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  • What to Watch This Week | 10 Recent Works Worth Your Time

    What to Watch This Week | 10 Recent Works Worth Your Time

    ☕️ TL;DR
    Recommended recent highlights:
    [Korean Drama] The Price of Confession、[Film] Chainsaw Man: Reze Arc、[Film] Ordinary Accident、[Film] A Familiar Touch、[Mexico] The Death of a Girl、[Thai Series] The Betrayal at Wat Phra Si — Season 2、[UK Series] Shetland — Season 10、[Chinese] The Big Deal Maker、[Anime] Ranma ½ Season 2、[Documentary] No Name

    A few notable trailers: the first teaser for the Street Fighter live-action film, a new trailer for Extreme Judgment, the official trailer for Kaguya-sama: Love Is War — The Stairway to Adulthood, a new trailer for Fate/strange Fake, and the first teaser for The Boys Season 5.

    A few entertainment news items: main visual for JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure: Steel Ball Run, A Step into the Past premieres December 31, Drama Stories releases its first official poster, and Supergirl debuts a teaser poster.

    [Korean Drama] The Price of Confession

    • Keywords: Mystery / Crime
    • Also known as: 자백의 대가 / The Price of Confession
    • Runtime: ~50 minutes per episode × 12 episodes
    • Where to watch: Netflix; Douban link

    The cost of confession.

    @利兹与青鸟: Ahn Yoon-soo is accused of murdering her husband Lee Ki-dae. Although Yoon-soo insists she is innocent, she is sentenced to life in prison. Her orphanage background and her neighbors’ descriptions of a gentle Yoon-soo seem at odds with each other, hinting that she may not be as simple as she appears. Nurse Moo-eun, after years of exploitation, poisons the couple she works for. She calmly waits at the crime scene for the police to arrest her, confessing everything with chilling composure. The two women meet in prison, and Moo-eun offers to take the blame for killing Lee Ki-dae—on one condition: Yoon-soo must help her kill someone.

    The series uses cold, muted tones to create a chilling atmosphere, and its visuals carry a strong sense of texture. The suspenseful narrative is tightly woven. Who is the real killer of Lee Ki-dae? How will Yoon-soo fulfill her promise? What secrets are the two women hiding? These questions draw the audience deeper, and the plot indeed takes unexpected turns, unraveling more and more cases until everything becomes increasingly enigmatic. The bloody confrontation near the end is especially memorable. Jeon Do-yeon and Kim Go-eun shine in their dual-leading roles—both adversarial and empathetic toward each other, completing their own redemption arcs through vengeance and the pursuit of truth. Beneath a gripping crime story, the drama explores themes of public shaming, prejudice, and arrogance, exposes the darkness of human nature, and ultimately lets the truth return to the light.

    [Film] Chainsaw Man – The Movie: Reze Arc

    • Keywords: Manga Adaptation / Fantasy / Action / Romance
    • Also known as: 劇場版 チェンソーマン レゼ篇 / Chainsaw Man – The Movie: Reze Arc
    • Runtime: 100 minutes, with a post-credits scene; Douban link

    My heart was taken by Reze—perhaps never again will joy and sorrow feel the same.

    @SHY: After defeating Katana Man, Denji—the boy who can transform into Chainsaw Man—meets Reze, a girl working at a café. Their relationship quickly deepens. Yet just as things are about to move forward between them, Reze’s hidden identity leads to an explosive turn of events. Swept up by fate, where will Denji and Reze end up?

    Although this film lost “Mr. Cinematic” Nakayama Ryū—its famously beleaguered director who delivered a much-criticized TV adaptation—the new director, Tatsuya Yoshihara, picks up the mess left by his mentor and delivers a true dragon-slaying performance, achieving global acclaim and box-office success. With MAPPA returning for production—with staff largely unchanged—this theatrical version adopts a new creative direction that abandons the TV series’ pseudo-live-action aesthetic. Instead, it fully embraces the strengths of animation, channels the spirit of the original manga, and presents exhilarating visuals and direction that far surpass the TV adaptation.

    Adapted from one of the manga’s most beloved arcs, the film masterfully balances atmosphere—fusing a tender, emotional love story with roaring, explosive action sequences. With a score by Kensuke Ushio placed exactly where it belongs, the film becomes an audiovisual feast. Even a person as small as a mouse can burn bright like fireworks—this cruel, aching tale lingers long after the credits roll. This triumphant theatrical adaptation not only redeems the franchise but also stands as one of the best animated films—and one of the best films—of the year.

    [Film] Ordinary Accident

    • Keywords: Action / Thriller / Crime / Adventure
    • Also known as: It Was Just an Accident / A Simple Accident / Un simple accident
    • Runtime: 101 minutes; Douban link

    This is anything but an ordinary accident.

    @潘誉晗: One day, Narufar drives out with his wife and daughter. Midway through the trip, their car breaks down in front of a storage warehouse. After receiving help from the warehouse owner, Narufar goes inside to look for tools. The sound of his prosthetic leg scraping against the floor immediately puts warehouse employee Bashid on high alert. Years ago in prison, Bashid had been cruelly abused by a guard—and that guard made this exact sound when he walked. Believing Narufar to be that guard, Bashid plans to bury him alive in revenge. When Narufar denies the accusation, Bashid decides to gather former inmates to confirm his identity.

    Although banned from filmmaking for 20 years, director Jafar Panahi secretly shot this film and ended up winning the Palme d’Or at this year’s Cannes Film Festival. During the award ceremony, Juliette Binoche praised the film for “restoring our sense of life through shared humanity and freedom,” and rightly so. Faced with the dilemma of confronting their torturer or seeking revenge, the victims’ choices command deep respect—they are not brutal people, and even after inhuman suffering, they still hold onto kindness. The film is crafted with remarkable skill. Though it does not graphically portray the violence of the past, the actors’ words make the audience feel the weight of despair all the same.

    [Film] Familiar Touch

    • Keywords: Drama
    • Also known as: Familiar Touch
    • Runtime: 90 minutes; Douban link

    Don’t be a witness.

    @利兹与青鸟: Ruth, an elegantly dressed elderly woman, moves with practiced ease as she prepares her signature sandwich in her beautifully decorated home. Although she occasionally wears a vacant expression, nothing outwardly reveals that she is suffering from memory decline. And yet—the toasted bread meant for the plate ends up on the drying rack, and Steve, who should be recognized as her son, is instead treated as a stranger. Half coaxing and half tricking her, Steve brings Ruth to a high-end countryside care facility. The environment is tastefully warm, offering dining, reading, games, nursing, medical exams—everything one might need. The doctors and caretakers are attentive, but even so, it is difficult to feel that living here could ever be enjoyable.

    With delicate cinematography, thoughtful framing, and a gentle, tranquil tone, the director sketches the emotional journey of a proud elderly woman confronting her cognitive decline—subtle and deeply authentic. Newly arrived, Ruth insists she is no different from anyone else and refuses to accept the reality of her fading memory. She clearly remembers her date of birth, her home address, the recipe for her signature dish; she can prepare a refined meal more skillfully than someone half her age, and her handwriting remains beautiful. Yet her question, “Am I going to live here for the rest of my life?” pierces the heart like an arrow. The loneliness, loss of autonomy, and helplessness wash over the audience, prompting reflection on what it means to face aging.

    [Thai Series] The Believers Season 2

    • Keywords: Drama / Thriller / Crime
    • Also known as: The Believers Season 2
    • Runtime: ~60 minutes per episode × 8 episodes
    • Where to watch: Netflix; Douban link

    When faith becomes a tool for crime.

    @潘誉晗: One day, Win and Game are brought before Councilwoman Ai. Pointing to the lawn behind her, she claims she will build a hospital there—one that, once completed, will bring immense merit. Unfortunately, she lacks the funding and needs Win and Game to help her raise 1 billion baht within six months. It turns out that the seemingly kind councilwoman is actually the mastermind pulling all the strings. Win and Game want to refuse, but once Ai threatens their families, they have no choice but to comply. Meanwhile, after successfully escaping to the U.S., Belle begins building her own life from scratch.

    Although The Believers Season 2 has slightly lower ratings compared to Season 1, the finale considered, the series is still worth recommending overall. It continues the first season’s bold spirit—unafraid to take risks with its setups—and this season escalates the scams even further, intertwining them with politics and power struggles. In Season 1, the protagonists devised scams to pay off debt; in Season 2, they act out of desperation to protect their families, bringing deeper, darker motivations into play—money laundering for the councilwoman. Exploiting people’s suffering to sell faith-based anxiety, then weaponizing that faith for profit and crime… as the Buddha said, all of this is sin.

    [Thai Series] The Believers Season 2

    • Keywords: Drama / Thriller / Crime
    • Also known as: The Believers Season 2
    • Runtime: ~60 minutes per episode × 8 episodes
    • Where to watch: Netflix; Douban link

    When faith becomes a weapon for crime.

    @潘誉晗：One day, Win and Game are brought before Councilwoman Ai. Pointing to the lawn behind her, she claims she plans to build a hospital there—one that, once completed, would bring immense merit. Unfortunately, she currently lacks the funds. She needs Win and Game to help her raise one billion baht within six months. It turns out that the seemingly kind public figure is actually the mastermind behind everything. Win and Game initially refuse, but once Ai threatens their families, they are forced to comply. Meanwhile, Belle—who successfully fled to the United States—begins building her own career on her own terms.

    Although the second season of The Believers has slightly lower ratings than the first, considering the impact of its ending, it remains very much worth recommending. Continuing the boldness of Season 1—both in subject matter and narrative structure—this season escalates the fraud schemes and links them to politics and power struggles. In Season 1, the protagonists devised scams to pay off debts; in Season 2, they must act for the sake of their families, bringing deeper, riskier motivations into play—namely, the councilwoman’s money laundering. Exploiting people’s suffering to sell religious anxiety, then weaponizing that faith to commit fraud and crimes—thus, as the Buddha says, all of it is sin.

    [UK Series] Shetland Season 10

    • Keywords: Drama / Crime
    • Also known as: Shetland Season 10
    • Runtime: ~45 minutes per episode × 6 episodes; Douban link

    A traditional and classical Scottish detective story.

    @潘誉晗：One day, Tosh and Ruth receive a call from a colleague while on duty—there has been a murder, and the circumstances are extremely strange. The victim is a 76-year-old woman, strangled behind her own home, her body deliberately positioned facing the sea as if conveying a message. She had been dead for some time, but due to her remote residence, no one discovered her sooner. The person who finally found her was a neighbor who occasionally checked in on her and brought food. But when police investigate, they discover that this woman—who relied on her neighbor’s charity—actually had £400,000 in savings.

    Season 10 of the Shetland series continues its signature slow-burn narrative style. Under its cold, austere tone, the mystery grows as biting and chilly as the Atlantic winds sweeping across one’s face. Combined with the vast, desolate backdrop of the Shetland Islands, the story carries an air of solemnity. Following a distinctly classical detective approach, the investigators adhere to the most traditional—and fundamental—logic of deduction. Starting from the victim’s personal relationships, they peel back the layers one by one. As the truth gradually emerges, so too does the complex nature of human character.

    [Chinese Series] The Big Deal Maker

    • Keywords: Drama
    • Runtime: ~45 minutes per episode × 40 episodes
    • Where to watch: iQIYI; Douban link

    The art of doing business: from earning a living to building a nation.

    @潘誉晗：At Manchun Courtyard in Ningguta, a crowd gathers—these are medicine traders who have come for a rare thousand-year-old ginseng root. But to everyone’s shock, the ginseng mysteriously disappears. To prove his innocence, the gatherer Su Shuhe takes his own life. Witnessing this tragedy, Gu Pingyuan, who is overseeing the auction, resolves to seek justice on Su’s behalf.

    Adapted from Zhao Zhiyu’s novel of the same name, the series follows the legendary rise of Gu Pingyuan—a scholar wrongfully exiled—who transforms step by step from an outcast to a fugitive to a major figure in commerce. Ningguta, a place of exile for disgraced officials in the late Qing dynasty, is a frozen purgatory in the eyes of those banished there. Desperate to escape, exiles resort to every means possible, setting the stage for the story’s initial tragedy.

