips factories

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“These decisions are difficult, but they are essential to face the challenges we are already facing the company’s current financial situation. It is very painful.” These words They are part of the statement That Naga Chandrasekaran, the manufacturing vice president of Intel, sent the employees of this company last Saturday. In his concrete message that the Board of Directors is preparing A template reduction that will range between 15 and 20%as well as most of the cuts will arrive in July. The challenges a Those who currently face Intel They exceed the other challenges that he has faced during his more than half a century of history. The leadership that has sustained for decades in the manufacturing industry of integrated circuits is in the hands of The Taiwanese company TSMC since the mid -2000s. In addition, the stagnation during the last years of the PC market and the slowness with which Intel has participated in the industry of the industry of the artificial intelligence (AI) have placed it in a very compromised position. In July 2024, the company that at that time led Pat Gelsinger gave a tremendous batacazo in the stock market. Their actions fell 30% in a few days and stabilized in the value they had in 2011. In addition, Intel lost $ 1.6 billion During the second quarter of 2024 and its year -on -year income fell by 1%. These circumstances triggered a crisis that still persists today. This cut will have an inevitable impact on Intel factories Last August 2 Intel announced that was about to start a structural adjustment plan that pursued to reduce the costs of the company and increase its agility when adapting to the challenges that the market currently imposes. Its objective was to fire 15% of the workforce (more than 15,000 employees) and reduce costs by approximately 10,000 million dollars. Pat Gelsinger had declared shortly before Intel was inefficient because he had an excessively complex structure. It is still early to identify how this measure will affect the competitiveness and performance of Intel factories Not even Gelsinger himself “survived” this regeneration process. On December 2 This executive came out in a somewhat precipitated way of the company, whose course was uncertain until last March 18 Lip-bu took the reins of Intel. This veteran physicist and nuclear engineer He hastened to confirm that two of the pillars of its strategy would pursue reinforce the company’s position in the AI ​​market and reposition Intel as a leading company in the integrated circuit manufacturing industry. Shortly after his arrival It was leaked that lip-bu so He planned to launch a new cut of the Intel template in a clear attempt to reduce their operating expenses, among which personnel costs or marketing expenses are counted. The figure that the company shuffled on this occasion amounted to 20% of its workforce, which in practice implied to dispense with approximately 20,000 workers. These people join the more than 15,000 employees of which Intel has dispensed with during the last months of 2024. Now we know something else. From the statement that Naga Chandrasekaran has sent just four days ago to Intel employees it follows that during the next weeks they will be forced to leave their jobs Between 8,000 and 10,900 factor workers That has this company disseminated throughout the planet. However, presumably the most affected plant will be the largest of all: that of Oregon (USA). It is still early to identify how this measure will affect the competitiveness and performance of Intel factories, but its size invites us to anticipate that it will have a deep impact on the production infrastructure of this company. Image | Intel More information | Oregon Live In Xataka | Intel has confirmed that the 20A node will be skipped to reduce expenses. The 18A node will enter production in 2025

The latest in Robotics of South Korea is not humanoid or works in factories. Does something out of the ordinary: Parkour