    Amid such harsh circumstances, Gu Pingyuan embodies the core traits of a compelling leading protagonist—using his intellect to solve problems, helping others while advancing his own goals. As he changes roles and ventures into business—establishing a foothold through banking houses, growing through tea trade, and expanding into the salt industry—he never forgets his identity and duty as a Chinese citizen. The full-scale on-location filming lends the late-Qing-era business drama rich texture, and several side storylines are equally captivating.

    [Anime] Ranma ½ Season 2

    • Keywords: Manga Adaptation / Comedy / Romance / Slice of Life
    • Also known as: らんま1/2 第2期 / Ranma ½ Season 2
    • Runtime: 23 minutes per episode × episode count TBA, updated weekly on Saturdays
    • Where to watch: Netflix; Douban link

    If you really hated it, you wouldn’t make it this hard.

    @SHY: Centered on Saotome Ranma and Tendo Akane, whose engagement was arranged by their elders, the chaotic everyday life continues. Gosunkugi vows to find Ranma’s weakness; the master’s master, Happosai, is unsealed; Shampoo returns with her great-grandmother Cologne, followed closely by her childhood friend Mousse; and Ranma’s other fiancée, Ukyo, suddenly appears, adding fuel to the fire.

    With director Kōnosuke Uda and animation studio MAPPA returning at the helm, the second season maintains standout quality. Its fresh visual style and music sustain a relaxed, pleasant viewing experience, while the content remains highly engaging. Rumiko Takahashi’s brand of absurdist comedy thrives as the cast grows—one eccentric after another takes the stage, erupting into nonstop, slapstick chaos. Amid the ever-inventive episodic stories, Ranma and Akane’s bond deepens, keeping a smile on viewers’ faces throughout.

    While following the original manga’s narrative spine, the new adaptation also makes thoughtful modernizations to elements constrained by their era. Happosai—arguably the most controversial character—still embodies his lecherous nature, but boundary-crossing behaviors are significantly toned down and swiftly punished, aiming to reduce audience discomfort. By fully channeling the manga’s essence without rigidly clinging to convention, the series becomes more than a classic remade in a new bottle—it’s a romantic comedy that earns its place in a new era.

    [Documentary] Nobody, But Somebody

    A group of people who refuse to slide along a predetermined track.

    @利兹与青鸟: This documentary is an exclusive production by SMG’s Real Media, airing on Dragon Television while also releasing weekly online every Tuesday. Over three years, the team filmed six stories about young people—among them a young film director, a professional athlete, and a blind massage therapist. Some once enjoyed moments of acclaim for their talent, yet all are ordinary people who carry dreams while remaining largely unknown. With calm, restrained camerawork, the documentary enters their lives, bearing witness to the anxieties and perseverance of a younger generation.

    Each episode approaches its subject from a different perspective, revealing distinctive sparks that also reflect our own lives. Sunil, who once won the top directing prize at the Beijing Film Academy, returns to a quiet, uncelebrated routine after graduation; seen through his brother’s eyes, a father calls him “grand in thought, weak in action,” while Sunil feels his family pressures him too hard. Jiu-jitsu athlete Miao Jie, expected to retire at 22, persists until 36, trapped in a painful loop of effort and “effort that leads nowhere.” Graduates from a school for the blind studying massage come to Shanghai for internships, living vibrant lives no different from others—yet still keeping company with solitude in the dark.

    Their stories are both a small slice of the many and unmistakably resilient and unique.

    More

    [US Series] Murdaugh Murders: Deadly Dynasty
    @潘誉晗: On June 7, 2021, police received a call from a man reporting that his wife and younger son had been shot dead on their family estate. The man belonged to the Murdaugh family, a powerful local legal dynasty. As the investigation unfolded, police discovered that the caller himself was the true perpetrator. Adapted from the real-life Murdaugh family murder case, the series exposes how this family—long dominant in the local justice system—manipulated the law and concealed crimes, prompting viewers to rethink human nature and the rule of law.

    [Thai Series] Prison Love Chaos
    @潘誉晗: Often described as the “Thai version of Orange Is the New Black,” this series is adapted from a novel. It follows Belle, who is framed with drugs at a bar and wrongfully sent to prison, where she faces relentless oppression. During her incarceration, she meets Claire and receives her help on multiple occasions. With a strong, immersive atmosphere, the show not only depicts a taboo romance unfolding behind bars, but also portrays the stories of many female inmates. Subplots are layered with foreshadowing and hidden threads, adding a strong sense of suspense.

    [US Series] The Abandoned
    @潘誉晗: Jasper Valley is home to vast silver deposits, coveted by Constance Vanness, the matriarch of the powerful Vanness family. She plans to mine the silver and blast a road straight through the valley, but faces resistance from four households led by Fiona. This Netflix historical Western, set during the frontier era of the 1850s, centers on the rivalry between two formidable female leaders. Beneath a land dispute lies a deeper struggle over power—and the protection of family.

    [Documentary] Even Angels Have an Internship
    @利兹与青鸟: Produced by Bilibili, this documentary focuses on the growth stories of five medical students interning at Xiangya Second Hospital of Central South University. Rotating through departments such as orthopedics, breast surgery, ultrasound medicine, and cardiology, they participate daily in ward rounds, patient briefings, and assisting in surgeries. The documentary candidly presents the hardships, pressure, pain, danger, confusion, achievements, and joy of medical students, hoping to foster greater mutual understanding and respect between doctors and patients.

    📅 New Trailers This Week

    Street Fighter Live-Action Film — First Teaser

    On December 12, the first teaser for the live-action film adaptation of Street Fighter was unveiled at The Game Awards (TGA). The film is set for a North American release on October 16, 2026. Directed by Kitao Sakurai, the cast includes Jason Momoa, 50 Cent, David Dastmalchian, Noah Centineo, Roman Reigns, Olivier Richters, Andrew Koji, and Eric André, among others. Source

    Extreme Judgment — New Trailer

    On December 9, the film Extreme Judgment released a new trailer and is scheduled to premiere in North America on January 23, 2026. Directed by Timur Bekmambetov and starring Chris Pratt and Rebecca Ferguson, the story is set in a society where AI courts have fully taken over the judicial system. Its creator, Rayven, finds himself accused of murdering his wife and must prove his innocence within 90 minutes. Source

    Kaguya-sama: Love Is War — The Stairway to Adulthood — Official Trailer

    On December 9, the anime Kaguya-sama: Love Is War — The Stairway to Adulthood released its official trailer, announcing that the opening theme will be performed by Masayuki Suzuki feat. Aoi Koga. The special one-hour episode is scheduled to air on December 31. Adapted from Aka Akasaka’s manga of the same name, the project is once again directed by Mamoru Hatakeyama, with Tetsuya Kawakami and Rena Iwasaki serving as chief animation directors, and produced by A-1 Pictures. Source

    Fate/strange Fake — New Trailer

    On December 6, the TV anime Fate/strange Fake released its “True” trailer and announced that it will begin airing on January 3. Adapted from Ryohgo Narita’s Fate spin-off novel series, the anime is directed by Shun Enokido and Takahito Sakazume, with music composed by Hiroyuki Sawano and animation production by A-1 Pictures. The story depicts a false Holy Grail War unfolding in Snowfield, a city in the western United States, following the Fifth Holy Grail War. Source

    The Boys Season 5 — First Teaser

    On December 7, the series The Boys released the first teaser for its fifth and final season, set to premiere on Prime Video on April 8, 2026. This is Homelander’s world, ruled entirely by his volatile will. When Butcher reemerges wielding a virus capable of wiping all superheroes off the map, he sets in motion events that will permanently change the world—and everyone in it. Source

    More

    The Copenhagen Test released a trailer: Starring Simu Liu and Melissa Barrera, with Thomas Brandon (Legacies) serving as writer, creator, showrunner, and executive producer. The story follows Alexander Hale, a first-generation Chinese American and intelligence analyst who discovers that his brain has been infiltrated—allowing the perpetrator to see and hear everything he experiences, as if watching a live stream from his perspective. Premieres on Peacock on December 27.

    Pretend Family released a special trailer: Produced by Han Sanping, written and directed by Li Taiyan, and starring Jackie Chan, Peng Yuchang, and Zhang Jianing, with Pan Binlong and Li Ping also in leading roles. The film tells the story of a group of strangers, each with their own agendas, who accidentally come together to form a family. It is scheduled for nationwide release on January 1, 2026.

    Billie Eilish: Gentle Impact Tour 3D Film released a trailer: Directed by James Cameron and Billie Eilish, with Cameron employing 3D technology to film multiple concerts from Billie Eilish’s tour this year. The film will be released in North America on March 20, 2026.

    The film Just Enough released a dated trailer: Directed by Zhang Xuanpeng, with Shen Teng serving as artistic advisor, and starring Yin Zheng, Pan Binlong, Huang Cailun, Zhang Yiming, and Liang Chao. Adapted from the South Korean film Director Kim vs. Director Kim vs. Director Kim, it follows “internet-famous fake master” Jin Mao, who wins a competition by sheer luck and is then chosen by capital investors to return to his hometown and build a kung fu-themed town. The film is set to premiere on December 27. Source

    📽 Film & TV News Weekly

    JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure: Steel Ball Run — Key Visual Released
    On December 9, the anime JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure Part 7: Steel Ball Run unveiled its key visual and announced a 2026 release on Netflix. Directed by Yasuda Kimura and Hideya Takahashi, with animation by david production, the story centers on the century-spanning STEEL BALL RUN race—a horseback competition crossing the North American continent. Drawn by the promise of a $50 million grand prize, formidable adventurers enter a fierce battle. Source

    A Step into the Past Set for December 31 Release
    On December 10, the film adaptation of A Step into the Past released its dated trailer and poster, confirming a December 31 theatrical release. Adapted from the novel of the same name by Huang Yi, the film is executive produced by Louis Koo and co-directed by Wu Hyun-hui and Lai Chun-lung. The cast includes Louis Koo, Raymond Lam, Jessica Hsuan, Sonija Kwok, and Joyce Tang. As mentor and disciple Xiang Shaolong and Zhao Pan face off, decades of tangled grudges are finally set to reach a reckoning. Source

    The Drama Story Releases First Official Poster
    On December 9, A24’s new film The Drama Story, starring Zendaya and Robert Pattinson, released its first official poster and trailer, with a North American release slated for April 3, 2026. Written and directed by Dream Scenario filmmaker Kristoffer Borgli and produced by Ari Aster, the film tells a romantic love story that takes an unexpected turn on the eve of a couple’s big day.

    Supergirl Releases Teaser Poster
    On December 11, DC’s new film Supergirl debuted a teaser poster and its first trailer. Adapted from the comic Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow, the film is directed by Craig Gillespie (Cruella, I, Tonya), with a script by actor and playwright Ana Nogueira (The Vampire Diaries, Hamilton). The cast includes Milly Alcock, Jason Momoa, Matthias Schoenaerts, and Eve Ridley. The film is scheduled for a North American release on June 26 next year.

  • SSPAI Morning Brief: OpenAI Releases GPT-5.2 and More

    SSPAI Morning Brief: OpenAI Releases GPT-5.2 and More

    Morning Brief

    1. OpenAI Releases GPT-5.2
    2. Snapmaker U1 Color 3D Printer Launches
    3. Amazon to Allow Authors to Publish Kindle Books Without DRM Protection
    4. OpenAI Announces Integration with Select Adobe Apps
    5. Tencent QQ Group Chats Add Support for Yuanbao AI Summary Feature
    6. Alibaba Releases Qwen3-Omni-Flash Multi-Modal Model
    7. Qualcomm Announces Acquisition of Ventana Micro Systems
    8. Rumors You Can Just Glance At

    OpenAI Releases GPT-5.2

    On December 12, OpenAI announced the launch of its GPT-5.2 model lineup, positioning it as the most suitable model for everyday professional use. According to OpenAI, GPT-5.2 delivers overall improvements in table generation, presentation creation, coding, image understanding, long-context processing, tool use, and complex multi-step tasks.

    The GPT-5.2 series includes three versions: Instant, Thinking, and Pro. Among them, the Thinking model stands out for significantly reducing hallucinations, making it more suitable for professional AI agent applications that require high reliability. Companies such as Notion, Box, Shopify, Harvey, Zoom, and Databricks participated in pre-release testing. OpenAI also noted that GPT-5.2 will play a more central role in AI-agent workflows, with the long-term goal of shaping ChatGPT into a highly personalized intelligent assistant. Source

    Logos for OpenAI and the Walt Disney Company in white on a background of swirling purples, blues, and magenta OpenAI also announced a three-year licensing agreement with Disney. Sora and ChatGPT Images will gain the ability to generate video and image content featuring characters from Disney, Marvel, Pixar, and Star Wars. The related features are expected to roll out in early 2026, with some generated content showcased on Disney+. Source

    In addition, Disney has issued a cease-and-desist letter to Google, claiming that Google used Disney works without permission to train AI models, and subsequently generated and distributed images and videos featuring Disney-related characters for commercial purposes. Source

    Snapmaker U1 Color 3D Printer Launches

    On December 12, the color 3D printer Snapmaker U1 made its debut on JD.com. The Snapmaker U1 features the SnapSwap™ independent four-head parallel system, supporting multi-color and multi-material printing with quick toolhead switching. According to the company, in multi-color printing scenarios the device can switch toolheads in about 5 seconds, improving efficiency and reducing material waste. Compared with traditional single-nozzle color-changing methods, Snapmaker U1’s four-color printing tasks can reach speeds of up to 500 mm/s and complete prints within 5–6 hours. While achieving up to a fivefold increase in overall efficiency, the design also reduces material usage by about 80% thanks to its purge-free channel structure.

    Snapmaker U1 supports automatic calibration, input shaping, pressure advance, automatic bed leveling, and other features to ensure clean edges, smooth walls, and sharp details even in high-speed printing mode. Its printing parameters include a build volume of 270×270×270 mm, along with AI print monitoring and app-based management.

    Snapmaker U1 is priced at 5,299 RMB exclusively on JD.com (4,504.15 RMB after national subsidies). Buyers can still claim an exclusive privilege package before 7 p.m. on December 12, with pre-orders officially opening at 8 p.m. The Snapmaker U1 will also be showcased at an offline experience event at the JD MALL Beijing Shuangjing store from December 16 to 17. Source

    Amazon to Allow Authors to Publish Kindle Books Without DRM Protection

    Amazon has announced that beginning January 20, 2026, authors who choose not to enable DRM (Digital Rights Management) in the Kindle Direct Publishing workflow will be able to offer their e-books to readers in more open formats such as EPUB and PDF. Previously published books will not have their DRM settings changed automatically; authors must manually update their preferences in the KDP dashboard. Once an author updates the DRM status, the change may take up to 72 hours to appear on Amazon’s main site.

    Amazon stated that the new option is intended to make it easier for readers to access content they have purchased. However, some authors believe the move may actually increase the number of people choosing to enable DRM. Source

    OpenAI Announces Integration with Select Adobe Apps

    On December 11, Adobe launched three applications—Photoshop, Acrobat, and Adobe Express—inside ChatGPT.

    The new integration allows users to perform image editing, PDF modification, and various design tasks directly within ChatGPT using natural language, without switching to standalone applications. Users only need to mention the app in conversation and describe what they want; the system will then generate selectable results or present interactive UI controls, such as sliders for adjusting brightness and contrast.

    Although these integrated apps do not offer the full capabilities of their desktop counterparts, Photoshop can still perform local edits, creative effects, and image parameter adjustments; Acrobat can edit PDFs, compress or convert formats, extract text and tables, and merge files; Adobe Express can generate and edit posters, invitations, and social media graphics. All creations can be exported at any time to Adobe’s native software for further refinement.

    According to Adobe, these ChatGPT applications are currently available on desktop, web, and iOS. On Android, only Adobe Express is supported for now, with Photoshop and Acrobat coming later. Source

    Tencent QQ Group Chats Add Support for Yuanbao AI Summary Feature

    On December 11, Tencent QQ announced via its official Weibo account that group chat messages now support the Yuanbao AI summary feature. When a group accumulates a large number of unread messages, users can tap “AI Summary” in the upper-right corner of the chat interface, and—after granting permission—generate a summary of the conversation. QQ also stated that the summary results are visible only to the user, and the related data will not be stored or used in any other context. Source

    Alibaba Releases Qwen3-Omni-Flash Multi-Modal Model

    On December 9, 2025, Alibaba’s Qwen team released the next-generation native full-modal model, Qwen3-Omni-Flash-2025-12-01.

    Upgraded from Qwen3-Omni, the new model supports unified input across text, images, audio, and video, and provides real-time streamed text output and voice capabilities. This update focuses on improving issues in multi-modal interactions—such as unnatural speech performance and unstable transitions in multi-turn conversations—by adjusting speech rate, pauses, and prosody to enhance overall interaction quality.

    Alibaba has also strengthened the controllability of Qwen’s system prompts. Users can now define the model’s behavior patterns, including tone, style, and content length, with improved execution accuracy. In addition, Qwen’s multilingual capabilities continue to expand, now supporting 119 text languages, 19 speech recognition languages, and 10 speech synthesis languages.

    In terms of performance, Qwen3-Omni-Flash-2025-12-01 shows improvements over the previous version on several benchmarks, including ZebraLogic (logical reasoning), LiveCodeBench-v6 (code generation), and MMMU (multidisciplinary visual question answering). Source

    Qualcomm Announces Acquisition of Ventana Micro Systems

    On December 10, Qualcomm announced its acquisition of Ventana Micro Systems, further strengthening its technological presence in the RISC-V domain.

    Qualcomm stated that the Ventana team will complement its existing Oryon in-house CPUs and RISC-V development efforts, jointly advancing the company’s technologies across business lines in the AI era. The company also noted that the RISC-V architecture holds significant potential for driving CPU innovation, and this acquisition marks an important step toward building industry-leading RISC-V CPU technology.

    Founded in 2018 and headquartered in Cupertino, Ventana Micro Systems focuses on high-performance, scalable, and secure computing chip solutions based on the open RISC-V architecture. The company is a board member of RISC-V International as well as a member of its Technical Steering Committee. Source

    Rumors You Can Just Glance At

    • During a televised broadcast, Donald Trump mistakenly described 6G technology as something capable of displaying deeper image or skin-detail layers, failing to understand that 6G actually refers to the next-generation mobile communication network. His comment drew attention on site, while Qualcomm CEO Cristiano Amon—who was on stage with him—did not correct the statement. As early as 2019, Trump had called for the U.S. to accelerate 6G development to avoid falling behind other nations. He has also made past remarks such as “the Moon belongs to Mars” and incorrectly linking Apple to 5G infrastructure construction. Source
    • The startup Operation Bluebird has filed a petition with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, arguing that Elon Musk’s X Corp. effectively abandoned the “Twitter” and “Tweet” trademarks after rebranding and discontinuing use of the associated branding, and that the trademarks should therefore be canceled. The company has also applied for a new “Twitter” trademark for its upcoming social platform, Twitter.new. In its petition, Operation Bluebird claims that after the rebrand to “X,” X Corp. no longer uses the original trademarks, citing Musk’s previous public statements about “saying goodbye to the Twitter brand forever.” Some legal experts note that although the claim has some basis, the “residual goodwill” of the Twitter brand could be a key factor, as many users still refer to X as “Twitter” and continue using terms such as “tweet.” X Corp. must submit a response by February next year. Operation Bluebird stated that it stands firmly by its position and will continue pursuing relevant legal actions. Source
    • According to tech outlet MacRumors, internal firmware for iOS 26 reveals:
    • The new AirTag is expected to receive upgrades across pairing workflow, battery notifications, and tracking capabilities. In particular, it aims to deliver more accurate location tracking when the device is in motion or in crowded environments. The new AirTag may also feature a next-generation ultra-wideband (UWB) chip, expanding the range of Precision Finding. There have been no clear rumors of noticeable exterior redesigns; the overall appearance may remain consistent with the current model, though improvements to the speaker structure could reduce risks of malicious tampering or misuse. Although iOS 26 refers to the device as “2025 AirTag,” current product timing suggests its official release may slip to early 2026. Source
    • Apple is advancing development of a new smart home hub device. The product will include a camera and support Face ID for identity verification and user recognition, enabling automatic switching between user profiles. The hub is expected to rely heavily on Apple Intelligence and the next-generation Siri set to launch next year. Based on current reports, this smart home hub may take a form somewhere between an iPad and a HomePod, featuring an approximately 7-inch square display and an optional speaker dock. The device is expected to debut alongside iOS 26.4 and the updated Siri.
    • Code references also reveal an unreleased accessory device codenamed J229, believed to be a home security camera under development by Apple, though its release timeline has not yet been disclosed. Source
  • SSPAI Morning Brief: AMD Launches New Driver Supporting FSR Redstone and More

    SSPAI Morning Brief: AMD Launches New Driver Supporting FSR Redstone and More

    Morning Brief

    1. AMD launches new driver supporting FSR Redstone
    2. iFixit launches AI assistant FixBot
    3. Insta360 launches Insta360 GO Ultra mini time-lapse kit
    4. Fairphone releases new Fairbuds XL modular headphones
    5. Alibaba Tongyi Qianwen releases Qwen Code v0.3.0
    6. JetBrains announces discontinuation of Fleet product line
    7. State Administration for Market Regulation issues two mandatory standards for civilian drones

    AMD launches new driver supporting FSR Redstone

    On December 10, AMD announced the launch of a new graphics card driver supporting FSR Redstone, designed to reshape gaming graphics and performance using machine learning capabilities. FSR Redstone is a new ML real-time rendering technology, which AMD unveiled earlier this year. Its goal is to enhance lighting, reflections, and motion smoothness without sacrificing frame rates.

    FSR Redstone includes three core features:

    1. Radiance Caching: By predicting indirect lighting, it reduces ray-tracing computation, making overall scene lighting more cinematic.
    2. Ray Regeneration: This feature regenerates ray-traced details, making reflections, shadows, and material edges sharper and more realistic.
    3. ML Frame Generation: Using high-intensity gaming training models, it generates additional frames for smoother high-speed motion performance. Source
    Compatibility status of FSR Redstone, image captured from AMD website

    iFixit launches AI assistant FixBot

    On December 9, repair expert team iFixit introduced FixBot, an AI-powered repair assistant designed to significantly lower the barrier to device repair through the use of artificial intelligence.

    The assistant integrates visual schematics, professional repair guides, and expert-level troubleshooting techniques. To address the common issue of users “not having a free hand” during repairs, FixBot places special emphasis on hands-free guidance, offering step-by-step voice instructions for a truly interactive repair experience.

    Unlike general-purpose AI models, FixBot’s intelligence is built on iFixit’s extensive vertical-domain database. Over more than 20 years, the team has constructed the internet’s largest repository of repair procedures, covering more than 72,000 products—from smartphones such as the iPhone to motorcycles and beyond.

    iFixit has not yet announced subscription pricing, but to promote the service, all paid premium features are currently available to users for free. iPhone users can now download the app and try the service. Source

    Insta360 launches Insta360 GO Ultra mini time-lapse kit

    On December 9, Insta360 introduced the Insta360 GO Ultra mini time-lapse kit, featuring a multifunctional pre-recording charging base and a pre-recording neck-mounted battery holder. With a built-in 4800mAh battery, the kit is designed to make first-person POV shooting more convenient.

    In terms of hardware, the camera is equipped with a 1/1.28-inch CMOS sensor and a 5nm AI chip, supporting up to 4K 60FPS high-frame-rate video recording. It includes a magnetic clip and magnetic neck lanyard, allowing hands-free first-person filming.

    On the feature side, the camera offers a dedicated night-video mode with AI noise reduction, brightness restoration, and dynamic-range optimization to deliver clean, bright footage in low-light environments. It includes a variety of built-in popular filters for easy straight-out-of-camera results; supports 4K 2× lossless zoom and HDR video; and can capture 50-megapixel photos. It also features Live Photo mode, seven built-in photo filters, and a new layered battery design. With the expansion module, it can record up to 200 minutes of 1080P footage, or 70 minutes on its own. A microSD card slot is included.

    The camera body, display module, and battery compartment can be detached to unlock more shooting angles. It comes with a 2.5-inch flip touchscreen, and when separated, supports wireless image transmission control. The kit is priced at 2,878.2 RMB. Source

    Product promo image, via Insta360

    Fairphone releases new Fairbuds XL modular headphones

    On December 9, Fairphone introduced the 2025 edition of the Fairbuds XL over-ear headphones. The new model upgrades its driver units while maintaining the modular, easy-to-repair design of the 2023 original. Pricing also remains unchanged at 229 USD.