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The physical state. As detailed in A video available on YouTube, the first step is taken by the planner, which generates possible routes from a map of the environment. That map is continuously updated with sensor and simulations data. Then, a neuronal network rules out risky options and stays with the most efficient. The tracker, on the other hand, guides the precise movements of the robot. It was trained through reinforcement learning, a technique based on trial and error, which prepared it to adapt to dynamic and challenging scenarios. To save calculation time, Raibo reuses their own footprints: the hind legs step on where they did the front before. Raibo training simulation As they count, the robot was able to run on irregular surfaces, overcome stones, cross inclined ramps, climb stairs and even jump gaps of more than one meter. It reached a speed of 2.7 meters per second. And the most surprising: if the goal moved, the robot detected and recalculated its route without help, without stopping and without losing control. Meanwhile, robotics does not stop in the rest of the world. Raibo’s advance is not an isolated case. It is part of a global wave of developments in which robotics and AI are more and more intertwined. Without ia, robots would continue to be little more than a set of sensors and engines. With AI, they are able to interpret their environment, make decisions and execute complex tasks with autonomy. Companies like Google are betting on it. With Gemini Roboticstheir last great project, have designed a system capable of controlling different types of robots in real time, understanding human language, pointing to 3D objects and adapting to new situations without prior training. The search engine giant says that his performance in unforeseen tasks doubles that of previous models. For now, this technology is in the test phase, but Google already collaborates with companies such as Apptronik or Boston Dynamics to integrate it into advanced humanoids. China is also accelerating. And it is not the only region that is investing strong in this direction. In China, humanoid robots not only train: they compete. A few weeks ago, The country celebrated a Kickboxing tournament Between four G1 robots by Unitree Robotics. He was broadcast live and showed how these machines were able to dodge blows, get up alone after falling and continue fighting with surprising agility. They are 35 kilos robots and up to 23 degrees of freedom, designed with state -of -the -art sensors, and according to organizers, new multisport competitions are already in preparation. Robots developed in China in a boxing ring And there are already robots working in real factories. Meanwhile, in the United States, some humanoid robots have left the laboratory and are entering real factories. One of them is Figure 01, that has long worked in a BMW plant in South Carolina. This robot, developed by the Figure company, can open doors, climb stairs and manipulate objects autonomously. Of course, it still moves slowly and needs to be connected by cable permanently. Parkour as the advancement of the future. All this helps to understand why Raibo’s case is so fascinating. It is not humanoid, nor has it been created for industry or home. But it shows that, combining real -time decision algorithms with light hardware and advanced training, it is possible to create machines that not only execute orders, but also improvise and have an agility that causes vertigo. Touch to wait to know how these advances find a place in really useful applications. There will be the real leap. Images | Robotics & Artificial Intelligence Lab In Xataka | Nvidia desperately seeks engineers for its Taiwan R&D center. They even accuse you of “stealing them” to TSMC

An unexpected buyer is turning houses, temples and abandoned factories from Japan into tourist accommodations: China