    The Fairbuds XL (2025) replaces the PU leather used on the 2023 model’s headband and ear cushions with mesh and bird-eye mesh materials to improve breathability and comfort. It supports a 30-minute auto-shutdown and extends the warranty to three years. The headphones offer a more balanced stereo output, support Qualcomm aptX HD 24-bit wireless audio, include active noise cancellation and transparency mode, and deliver up to 30 hours of wireless playback.

    Fairphone notes that the magnets used in the new headphone drivers are made from 100% recycled rare-earth materials. The product also incorporates 92% recycled aluminum and solder paste made with 100% recycled tin, while the entire assembly process is powered by renewable energy. In addition, Fairphone will begin offering Fairbuds XL upgrade components starting at the end of Q1 2026. Source

    Product image via press source

    Alibaba Tongyi Qianwen releases Qwen Code v0.3.0

    On December 9, Alibaba’s Tongyi Qianwen officially released version 0.3.0 of its AI command-line tool, Qwen Code. The update adds full support for Stream JSON, significantly upgrades internationalization capabilities, and strengthens overall security and stability. Ecosystem compatibility has also been improved, with added support for ModelScope Provider and enhanced handling of stream_options.

    Qwen Code is a command-line AI workflow tool optimized for the Qwen3-Coder model. By leveraging advanced code understanding, automated tasks, and intelligent assistance features, it aims to boost developer productivity. Source

    JetBrains announces discontinuation of Fleet product line

    On December 8, JetBrains announced that it will discontinue distribution and updates for the Fleet project. Beginning December 22, 2025, Fleet will no longer be available for download through the Toolbox App or other channels. Existing users may continue using previously downloaded versions, but server-dependent features—such as the AI assistant—may gradually stop functioning. The Fleet team has decided to cease competing with existing IDEs and code editors, and will instead build a new product focused on agent-centric development workflows, using the Fleet platform as its foundation. This new product will adopt a new name, inherit Fleet’s technical groundwork and team expertise, but shift entirely in terms of target market and product positioning. JetBrains promises to continue sharing updates on the progress of this new agent development environment. Additionally, JetBrains announced that starting with version 2025.3, the Islands theme will become the default appearance for JetBrains IDEs. Source

    State Administration for Market Regulation issues two mandatory standards for civilian drones

    On December 9, the State Administration for Market Regulation approved and released two mandatory national standards: Requirements for Real-Name Registration and Activation of Civil Unmanned Aircraft (GB 46761—2025) and Specifications for Operational Identification of Civil Unmanned Aircraft Systems (GB 46750—2025). Both standards will take effect on May 1, 2026.

    Among them, the Requirements for Real-Name Registration and Activation of Civil Unmanned Aircraft standard outlines the workflow for real-name registration and activation of drones. It provides detailed rules on registration entities, registration management and inquiry, deregistration, data exchange interfaces, and security protection measures. It explicitly requires that drones must not have flight capability before activation or after deactivation. The Specifications for Operational Identification of Civil Unmanned Aircraft Systems standard mandates that drones must actively transmit their identity, location, speed, status, and other information to regulators upon startup and throughout the entire flight, enabling authorities to monitor flight conditions in real time.

    The implementation of these two mandatory standards supports the effective enforcement of the Interim Regulations on Unmanned Aircraft Flight Management, providing crucial safeguards for the safe and orderly development of the drone industry. Source

  • SSPAI Morning Brief: Index 01 Smart Ring Launch, Cyberpunk 2077 5th-Anniversary XR Glasses, and More

    SSPAI Morning Brief: Index 01 Smart Ring Launch, Cyberpunk 2077 5th-Anniversary XR Glasses, and More

    Morning Brief

    1. Pebble Founder Launches Index 01 Smart Ring
    2. Cyberpunk 2077 5th-Anniversary Limited-Edition XR Glasses Released
    3. CowTransfer Pauses Shutdown, Begins Negotiations With 123 Cloud Storage
    4. Nothing Releases Phone (3a) Community Edition
    5. EU Opens New Antitrust Probe Into Google
    6. Rumors Worth a Glance

    Pebble Founder Launches Index 01 Smart Ring

    Following the revival of several Pebble smartwatches, Pebble founder Eric Migicovsky has announced a new device: the Index 01 smart ring, priced at USD 75. The core features of Index 01 are AI-powered note-taking and audio recording. Its speech-to-text capability relies on an open-source AI model running inside the Pebble mobile app, and recording requires the user to hold down the button on the ring throughout the process. Index 01 supports basic water resistance up to 1 meter, though the company advises against wearing it while swimming. Positioned purely as a wearable note-taking tool, the ring does not include any health or fitness-tracking features. All notes saved via the ring are stored locally on the user’s mobile device.
    Source

    Cyberpunk 2077 5th-Anniversary Limited-Edition XR Glasses Released

    On December 9, CD PROJEKT RED announced a collaboration with VITURE to launch the VITURE × Cyberpunk 2077 5th-Anniversary Collector’s Edition XR Glasses. Based on the VITURE Luma Pro, this limited edition features a redesigned translucent body, dynamic cyber-themed light strips along the sides, and a printed Kiroshi Optics logo from the game.

    The glasses are limited to 10,000 units worldwide (numbered CP0000–CP9999). They are equipped with Sony MicroOLED displays and VITURE’s custom optical engine, capable of projecting an image equivalent to a 152-inch screen. They support a 120Hz refresh rate and 1,500-nit peak brightness, and can use AI algorithms to convert standard 2D content into 3D visuals with spatial depth in real time.

    The VITURE × Cyberpunk 2077 5th-Anniversary Collector’s Edition XR Glasses went on sale globally on December 10, priced at USD 549. Source

    CowTransfer Pauses Shutdown, Begins Negotiations With 123 Cloud Storage

    On December 9, CowTransfer released an update stating that—after receiving a large amount of user feedback following its shutdown announcement—it has decided to delay the closure and is now entering strategic partnership negotiations with 123 Cloud Storage. During these discussions, all CowTransfer services will continue operating normally, with no impact on user data or experience.

    Founded in 2016, CowTransfer is known for secure and stable large-file transfer and cloud storage. Last month, the team had announced that service would officially end on December 8. They now state that further updates will be shared as negotiations progress. Source

    Nothing Releases Phone (3a) Community Edition

    On December 9, Nothing announced the Phone (3a) Community Edition. This version introduces a new color scheme and a frosted-glass back panel, and the accompanying wallpapers and system interactions differ slightly from the original model. A total of 1,000 units will be available starting December 12 through the official Nothing website, with pricing unchanged from the standard edition. Interested users can register on the website for a chance to purchase.
    Source

    EU Opens New Antitrust Probe Into Google

    On December 9, the European Commission announced a new antitrust investigation into Google. The probe will assess whether Google violated competition rules while using online publishers’ and YouTube creators’ content to train its AI systems. The EU stated that the investigation will focus on whether Google imposed unequal or unreasonable terms on publishers and creators, granting itself privileged access to their content and thereby disadvantaging rival AI model developers. Source

    Rumors Worth a Glance

    • According to a Google blog post related to The Android Show: XR Edition, the company’s first AI-powered smart glasses are expected to launch in 2026. The product is being co-developed by Google, Samsung, Gentle Monster, and Warby Parker. Google also revealed improved Android XR support for both wired smart glasses and models with display-enabled lenses. Source
    • ADWEEK reports that Google has notified select advertising clients that it plans to introduce ad placements within Gemini, with rollout expected in 2026. Specific formats, pricing, and testing details remain undisclosed. Source
    • The NanoKVM switch produced by Shenzhen Sipeed Technology (Sipeed) was found to contain several major security vulnerabilities, including preset passwords with open SSH access, a Web UI lacking proper security protections, and hardcoded encryption keys identical across all devices. Additionally, the device inexplicably includes a small built-in microphone of unknown purpose. Although the manufacturer has now patched the reported vulnerabilities after multiple communications, users still need to manually remove the microphone themselves. Source
    • Some players who preordered Resident Evil 9: Requiem on PlayStation discovered that Sony had mistakenly uploaded a game cover featuring popular series character Leon S. Kennedy. Capcom has so far avoided confirming whether Leon will appear in the new title, despite previous leaks showing character figurines and achievement icons featuring him. Source
    • U.S. President Donald Trump posted on his social platform Truth Social stating that NVIDIA is now permitted to sell its second-tier H200 processors to China. The U.S. Department of Commerce later clarified that a 25% tariff will be imposed on such sales. Source
  • SSPAI Morning Brief: Meta Promises EU-Compliant Personalized Ad Options, and More

    SSPAI Morning Brief: Meta Promises EU-Compliant Personalized Ad Options, and More

    Morning Briefing

    1. Meta promises to offer EU users compliant personalized ad options
    2. Google showcases three Android XR device prototypes
    3. Viwoods launches AiPaper Reader C color e-ink device
    4. Jolla completes crowdfunding for the new Jolla Phone
    5. Meituan releases LongCat-Image, its new image generation model
    6. Zhipu AI open-sources the GLM-4.6V multimodal model series
    7. Google Gemini web version adds a “My Content” folder
    8. Just some rumors to glance at

    Meta promises to offer EU users compliant personalized ad options

    On December 8, the European Commission’s Directorate-General for Competition and Directorate-General for Communications Networks, Content and Technology issued a statement noting that the EU has acknowledged Meta’s decision to comply with the Digital Markets Act (DMA). Meta will offer Facebook and Instagram users in the EU an option to view ads with a lower level of personalization. Users will be able to choose to share all of their data and receive fully personalized ads, or share less personal information and see ads with reduced personalization. This is the first time such an option has appeared on Meta’s social platforms. The change will go live in January 2026. Previously, in April 2025, the EU informed Meta that it was not in compliance and engaged in close discussions afterward. The Commission stated that once the feature rolls out, it will continue engaging with Meta and other stakeholders to gather feedback, assess the impact of the changes, and collect relevant evidence. Source

    Google showcases three Android XR device prototypes

    At its Android XR media preview event on Monday, Google unveiled three prototypes of Android XR devices. The first, Project Aura, is developed in collaboration with Chinese manufacturer XREAL. Its form factor is similar to the Galaxy XR and requires connection to an external device, making it more of a “less immersive” head-mounted display. Project Aura is expected to officially launch in 2026.

    The second prototype resembles the Meta Ray-Ban glasses, embedding a display in the right lens as a single-eye display setup, but in an even lighter and thinner design. Media attending the event said the prototype’s display performance, software smoothness, and Gemini integration were noticeably improved compared to what Google showed at I/O 2025. This prototype must be connected to a smartphone, which serves as its computing hub. Google prohibited photography of the device. The final retail version will be jointly developed by Google, Samsung, and eyewear companies Warby Parker and Gentle Monster, and is planned for a 2026 release, with an audio-only version also available.