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Something is happening in Japan for a while to this part, a phenomenon that began with waves of Chinese tourists who came to the nation To stayand then extended through zones, where the proliferation of “new chinatowns” was giving rise to neighborhoods with Chinese than Japanese. The theme became something more serious when this “chinification” reached one of the national bastions: Pop culture. The latest: Beijing is buying its most traditional architecture and turning it into Resort tourist. Kyoto as shuttle. He told him Nikkei weekend In an extensive report. In a Japan where modernity threatens to eclipse centuries of tradition, the figure of Yuichi Ishikura embodies a phenomenon as unexpected as decisive: the Rescue of the architectural heritage traditional by Chinese citizens. Born in the province of Fujian and raised from adolescence in Kyoto, Ishikura found her vocation after a personal experience in a guest house during her university studies in the United States. Upon his return to Japan in 2015, with just 23 years, he acquired his first Machiya (Typical narrow and deep wood housing built since the EDO period) for just over 10 million yen. He transformed it into a tourist accommodation and, in just three years, he had recovered his investment. Since then he has renewed More than 60 properties Similar, including the Shichikutei house, near the Kyoto station, and has declared its intention to become the number one operator of Machiyas throughout Japan. The threat of the Machiya. It is not a trivial theme in Japan. The Kyo-Machiya are architectural jewelry of the old capital, and are disappearing to the alarming rhythm of about 800 a yearpressed for the high cost of its maintenance, inheritance taxes and the real estate voracity that replaces them with apartments and floors. And while the Japanese seem to resign themselves to that disappearance, foreign investors (especially of Chinese origin) They are turning that crisis into the opportunity. Here, like Nikkei explainedFigures like Lee Wendy, a native restorative of Shanghai who have rehabilitated 40 Machiya and perfectly reflect this trend. The phenomenon has grown so much that, according to a study by the city of Kyoto, a 30 % of the accommodations Under municipal license are in the hands of some 500 foreigners, many of them Chinese buyers who have converted these traditional houses in tourist accommodations without losing their aesthetic or historical value. Temples for sale. The phenomenon is not limited to houses. In rural areas such as Shiso, in Hyogo Prefecture, Buddhist temples They have also started Change hands in the absence of successors priests. One of these temples, acquired by a Chinese buyer after the death of the main priest in 2017, has generated local controversy for the informal use of the enclosure. Meanwhile, other temples have had to publicly go out to Define rumors Sales disseminated on platforms as Rednotea Chinese social network in which deceptive ads circulate that promise tax benefits for acquiring religious properties. One of the most popular cases was the Jisso-in Monzeki templewith 800 years of history, which He denied categorically Be for sale, after detecting false publications aimed at Chinese investors. The fiscal attractiveness. Behind this fever for acquiring temples, sanctuaries and Japanese traditional houses Nikkei had That there is a double attraction: on the one hand, the cultural and architectural value that represents for many Chinese citizens a difficult heritage in their native country. On the other, and equally important, the favorable fiscal conditions For religious institutions in Japan, which attract investors with commercial vision. Real estate sector executives in Osaka confirm that they have intermediate in the sale of religious properties to companies based in Hong Kong and are currently promoting other enclosures in Kyoto and Nara. And the sake. The phenomenon has gone much further. The conservation of the cultural legacy has also reached other spheres. In 2019, Zhou Chunbao, Shanghai businessman, Matsuoshuzojo acquireda historic Sake distillery in the saga prefecture that was on the verge of closing due to management problems. Motivated by their desire that the Chinese people know the Japanese culture through the Sake, Zhou revitalized the company and its production, which in 2022 reached regional recognition by winning the highest award in the Junmai Daiginjo category. Zhou’s intervention saved from oblivion a local institution whose history goes back at the end of the Edo period, at a time when the sake industry is It has drastically reducedwith a 40 % decrease in the number of distilleries and a 20 % drop of its historical volume of national sales. The “soul” of Japan. Thus, and while the tangible heritage of Japan (from traditional houses to centenary temples and ancestral distilleries) faces a slow but constant disappearance due to the lack of successors, it seems that it is a generation of Chinese investors who are willing to assume the challenge of keeping it. What for some represents a loss of cultural control, for others it becomes an unexpected form of continuity. Thus, in the face of the passivity or inability of certain local sectors, new heirs (Chinese) are arranged not only to invest capital, but also to revalue with sensitivity and pragmatism that for centuries has been the material essence of Japanese identity. Image | GIVE CRUSE In Xataka | Japan is living something unpublished in its most emblematic neighborhoods: the “chinification” of anime and video games In Xataka | A phenomenon that has already happened in New York is spreading throughout Japan: neighborhoods with younger than Japanese

Europe is so desperate for housing that there are already people asking for rehabilitating factories like houses