    The third prototype is still in an early development stage and was only shown in a short demo. It features displays embedded in both lenses, offering better audio performance and a wider field of view. With dual-eye displays, it can also create depth effects. The product corresponding to this prototype will not be released in 2026. Source

    Viwoods launches AiPaper Reader C color e-ink device

    On December 8, Viwoods introduced the AiPaper Reader C to overseas markets. It features a 6.13-inch color e-ink display suitable for reading comics and viewing images. The device is largely similar to the previously released AiPaper Reader, with the main upgrade being the transition to a color screen. It is equipped with a 6.13-inch Carta 1300 panel using Kaleido 3 color technology. However, when operating in color mode, the resolution drops to 824 × 1648, and pixel density falls to 150 PPI. The device runs on an octa-core 2.0 GHz processor with 4GB LPDDR4X RAM and comes with Android 16, supporting the installation of third-party apps. Its dimensions are 159.39 × 80.27 × 6.7 mm. It has a built-in 2580mAh battery and supports Wi-Fi connectivity, as well as a physical SIM card slot that enables 4G mobile data when on the go, though phone calls are not supported. It includes a microphone, a side-mounted fingerprint sensor integrated into the power button, and page-turn buttons on the right side, allowing page flips without touching the screen. The product is now available overseas at a retail price of 359 euros. Source

    Jolla completes crowdfunding for the new Jolla Phone

    The Finnish company Jolla, known for carrying forward the legacy of Nokia’s MeeGo system, has recently completed crowdfunding for its new Jolla Phone. The device runs Sailfish OS 5, a Linux-based system, and supports Android apps through Jolla AppSupport. It features a replaceable battery and back cover, as well as physical privacy switches. The processor is an unspecified MediaTek model, and the phone supports 5G. It comes with a 6.36-inch display and 12GB of RAM. The first batch is priced at 499 euros, the second batch at 549 euros, and the official retail price starts at 599 euros. Source

    Meituan releases LongCat-Image, its new image generation model

    On December 8, Meituan’s LongCat team officially released and open-sourced the LongCat-Image model. Built with a high-performance architecture, systematic training strategies, and comprehensive data engineering, the model reaches the performance level of larger models in core text-to-image and image editing capabilities, despite having only 6B parameters. It offers highly controllable image editing and accurate Chinese text generation. For text-to-image generation, Meituan conducted large-scale human evaluations using MOS (Mean Opinion Score), scoring four key dimensions: text-image alignment, visual plausibility, visual realism, and aesthetic quality. LongCat-Image shows outstanding realism compared to mainstream open and closed models, and reaches state-of-the-art levels among open-source models in text-image alignment and plausibility. For image editing, Meituan adopted strict side-by-side (SBS) evaluations focusing on overall editing quality and visual consistency—two core user-experience metrics. Results indicate that while LongCat-Image still trails some commercial models like Nano Banana and Seedream 4.0, it significantly outperforms other open-source solutions. The model is now available for download on Hugging Face and GitHub. Source

    Zhipu AI open-sources the GLM-4.6V multimodal model series

    On December 8, Zhipu AI launched and open-sourced the GLM-4.6V series of multimodal large models, including the base GLM-4.6V (106B-A12B) designed for cloud and high-performance cluster scenarios, and the lightweight GLM-4.6V-Flash (9B) aimed at local deployment and low-latency applications. GLM-4.6V increases the training-time context window to 128k tokens, achieves state-of-the-art visual understanding performance for its parameter size, and integrates tool-calling capabilities natively into the vision model. Compared with GLM-4.5V, the GLM-4.6V series is priced 50% lower, with API pricing adjusted to 1 RMB per million input tokens and 3 RMB per million output tokens. Source

    Google Gemini web version adds a “My Content” folder

    Google recently rolled out an upgraded web version of Gemini, introducing a dark theme and a streamlined “My Content” folder to improve readability and highlight its latest generative image model: Nano Banana Pro. With this update, Gemini’s web interface now aligns more closely with the mobile version. The new light theme carries a subtle blue-gray tint, while the dark theme switches to a pure-black background. The greeting on the landing page has been simplified from “Hello” to “Hi,” and the prompt input field and suggestion features have been moved to the bottom. The hamburger menu has also been reorganized, adding a new “My Content” module alongside Gems and Conversations. It separates AI-generated images, videos, Canvas creations, and chat histories into distinct categories for easier access. When users click on an item in “My Conversations,” they can see all chat threads associated with that content. Additionally, when users start a new conversation, the star icon on the Gemini homepage now features a rotation animation, and the input box outline is more prominent. The chat history section in the hamburger menu also gains a new “more actions” button, allowing users to share, pin, rename, or delete items. Source

    Just some rumors to glance at

    After Netflix announced its acquisition deal with Warner Bros., Paramount made a hostile takeover bid to Warner Bros. shareholders at 30 USD per share, totaling 108 billion USD. Source

    JD.com has launched “Jing Min Tong,” a public services portal. Users can access it by searching “京民通” within the JD or JD Finance apps. Source

    Xiaohongshu announced that it will suspend its “Xiao Hong Card” program starting January 1, 2026. All current cardholders will retain their full benefits until then, and after the service ends, all purchased cards will be automatically refunded in full. Source

    Douyin officially responded on Weibo to user questions, stating that 952420 is the official number of the Douyin Safety Center. Users will receive calls from this number if they have interacted with accounts involved in fraud. Source

    IBM announced a 11 billion USD all-cash acquisition of data platform company Confluent, aiming to strengthen its enterprise AI data platform offerings. Source

    Apple Fitness+ will launch on December 15 in 28 new storefront regions including Chile, Hong Kong, India, the Netherlands, Singapore, and Taiwan, and will arrive in Japan early next year. Courses will gradually roll out with AI-generated dubbing in Spanish, German, and Japanese. Source

    Microsoft announced that commercial versions of Microsoft 365 and Office 365 will see various price increases starting July 1, 2026. Source

    Tesla’s Optimus robot fell during a demo last weekend, and a video posted by a Reddit user shows that just before falling, Optimus made a motion resembling a remote operator removing a VR headset. Tesla has indeed used VR operators in the lab to train the Optimus robot. Source

  • SSPAI Morning Brief: Netflix Plans to Acquire Warner Bros.’ Film and Streaming Businesses for USD 72 Billion

    SSPAI Morning Brief: Netflix Plans to Acquire Warner Bros.’ Film and Streaming Businesses for USD 72 Billion

    Morning Brief

    1. Netflix Plans to Acquire Warner Bros.’ Film Studio and HBO Max Streaming Business for USD 72 Billion
    2. “Baidu Name Directory” Found Used in Multiple Official Lists
    3. Meta Plans Major Cuts to Metaverse Budget, Shifts Spending Toward AI Devices
    4. Cloudflare Suffers Another Service Outage
    5. Russia Blocks FaceTime Citing Security Concerns
    6. Doubao AI Mobile Assistant Restricts Functions in Score-Farming, Finance, and Gaming

    Netflix Plans to Acquire Warner Bros.’ Film Studio and HBO Max Streaming Business for USD 72 Billion

    According to The Wall Street Journal, on December 5, streaming giant Netflix announced that it had reached an agreement to acquire Warner Bros.’ film studio and its HBO Max streaming business for USD 72 billion in cash and stock. Under the terms of the deal, parent company Warner Bros. Discovery will carry out a spin-off plan, separating its traditional cable TV networks — including CNN, TNT, and TBS — before selling its entertainment production and streaming division to Netflix. This marks the largest acquisition in Netflix’s history and is expected to close within 12 to 18 months.

    The transaction values Warner Bros. stock at USD 27.75 per share, with the total enterprise value of the assets involved reaching approximately USD 82.7 billion. Previously, competitor Paramount had proposed an all-cash offer of USD 30 per share to acquire the entire Warner operation, including its cable network assets. However, Warner’s board favored Netflix’s proposal because it allows shareholders to retain equity in the spun-off cable TV business while also receiving Netflix shares — resulting in a combined potential value of USD 31 to 32 per share, surpassing Paramount’s full acquisition offer.

    Through this acquisition, Netflix would gain access to one of Hollywood’s largest content libraries, including Harry Potter, Friends, the DC Extended Universe, and HBO’s premium original programming. Netflix Co-CEO Ted Sarandos described the deal as a rare opportunity to secure long-term competitive advantage and pledged to preserve Warner Bros.’ traditional theatrical distribution model post-acquisition, ensuring that select films will continue to premiere in cinemas before arriving on streaming.

    The deal, however, faces significant antitrust scrutiny. Officials from the Trump administration have already voiced concerns that the merger could excessively strengthen Netflix’s global dominance. Paramount, whose bid was rejected, also sent a letter to Warner asserting that regulatory challenges may render the deal impossible to complete. Following the announcement, U.S. markets closed with Netflix shares down nearly 3%, Warner Bros. shares up more than 6%, and Paramount — the failed bidder — plunging nearly 10%.

    “Baidu Name Directory” Found Used in Multiple Official Lists

    According to The Paper, a document titled 10,000 Common Chinese Names on Baidu Wenku has recently been linked to several suspected falsification cases. Fake names listed in the document were directly copied into official rosters across multiple domains, sparking widespread public concern over procedural integrity and review mechanisms. These names were used to “build” expert panels in government procurement announcements, fill out award lists for competitions, and even appear in a public administrative penalty notice. Among them, “Zhang Jiwei, Lin Guorui, Lin Wenshu, Lin Yanan, Jiang Yiyun” appeared so frequently that they became known as “the busiest five people on the entire internet.”

    Examples include—

    • In 2024, the Liaoning Science and Technology Enterprise Knowledge Transfer Platform and the Yingkou Science and Technology Enterprise Knowledge Transfer Platform published lists of individuals who passed the non-public senior professional title review. Several names on the lists matched those in the “Name Directory”;
    • In 2023, a graduation results announcement on the website of Guangzhou General Vocational and Technical School listed 110 students, many of whose names were identical to those in the directory, and the exam scores were fabricated;
    • In 2023, the “Luoxia Cup National Painting and Calligraphy Seal-Carving Competition,” jointly organized by Shuhua Art Network and provincial associations in Shanxi and Jiangsu, featured numerous awardees whose names came directly from the directory;
    • In 2022, in a public notice by the School of Humanities at Hangzhou Normal University for recipients of a welfare lottery public fund project, several names and their exact sequence fully matched the directory. The university released a statement on December 6 admitting staff misconduct, offering a sincere apology, and accepting public criticism;
    • In 2019, the Chengdu Recreational Environment Technology Research Institute published results for a project-funding review. Zhang Jiwei appeared as project lead, teaming up with Lin Guorui, Cai Yiyun, and Chen Zhengqian to submit a project. Following on-site and correspondence reviews by experts, the project was approved. These four individuals, along with many others on the public notice, overlapped with names in the directory.

    New cases of identical names are still continuously being uncovered and exposed.

    Meta Plans Major Cuts to Metaverse Budget, Shifts Spending Toward AI Devices

    According to Bloomberg, sources reveal that Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg plans to drastically reduce investment in the company’s Metaverse initiatives. Meta executives are currently discussing a proposal to cut the Metaverse team’s 2026 budget by as much as 30%, with a new round of layoffs potentially beginning as early as January. A Meta spokesperson confirmed the resource reduction, noting that the freed-up funds will be redirected to fast-growing projects such as AI-powered smart glasses and other wearable devices.

    The proposed cuts stem from Meta’s annual budget planning meeting held last month at Zuckerberg’s Hawaii estate. At the meeting, Zuckerberg asked all departments to identify 10% budget reductions, though the Metaverse division was assigned far more aggressive targets. Sources explained that this is largely due to the Metaverse failing to generate the level of industry-wide competition Meta had once anticipated. The reductions are expected to focus on the VR team behind the Quest headsets and the Horizon Worlds virtual social platform — the two largest cost drivers of Meta’s Metaverse spending.

    This shift marks a significant strategic reorientation for Meta. Since the 2021 rebrand from Facebook to Meta, Reality Labs — the division overseeing the Metaverse — has accumulated losses exceeding USD 70 billion. Although Zuckerberg maintains that humanity will ultimately work and live in virtual worlds, he has rarely mentioned the Metaverse in recent public appearances or earnings calls, instead turning attention to large language models that power chatbots and to AI-integrated hardware such as Ray-Ban smart glasses.

    For years, investors have criticized the massive spending on the Metaverse for draining company resources without generating meaningful revenue. Following news of the budget cuts, Meta’s stock rose 3.4% to USD 661.53. Analysts widely believe that reducing investment in the long-unprofitable Metaverse will allow Meta to compete more effectively with its industry rivals in the generative AI space.

    Cloudflare Suffers Another Service Outage

    Internet infrastructure provider Cloudflare has confirmed that it has resolved a global service outage that occurred on Friday, December 5. The incident caused widespread delays and connection errors across the internet, affecting numerous banking and financial institution websites, video conferencing platform Zoom, and professional networking service LinkedIn, among others.

    Cloudflare reported that the outage lasted about 30 minutes. The company’s investigation found that the issue was not caused by a cyberattack but by a misconfiguration introduced during an attempt to patch a security vulnerability (CVE-2025-55182) in its React server components. The configuration change inadvertently triggered a logic error that resulted in a surge of HTTP 500 internal server errors. Cloudflare noted that such logic flaws could have been avoided in strongly typed programming languages, and the new Rust-based architecture it is rolling out has already addressed this risk.

    This marks Cloudflare’s second major outage in less than a month. As a core pillar of global internet infrastructure, Cloudflare’s services are relied on by countless companies for website acceleration and cybersecurity protection. A single point of failure at Cloudflare often produces cascading effects, knocking offline thousands of unrelated websites simultaneously.

    Cloudflare publicly apologized via social media, acknowledging that both incidents exposed weaknesses in its global configuration system, including the lack of staged rollouts and automated health checks. The company stated that it is conducting a comprehensive review to ensure network stability, and will accelerate the deployment of “fail-open” safeguards and stricter release validation procedures.

    Russia Blocks FaceTime Citing Security Concerns

    According to Reuters, on December 4, Russia’s federal communications regulator Roskomnadzor officially blocked Apple’s FaceTime video-calling service within the country. In its statement, Roskomnadzor cited law enforcement claims that FaceTime had been used “to organize and carry out terrorist attacks, recruit perpetrators, and commit fraud against Russian citizens,” though it provided no concrete evidence to support these allegations.

    As a result, users across Moscow reported being unable to use the service on Thursday; calls showed only a “user unavailable” message, and recipients could not answer even if they saw the incoming call. Apple has not yet responded. FaceTime is a core communication tool within the Apple ecosystem, known for its end-to-end encryption; the ban means Russian Apple users have now lost a major encrypted communication channel.

    This move is the latest escalation in Russia’s ongoing crackdown on Western tech platforms. Authorities have already imposed varying levels of restrictions on Google’s YouTube, Meta’s WhatsApp, and Telegram. On December 3, Roskomnadzor also blocked the U.S. gaming platform Roblox, citing the spread of extremist materials and illegal content. In August, the agency accused WhatsApp and Telegram of refusing to share anti-terrorism and anti-fraud information with law enforcement and subsequently restricted voice-call functionality on both platforms.

    Alongside restricting foreign services, Russia is pushing domestically developed alternatives in pursuit of “digital sovereignty.” This year, the government launched MAX, an official communications app intended to fill the void left by departing foreign platforms. Despite external concerns over possible data surveillance, Russian state media maintains that these measures are legitimate actions to safeguard national information security.

    Doubao AI Mobile Assistant Restricts Functions in Score-Farming, Finance, and Gaming

    According to Caixin, on December 5, Doubao announced that it would implement standardized restrictions on certain AI-driven phone operations, including—though not limited to—score-farming, reward-farming, financial app interactions, and gaming-related scenarios.

    Earlier on December 1, ByteDance’s Doubao AI model released the “Doubao Mobile Assistant” technical preview, integrated into the engineering prototype nubia M153 developed with ZTE, which was sold in limited quantities. Following the news, ZTE’s stock hit its daily limit, and the ¥3499 prototype sold out the same day. On the evening of December 3, after encountering risk-control blocks that prevented normal use of WeChat, Doubao disabled the assistant’s ability to operate WeChat.

    Doubao stated in its announcement that although the nubia M153 is merely a small-batch engineering prototype running a preview version, public attention far exceeded expectations. The concept of “AI operating your phone” sparked substantial discussion. The adjustment, Doubao says, “is a necessary step to ensure the technology develops steadily and sustainably.”

    Among the newly restricted scenarios, “score-farming and reward-farming” refers to retention-oriented incentives provided by apps that depend on real user interaction and therefore do not want AI collecting rewards. For banking and fintech applications, Doubao noted that although sensitive operations require explicit user authorization, it would still suspend AI operation of such apps out of caution. For certain gaming scenarios, Doubao said that because they involve competitive ranking, AI assistance will be temporarily disabled to maintain fairness.

    Doubao added that it will continue communicating with stakeholders to promote clearer, more predictable rules and “avoid blanket prohibitions that deny users the reasonable right to use AI.” Doubao reiterated that the AI assistant will not replace users in completing authorizations or sensitive actions; during long-running tasks, clear on-screen prompts will be displayed, and users may interrupt at any time, keeping the process fully controllable.

    Tensions among internet service companies, smartphone makers, and AI model developers are becoming increasingly visible. Recently, WeChat stopped supporting AI bookkeeping features on OPPO phones, and Bilibili no longer allows AI assistants to summarize video content. As early as 2017, when Honor was still under Huawei, its Magic smartphone featured AI functions that recommended restaurants based on WeChat and Alipay behavior — prompting Tencent to file a complaint with China’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, accusing Huawei of violating user privacy.

    Rumors to Take With a Grain of Salt

    • On December 4, AI search engine company Perplexity announced that global football star Cristiano Ronaldo (CR7) will invest in the company. Perplexity has also signed Ronaldo as a global brand ambassador and launched an interactive fan hub dedicated to him on its platform. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. According to recent Bloomberg estimates, Ronaldo’s net worth is roughly USD 1.4 billion. A few weeks ago, Ronaldo also met with Donald Trump, sparking speculation about potential business collaborations.
    • Bloomberg reports that Johny Srouji — widely regarded as the chief architect of Apple’s in-house chips and currently a senior vice president — has informed CEO Tim Cook that he is considering leaving the company. To retain this key talent, Apple is reportedly weighing a promotion that would make Srouji the company’s Chief Technology Officer (CTO), though such a move could trigger complex internal power-balance issues. Apple has recently been facing a wave of executive departures. According to The Wall Street Journal, LinkedIn data shows that in recent months, dozens of Apple engineers working in audio, watch design, and robotics have left for OpenAI.
    • On December 6, Elon Musk posted on X stating that he hopes to open-source all of X’s code next month — “with no reservations.”
    • According to The Wall Street Journal, sources reveal that SpaceX is preparing a new secondary stock sale, seeking a valuation as high as USD 800 billion. If completed, SpaceX would surpass OpenAI to become the most valuable private tech company in the United States. CFO Bret Johnsen has reportedly informed investors of the sale plan, and executives have indicated that the company is considering an initial public offering (IPO) in 2026. Thanks to its dominance in rocket launches and the rapid growth of its Starlink business, SpaceX continues to be highly favored by investors.
  • SSPAI Morning Brief: Micron Shuts Down Crucial Consumer Business

    SSPAI Morning Brief: Micron Shuts Down Crucial Consumer Business

    Morning Brief

    1. Micron shuts down Crucial consumer business
    2. Apple’s head of interface design Alan Dye resigns
    3. Dyson releases Spot+Scrub AI vacuum robot
    4. Let’s Encrypt to shorten certificate validity from 90 days to 45 days
    5. Apple confirms iPhone 17 Pro will no longer support Night mode in Portrait mode
    6. China’s State Administration for Market Regulation releases Basic Requirements for Food-Delivery Platform Services
    7. Apple Beijing Huiju retail store to open on December 6
    8. Google launches automation tool Workspace Studio
    9. App Store Awards 2025 winners announced

    Micron shuts down Crucial consumer business

    Micron has announced its exit from the consumer storage business under its Crucial brand, shifting its focus to high-bandwidth memory (HBM) as demand for artificial intelligence and data-center infrastructure surges.

    AI-driven data center expansion has created strong demand for high-performance storage and memory. As a core component, HBM uses vertically stacked designs to reduce power consumption and improve data-processing efficiency, making it widely used for AI model training and inference. Compared with consumer products, HBM commands higher pricing and better margins, becoming one of the most competitive markets among Micron, SK Hynix, and Samsung.

    Amid ongoing global semiconductor supply constraints—from mobile flash storage to HBM chips—Micron will cease selling consumer-grade products through retail, e-commerce, and distribution channels. However, shipments will continue until February 2026 to ensure a smooth channel transition. Analysts note that consumer storage has never been a major revenue driver for Micron, and the company has already been shifting its strategic focus toward the HBM product line. Source

    Apple’s head of interface design Alan Dye resigns

    Apple’s design team faces another major adjustment as interface design chief Alan Dye departs the company. He will join Meta on December 31 as the company’s newly appointed Chief Design Officer.

    According to Bloomberg, Meta is establishing a new cross-disciplinary design studio, led by Dye, to unify hardware, software, and AI interface design. Dye will report directly to CTO Andrew Bosworth. Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg stated that the studio’s mission is to merge design, fashion, and technology, exploring new product forms that treat “intelligence as a design material.” With devices like AI glasses expected to reshape human–computer interaction, the new team aims to create more natural and human-centered experiences.

    Apple has confirmed that veteran designer Steve Lemay will step into Dye’s role. Lemay, who joined Apple in 1999, has contributed to nearly all major interface design projects. CEO Tim Cook said that Lemay has helped define the high standards of Apple’s interface design, reflecting the company’s culture of collaboration and innovation. With former COO Jeff Williams now retired, Apple’s design team reports directly to Cook.

    Dye’s departure is part of a series of ongoing leadership changes at Apple. Prior to this, Apple announced that its longtime AI chief John Giannandrea would step down, while chip chief Johnny Srouji is reportedly evaluating future plans. Former Apple designer Billy Sorrentino has also confirmed he will be joining Meta. Source

    Dyson releases Spot+Scrub AI vacuum robot

    On December 4, Dyson announced its new Spot+Scrub AI robot vacuum. According to official information, the device uses a dual-line laser paired with an HD camera, enabling it to recognize around 200 common household objects while running and updating its models entirely on-device. In mopping mode, the robot features a 27 cm-wide roller, supports 60°C hot-water cleaning and self-cleaning, and can lift the roller when needed. In vacuuming mode, the motor provides 18,000 Pa of suction and includes an edge brush. The base station supports cyclone dust collection, up to 100 days of hands-free dust disposal, 60°C deep roller cleaning, and 45°C hot-air drying.

    The robot can be controlled via a mobile app for quick mapping, zone management, virtual boundaries, and scheduled cleaning. Dyson states that image data is never uploaded to the cloud, and the device does not store images locally, ensuring user privacy. The product is now available on JD.com at a price of 5,499 RMB. Source

    Let’s Encrypt to shorten certificate validity from 90 days to 45 days

    On December 2, Let’s Encrypt announced it will further shorten the validity period of its TLS/SSL certificates—from the current 90 days to 45 days—with full implementation planned for 2028. Meanwhile, the “authorization reuse period” for domain validation will be reduced from 30 days to 7 hours, meaning domain ownership will almost always be revalidated during renewal. Let’s Encrypt emphasizes that modern ACME clients already support high automation, so most website administrators will not need to take action, as automatic renewal will continue working seamlessly.

    Under the planned timeline:

    • May 2026: An optional 45-day certificate profile will be introduced for testing.
    • February 2027: Default certificate validity will be shortened to 64 days.
    • February 2028: Full transition to 45-day validity.

    Additionally, Let’s Encrypt revealed plans to introduce a new DNS-PERSIST-01 validation method in 2026. This will allow users to configure a DNS TXT record only once; subsequent certificate renewals will no longer require frequent manual DNS TXT updates. Source

    Apple confirms iPhone 17 Pro will no longer support Night mode in Portrait mode

    On December 4, Apple confirmed in an official support document that a previously available camera feature has been removed from the iPhone 17 Pro: Portrait mode will no longer support Night mode. Previously, when shooting portraits in low-light environments, Portrait mode would automatically work in tandem with Night mode to produce better image quality. Notably, Apple has removed this feature only from the iPhone 17 Pro — Portrait + Night mode remains available on the iPhone 12 Pro through iPhone 16 Pro. Source

    China’s State Administration for Market Regulation releases Basic Requirements for Food-Delivery Platform Services

    On December 4, 2025, the State Administration for Market Regulation officially released the recommended national standard Basic Requirements for Food-Delivery Platform Service Management.

    According to the announcement, the new standard addresses real-world industry needs and focuses on four key areas. In merchant management, platforms must enforce strict onboarding reviews and daily operational oversight, implement primary responsibility for safety, and are encouraged to promote “Internet + Transparent Kitchens” to uphold food safety. In pricing and promotions, the standard calls for greater transparency in platform fees and more regulated promotional tactics, ensuring a fair and orderly competitive environment. In labor management, platforms are urged to optimize delivery workers’ schedules, strengthen training and social protection, and further improve rights safeguards. The standard also requires establishing multi-party complaint and appeal channels to enhance transparency and facilitate public supervision.