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More than the progress of the economy, unemployment, emigration, politics or corruption. If there is something really We are worried To the Spaniards, something that takes away our dream, is housing. The CIS says it in Your latest barometerbut it is something that is perceived in the street: only a few weeks ago tens of thousands of people mobilized in almost 40 cities to show their discontent anger precisely because of the escalation in the price of houses, with rentals Beating records and the cost of m2 Nailing with the values ​​prior to the real estate bubble. With that backdrop (which It is not exclusive from Spain) There are those Believe That part of the solution to the housing crisis is right before our noses: the thousands of square kilometers of unused industrial areas distributed throughout Europe. “Urban Regeneration”. Proof that housing worries, in Spain (and many other countries), is that every time studies, comparative and statistics are published that either put the thermometer to the sector or venture to propose solutions. Does A few months It was done by the Systemiq company with a report that insists again and again on the potential of the “Urban Regeneration” To alleviate, at least in part, the housing problem of Europe, where prices in cities They have climbed until hinder access to homes. And what does “urban regeneration” understand? “Transforming infra -utilized land and obsolete buildings into compact and dynamic places to live, work and do business,” he explains The study Before stressing that it is “a strategy that could relieve the housing crisis in Europe and at the same time revitalize its cities.” That last nuance is not accidental. The company recalls that it grows above all the interest in housing located in urban environments, which leaves cities in the face of the challenge of finding the ground with which to cover the demand. A fact: 19,000 km2. Systemiq’s study is just that: a study. With their biases, strengths and weaknesses. However, it is interesting to approach an approach that over the last years It has sounded In the sector and even big promotions residential And it is among other things because it provides some illustrative figures. According to the authors of the report, in Europe there are approximately 19,000 square kilometers of “abandoned industrial land” and between 200 and 300 km2 of offices “available for conversion in attractive areas”. All this, the firm recalls, while in Europe you seek precisely new developments. “The demand for housing in dynamic cities is booming, just like that of mixed and alternative spaces, such as coexistence developments or new types of work spaces,” The technicians add of system. Enough for more than 10 years. “The appropriate locations for urban regeneration could satisfy most, if not the totality, the demand for new buildings provided in Europe for the next 10-15 years and would save cities about 20% of the planned infrastructure costs,” The report abounds. Its authors even throw themselves with some calculations and projections in the future, although without specifying how they get to them. In his opinion, “a fraction” of that wide area, around 300 square kilometers of empty offices and commercial premises and between 1,000 and 1,500 km2 of “vacant lots”, to meet the European land demand for a decade or decade and a half view. The key would go to allocate to spaces for housing and commerce. The report It also estimates that during that same period a total considerable investment would be reached that would be around four or six billion. Is it a new proposal? No. The country appointment For example, a 2024 JLL manager report that identifies 20,529 km2 of wasteland in Europe that could be used for that purpose. “His analysis suggests that the re -urbanization of a small part of those lands in the region would create between 713,750 and 1,247,500 new homes,” Comment to the newspaper Laura Nolier, from the Ginkgo firm. A few years ago the organization Habitat for Humanity He also performed A study in which he explored the potential of empty spaces to face the lack of housing. As remember The Archdily Specialized Website, Habitat technicians chose the United Kingdom as a pilot study area. His study ended up locating about 7,000 commercial and businesses in England, Scotland, Wales that were in the hands of local authorities and carried out without use for more than a year. Only empty office spaces could be transformed, according to their calculations, in more than 16,000 residential units. Commercial disuse spaces would give for 3,500. Beyond the theory. Not everything is theory. There are public administrations and promoters who have already opted to give a second life to empty buildings. In recent years, both inside as Out of Spain They have converted into homes office buildings, quarters, temples, Factories of different guys either Wineries that they have ended up reopening like luxury residences. Any initiative has even gone further by raising the transformation of an entire industrial zone into a residential area, as is the case In Vallecas PuenteMadrid. Are all advantages? No. Urban regeneration projects or give a second chance to industrial spaces and offices for homes to also face challenges. Both urban and architectural, normative and bureaucratic. In fact there are projects that directly They stay along the way and others end with a questionable result, such as Terminus Housein Essex, a rehabilitated office building as a block of floors. For frustration of his tenants, he ended up with tiny apartments and away from basic services. Opportunities and challenges. “A change in land use may imply urban impact studies, municipal approval and compliance with specific regulations. Depending on the city, there may be restrictions,” warns in The country Juan Antonio Gómez-Pintado, of the promoter Corporation Vía Agora. To those challenges are added the licenses, certifications, the need for technical studies, the possibility that the soil is contaminated and, the case, the adaptation of constructions that were originally thought for residential use. Another key … Read more

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