    In addition, the standard explicitly limits delivery workers’ working hours:

    Daily order-taking time should not exceed 8 hours; if 8 hours is reached, riders must confirm before accepting more orders… After 4 consecutive hours of order-taking, a fatigue alert must be issued and dispatching paused for 20 minutes… Platforms must not use algorithmic optimization, bonus incentives, or other indirect methods to force riders into overtime labor.

    The State Administration for Market Regulation stated that the new standard is expected to promote healthier and more orderly development within the industry, creating a win–win outcome for all parties involved. Source

    Ele.me’s Response

    Ele.me stated that it will voluntarily implement the national standard Basic Requirements for Food-Delivery Platform Service Management, integrating its guidelines into platform operations and service workflows. The company will continue optimizing platform rules, improving merchant and courier management, enhancing user experience, and protecting the rights of couriers, consumers, and merchants.

    Apple Beijing Huiju retail store to open on December 6

    On December 4, Apple announced that the Apple Beijing Huiju retail store will officially open on the morning of December 6, becoming Apple’s sixth retail location in Beijing. Apple stated that the new store integrates sustainability and accessibility elements to enhance the shopping experience for all customers. Universal design principles—such as flexible seating heights, accessible pathways, and enhanced hearing systems—ensure inclusivity and support a wide range of needs. Source

    Google launches automation tool Workspace Studio

    On December 4, Google officially launched Workspace Studio, an automation tool designed for the Workspace ecosystem that enables users to rapidly create intelligent work agents powered by Gemini 3’s multimodal understanding capabilities. Previously tested under the name Workspace Flows, the tool is now available to a wider user base.

    Google says Workspace Studio allows users to describe business needs in natural language without writing any code, enabling them to build AI Agents in minutes. These agents can automatically process emails, documents, communications, and task management. The tool is deeply integrated with core Google Workspace apps such as Gmail, Drive, and Chat, and can connect with third-party services including Asana, Jira, Mailchimp, and Salesforce to cover broader business workflows.

    Compared with traditional rule-based automation tools, the new agents offer stronger reasoning and contextual understanding. They can identify issues and emotional tone in emails, extract invoice numbers or key task details, and automatically generate content, set priorities, or send smart notifications based on context—significantly improving workflow efficiency. In Workspace Studio, each AI agent is built from three components: triggers, steps, and variables. Enterprises can combine them as needed to create workflows of varying complexity, with support for team sharing. Source

    App Store Awards 2025 winners announced

    Apple has officially announced the winners of the 2025 App Store Awards, recognizing apps and games that demonstrated excellence in technological innovation, user experience, and cultural impact.

    In mainland China, CapWords won App of the Year for its clever design that seamlessly integrates language learning into everyday life. Valorant: Radianite Rising, developed by Tencent TiMi, took home Game of the Year, praised for its stunning visuals and fast-paced competitive gameplay. Source

    Globally, Tiimo, Detail, Essayist, Explore POV, Strava, and HBO Max were awarded App of the Year on iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple Vision Pro, Apple Watch, and Apple TV respectively. In the games category, Pokémon TCG Pocket, DREDGE, Cyberpunk 2077: Ultimate Edition, Porta Nubi, and WHAT THE CLASH? won Game of the Year for iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple Vision Pro, and Apple Arcade.

    In addition to the main awards, Apple announced six “Cultural Impact Award” winners, honoring apps and games that promote inclusion, understanding, and improved quality of life. The recipients are Art of Fauna, Chants of Sennaar, despelote, Be My Eyes, Focus Friend, and StoryGraph. Source

  • SSPAI Morning Brief: Samsung Unveils Galaxy Z TriFold, Sony Releases Alpha 7 V, and More

    SSPAI Morning Brief: Samsung Unveils Galaxy Z TriFold, Sony Releases Alpha 7 V, and More

    Morning Brief

    1. Samsung Releases Galaxy Z TriFold
    2. Sony Releases Alpha 7 V
    3. Apple Music, Amazon Music, and YouTube Launch Annual Recaps
    4. XREAL Announces New AR Glasses: XREAL 1S
    5. Raspberry Pi Releases 1GB Version of Raspberry Pi 5
    6. DeepSeek Launches DeepSeek-V3.2 and DeepSeek-V3.2-Speciale
    7. John Giannandrea to Step Down from Apple
    8. Genshin Impact PS5 Limited Edition Controller Officially Revealed
    9. TGA “Players’ Voice” First-Round List Announced
    10. Rumors — Just for Your Curiosity

    Samsung Releases Galaxy Z TriFold

    On December 2, Samsung officially unveiled its first tri-fold smartphone, the Galaxy Z TriFold. The device uses an inward-folding design, with both sides folding toward each other to protect the main display. To support this, Samsung added various screen and vibration prompts to alert users when the folding action is incorrect.

    In terms of hardware, the Galaxy Z TriFold features a 10-inch Dynamic AMOLED display with QXGA resolution when unfolded, supporting a 120Hz refresh rate and peak brightness of 1,600 nits. The outer display measures 6.5 inches with a peak brightness of 2,600 nits. For dimensions, the device is 3.9 mm thick at its thinnest point when unfolded, 4.2 mm at the center of the screen, and 4.0 mm around the side button area. It weighs just 309 grams, uses second-generation Corning Gorilla Ceramic Glass for the outer display, features a titanium alloy hinge and high-strength armor aluminum frame, and offers IP48 protection against freshwater immersion and solid particle intrusion.

    Other specifications include a Snapdragon 8 Elite for Galaxy chip (3 nm process), a 5,600 mAh battery with 45W wired charging, 16GB of RAM, and 512GB or 1TB storage options. The rear camera system includes a 200-MP wide-angle main camera, a 12-MP ultra-wide camera, and a 10-MP telephoto lens. The outer display houses a 10-MP front camera, while the main screen includes an additional 10-MP under-display camera.

    The Galaxy Z TriFold comes in a single Crafted Black color. It will launch first in South Korea on December 12 at a starting price of 3,590,400 KRW, and will arrive later this month in China, Singapore, and the United Arab Emirates. Source

    Sony Releases Alpha 7 V

    On December 2, Sony China announced the full-frame mirrorless Alpha 7 V (model ILCE-7M5). Pre-orders begin immediately, with a suggested retail price of 17,999 RMB.

    The Sony Alpha 7 V features a partially stacked Exmor RS CMOS sensor with approximately 33 million effective pixels, paired with the BIONZ XR2 image processor. It integrates AI-driven processing for accurate auto white balance, enabling precise estimation of lighting conditions from the captured scene to reproduce more accurate colors and reduce post-processing work. The camera also supports a pre-capture function that records up to one second of footage before the shutter is released, offering advantages for dynamic scenes such as pets and sports. Source

    Image via Weibo @索尼-影像圈

    Apple Music, Amazon Music, and YouTube Launch Annual Recaps

    On December 2, Apple introduced Apple Music Replay, showcasing users’ most-played songs, artists, and albums over the past year. In addition to listening time, number of artists played, most consistently played artists, and preferred genres, this year’s Replay adds new sections—Discovery, Loyalty, and Comebacks—to help users revisit their musical journey from new perspectives. Replay can be accessed through the Apple Music Home tab.

    Apple also shared several artist statistics: the most popular song on Apple Music in 2025 is APT by ROSÉ and Bruno Mars; luther by Kendrick Lamar and SZA ranks second; Die With A Smile by Lady Gaga and Bruno Mars ranks third; Kendrick Lamar’s Not Like Us takes fourth place, and Billie Eilish’s Birds of a Feather ranks fifth.Source

    YouTube announced via an official blog post the rollout of YouTube Recap, its annual review feature. Similar to the existing Recap feature for YouTube Music, it presents users’ yearly viewing themes, top interest categories, favorite creators, and musical artists in a short “story” format. YouTube Recap begins rolling out immediately to users in North America, with other regions to follow, accessible via the “Me” tab in the app or on the web. Source

    Amazon Music has also released its 2025 annual report, featuring a visual design inspired by music festival posters. In addition to personal and platform-wide streaming statistics, Amazon Music’s annual recap includes unique sections such as “Most Popular Alexa Requests.” Source

    XREAL Announces New AR Glasses: XREAL 1S

    On December 1, XREAL announced its new AR glasses, the XREAL 1S, the first device in its category to introduce automatic 2D-to-3D content conversion. The XREAL 1S weighs 82g and features dual 0.68-inch Sony OLED microdisplays with a per-eye resolution of 1920×1200. It supports a maximum refresh rate of 120Hz (30Hz in 2D-to-3D mode), 700 nits brightness, 52° FOV, and ΔE < 3 color accuracy. It is powered by XREAL’s custom X1 spatial computing chip and achieves M2P latency as low as 3 ms. The device includes audio tuned by BOSE and a four-microphone array. The XREAL 1S is priced at 67,980 yen in the Japanese market. Source

    Raspberry Pi Releases 1GB Version of Raspberry Pi 5

    On December 1, the Raspberry Pi Foundation announced price adjustments for some Raspberry Pi 4/5 models due to rising LPDDR4 memory costs. The 4GB Raspberry Pi 4 increases from $55 to $60, and the 4GB Raspberry Pi 5 rises from $60 to $70. Raspberry Pi has also introduced a new 1GB version of the Raspberry Pi 5, priced at $45. In addition, the 16GB Compute Module 5 will see a $20 increase. Prices for earlier models such as the Raspberry Pi 3+ and the Raspberry Pi Zero will remain unchanged. Source

    DeepSeek Launches DeepSeek-V3.2 and DeepSeek-V3.2-Speciale

    On December 1, DeepSeek announced two official models: DeepSeek-V3.2 and DeepSeek-V3.2-Speciale. The official website, app, and API have all been updated to the V3.2 model for general use. The Speciale version is currently available only as a temporary API service, intended primarily for community evaluation and research.

    DeepSeek-V3.2 aims to balance reasoning ability with output length, making it suitable for everyday use cases such as Q&A interactions and general Agent tasks. According to public reasoning benchmarks, DeepSeek-V3.2 performs at a GPT-5 level, slightly below Gemini-3.0-Pro. Compared to Kimi-K2-Thinking, V3.2 significantly reduces output length, lowering computational overhead and reducing user wait times. V3.2-Speciale is an enhanced long-thinking variant that integrates theorem-proving capabilities from DeepSeek-Math-V2. It offers strong instruction-following performance, rigorous mathematical proofs, and logical verification. Its benchmark performance rivals Gemini-3.0-Pro and surpasses the standard V3.2 model in highly complex tasks, though it consumes more tokens and is more costly to use. Source

    John Giannandrea to Step Down from Apple

    On December 1, Apple announced that John Giannandrea, Senior Vice President of Machine Learning and AI Strategy, will step down from his role. He will continue serving as an advisor to the company until retiring in spring 2026. Apple also announced that renowned AI researcher Amar Subramanya has joined the company as Vice President of AI, reporting to Craig Federighi. Subramanya will oversee several key domains, including Apple’s foundation models, machine learning research, and AI safety and evaluation. Giannandrea’s former teams will transition under Sabih Khan and Eddy Cue to enhance cross-team collaboration.

    Before joining Apple, Amar Subramanya served as Microsoft’s Corporate Vice President for AI and spent 16 years at Google, where he was the engineering lead for the Gemini AI assistant. Source

    Genshin Impact PS5 Limited Edition Controller Officially Revealed

    On December 2, Sony Interactive Entertainment and miHoYo jointly unveiled the limited-edition Genshin Impact PS5 DualSense controller, which will open for pre-orders on December 11, 2025. The controller features a dreamy white, gold, and green color scheme, adorned with mystical runes and illustrations of the Traveler twins and Paimon, capturing the signature atmosphere of the game. Starting January 21, 2026, the controller will launch first in selected Asian markets including Japan. From February 25, 2026 onward, it will roll out across North America, Latin America, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Australia, and New Zealand. Release dates and availability may vary by region. Source

    TGA “Players’ Voice” First-Round List Announced

    The first-round voting list for The Game Awards 2025 “Players’ Voice” category has officially been released. This category is the only award in TGA 2025 determined entirely by player voting, and this year features a total of 30 popular titles. In the first round, players may vote for up to 10 games from the 30 nominees. Voting closes on December 3 at 10:00 a.m. The full list of selected titles is as follows (sorted alphabetically by English titles):

    The second round will begin on December 5 at 1:00 a.m., during which players may select up to 5 games from the 10 titles advancing from the first round. Voting for this stage ends on December 7 at 10:00 a.m. The final round will start on December 9 at 1:00 a.m. and conclude on December 11 at 10:00 a.m., closing simultaneously with all other public voting categories. Source

    Rumors — Just for Your Curiosity

    • Developer @wuxianlin recently discovered Smartisan and SmartisanOS-related code in a teardown of the Doubao mobile system software. ByteDance acquired partial usage rights to Smartisan’s patents in January 2019 and has previously responded to rumors regarding potential smartphone development. Source
    Image via Weibo @wuxianlin
    • Deadline reports that Amazon’s God of War series has officially entered full pre-production and has already been greenlit for two seasons. Frederick E. O. Toye—known for directing episodes of Fallout, The Boys, Westworld, and winner of the Emmy Award for Outstanding Directing (Drama) for Shōgun—will direct the first two episodes of God of War. Source
    • On December 2, French startup Mistral announced the Mistral 3 series of open-weight models, including one large frontier model with multimodal and multilingual capabilities, as well as nine smaller models that are fully customizable and suitable for offline use. Source
  • SSPAI Morning Brief: Google and Amazon Reach Multi-Cloud Partnership and More

    SSPAI Morning Brief: Google and Amazon Reach Multi-Cloud Partnership and More

    Morning Brief

    1. Google and Amazon reach a multi-cloud solutions partnership
    2. Doubao Mobile Assistant releases technical preview
    3. Kuaishou Keling AI announces Keling Video O1 model
    4. Testing tools GFXBench and CompuBench end development and go open-source
    5. Swiss government advises against using SaaS services due to lack of encryption
    6. Rumors You Can Just Glance At

    Google and Amazon reach a multi-cloud solutions partnership

    On December 1, Google Cloud and AWS issued a joint statement announcing a collaboratively designed multi-cloud networking solution. This solution uses both AWS Interconnect – Multicloud and Google Cloud Cross-Cloud Interconnect, introducing a new open standard for network interoperability that allows customers to build dedicated high-speed connections between Google Cloud and AWS with a high degree of automation and speed. Early adopters include Salesforce. In addition, AWS stated that it plans to pursue similar cooperation with Microsoft Azure in 2026. Source

    Doubao Mobile Assistant releases technical preview

    Doubao Mobile Assistant announced the release of its technical preview on December 1. According to the official introduction, Doubao Mobile Assistant is a system-level mobile AI assistant jointly developed by Doubao and smartphone manufacturers. Leveraging the capabilities of the Doubao large model and manufacturer-level system integration, the assistant aims to deliver more convenient interactions and richer user experiences. Users can summon Doubao through voice, a side button, or the Doubao Ola Friend earbuds for more seamless interaction. No matter which screen they’re on, users can directly ask Doubao about the on-screen content to obtain additional information. Meanwhile, commonly used Doubao features such as voice calls, video calls, and screen sharing are also embedded into the assistant, and can be invoked by double-pressing the AI side key. In terms of multimodality, the assistant integrates with the system’s native photo gallery. Users can directly issue voice-based editing commands—such as removing people or cleaning up clutter—while viewing photos in the album. Doubao Mobile Assistant also supports AI-powered phone control, enabling automatic navigation across apps based on user instructions. It can handle tasks such as checking and booking tickets, placing orders, bulk downloading files, and checking logistics progress across multiple apps with a single command. Powered by its memory capabilities, Doubao Mobile Assistant also introduces an enhanced “Operate Phone Pro Mode.” Beyond using GUI Agent (simulated taps), this mode can directly call system tools and combine memory data with stronger reasoning abilities to efficiently complete complex tasks. A limited batch of the engineering prototype featuring the Doubao Mobile Assistant technical preview—the nubia M153—is now available for purchase at 3,499 RMB, aimed at developers and early testers. Source

    Kuaishou Keling AI announces Keling Video O1 model

    On December 1, the Kuaishou Keling AI team announced the launch of the Keling Video O1 model. The model introduces a multimodal vision–language interaction architecture, allowing multiple tasks to be handled within a single input box. It features commonsense reasoning and event simulation abilities, and can use videos or images together with text as input materials to generate 3–10 second videos. It supports localized additions, deletions, and modifications to video content, can extend shots before or after a clip based on the original material, and can construct multi-angle subject views while ensuring stable subject characteristics. The model is now available on the Keling app and official website. Source

    Testing tools GFXBench and CompuBench end development and go open-source

    Software company Kishonti has announced the discontinuation of GFXBench and CompuBench—the mobile and desktop GPU benchmarking tools first released in 2004—while open-sourcing their code on GitHub. Current releases will begin to be removed from app stores by the end of this year. The development team has shifted its main focus to autonomous driving AI vision and founded aiMotive, which was acquired by Stellantis Group in 2022. Source

    Swiss government advises against using SaaS services due to lack of encryption

    According to The Register, the Swiss Conference of Data Protection Officers (Privatim) issued a resolution last week urging Swiss public institutions to avoid using hyperscale cloud services and SaaS platforms for security reasons. The resolution states that most SaaS solutions still do not offer true end-to-end encryption, meaning vendors may be able to access plaintext data. As a result, the conference believes it is inappropriate for Swiss government agencies to place “particularly sensitive personal information or confidentiality-bound data” on SaaS platforms or hyperscale clouds—especially those subject to U.S. cloud legislation. The document specifically names Microsoft 365 as an unsuitable service. Source

    Rumors You Can Just Glance At

    According to South Korea’s Sedaily, Samsung’s semiconductor (DS) division has refused to sign a long-term DRAM supply contract with Samsung’s Galaxy device (MX) division. With high-bandwidth memory for AI accelerators and LPDDR for mobile devices both enjoying high profit margins, the upcoming Galaxy S26 series faces profitability challenges due to soaring memory prices.Source

    On the evening of December 1, vivo responded to the controversy over a pinned comment in one of its livestreams. The company stated that on November 29, the livestream was flooded with a large volume of unrelated comments—8.9 times higher than usual—and a defamatory remark was accidentally pinned in the chaos. vivo emphasized that the pinned comment does not represent the company’s stance and reiterated its firm opposition to any sexist or divisive remarks.Source

    Air Travel Assistant (航旅纵横) confirmed to Guangzhou media that the platform suffered a system malfunction on the afternoon of November 29, which led to widespread misinformation. The issue has since been fixed, but the company stated it cannot compensate for any financial losses incurred by users. It advises travelers to contact airlines directly to verify information when receiving alerts.Source

    Lotus Technology unveiled the Lotus Diplomat, a full-keyboard smartphone featuring a 5.3-inch 4:3 display, Snapdragon 8 Elite processor, 24GB RAM, and 1.5TB storage. Crowdfunding for the device will begin at a later date.Source

  • SSPAI Morning Brief: Withdrawals Over 50,000 Yuan Will No Longer Require Registration

    SSPAI Morning Brief: Withdrawals Over 50,000 Yuan Will No Longer Require Registration

    Morning Highlights

    1. Withdrawals Over 50,000 Yuan Will No Longer Require Registration
    2. Airbus Issues Emergency Recall for Around 6,000 A320 Aircraft, Rolls Back Software Upgrade
    3. Regulators Reiterate Crackdown on Cryptocurrency Trading
    4. JD.com Announces Jingdou Rule Changes Starting in 2026
    5. Beijing Revises Non-Motor Vehicle Regulations, Special Plates Coming for Delivery and Courier Bikes
    6. Tesla Sells Only 100 Cars in India After Four Months
    7. Rumors You Can Just Glance At

    Withdrawals Over 50,000 Yuan Will No Longer Require Registration

    On November 28, the People’s Bank of China, the National Financial Regulatory Administration, and the China Securities Regulatory Commission jointly released the Measures for the Administration of Customer Due Diligence and the Preservation of Customer Identity Information and Transaction Records by Financial Institutions, which will take effect on January 1, 2026. The Measures serve as one of the supporting regulations for the new Anti-Money Laundering Law that came into effect on January 1 this year. The law reflects a shift in regulatory philosophy from formalistic compliance to a risk-based approach, requiring financial institutions to adopt due diligence measures commensurate with the level of money-laundering risk.

    Compared with the 2022 version, the new version abolishes the former Article 10, which had stated that “when providing cash deposits or withdrawals of over 50,000 yuan in RMB or over 10,000 USD equivalent in foreign currency for individual customers, financial institutions shall identify and verify the customer’s identity and understand and record the source or purpose of funds.” Although the old provision was suspended shortly after publication due to public controversy and never formally took effect, many banks in practice still treated it as a de facto guideline.

    The new version also adds that “for situations involving lower risks of money laundering or terrorist financing, simplified due diligence measures may be taken as appropriate” (§3). Correspondingly, the new rules supplement the simplified due diligence section by specifying that products or services such as “accounts serving only social security or housing provident fund functions, and policy-based or mandatory insurance products” may be considered low-risk factors when assessing the risk of money laundering or terrorist financing (§29).

    However, the new version tightens requirements for one-off financial services such as cash remittance, cash exchange, bill redemption, physical precious metals trading, and the sale of financial products. For any such transaction amounting to over 50,000 yuan in RMB or over 10,000 USD equivalent, financial institutions must retain copies or images of valid identity documents (§9). The previous version required this only for customers who did not hold an account at the institution.

    In recent years, banks excessively questioning customers about the purpose of deposits or withdrawals has repeatedly sparked public concern. For example, on November 11 this year, CCTV reported that at a China Construction Bank branch in Dongying, Shandong, a lawyer attempting to withdraw 40,000 yuan was aggressively interrogated by the teller about the purpose of the withdrawal and the reasons for previous incoming transfers. When he challenged the questioning, bank staff threatened to call the police. The lawyer ultimately abandoned the withdrawal and left. Similarly, on November 28, 2024, a customer at an Agricultural Bank of China branch in Shenyang attempted to withdraw 5,000 yuan but was told that her husband must be present to prove their marital relationship.

    Airbus Issues Emergency Recall for Around 6,000 A320 Aircraft, Rolls Back Software Upgrade

    According to Reuters, on November 28, Airbus issued an emergency directive requiring the immediate recall and repair of roughly 6,000 A320-series aircraft worldwide (including the A319, A320, and A321)—more than half of all such aircraft currently in service globally. The large-scale recall stems from the investigation of a recent flight incident, in which technicians discovered that intense solar radiation could corrupt critical flight-control system data, creating a safety hazard. Both the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) and the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), the primary certification bodies, have issued emergency airworthiness directives mandating that affected aircraft be grounded until repairs are completed.

    The safety risk traces back to a JetBlue incident on October 30 of this year. During a flight from Cancún to New Jersey, the aircraft suddenly lost altitude, injuring passengers, before making an emergency landing in Florida. Investigations revealed that strong solar flare activity had interfered with the aircraft’s Elevators and Ailerons Computer (ELAC), causing an abrupt uncommanded descent. The current fix involves rolling the software back to an earlier version, requiring about two hours per aircraft. However, industry sources indicate that more than 1,000 aircraft may require more complex hardware replacements.

    This incident marks one of the largest recalls in Airbus’s 55-year history and comes during peak holiday travel in Europe and the United States, already straining global airline capacity. Major carriers—including American Airlines, Lufthansa, Air France, and Air New Zealand—have begun grounding affected aircraft for inspection, resulting in delays and cancellations. Analysts note that widespread labor shortages and tight aircraft availability in the aviation maintenance sector make such rapid, large-scale unplanned repairs extremely challenging.

    The A320 family recently surpassed the Boeing 737 to become the most-delivered commercial jet in history and remains a core workhorse of China’s civil aviation fleet. Chinese airlines operate large A320 fleets, and Airbus maintains a final assembly line in Tianjin. Although no detailed information has been released regarding how many domestic aircraft are affected, the high number of A320s in China suggests there may be downstream impacts on flight scheduling.

    Regulators Reiterate Crackdown on Cryptocurrency Trading

    According to Caixin, on November 28, the People’s Bank of China convened a meeting of the joint working mechanism for cracking down on cryptocurrency trading and speculation, attended by leaders from fourteen government ministries.

    The meeting emphasized that cryptocurrencies do not possess the same legal status as fiat currency, lack legal tender attributes, and must not—and cannot—be used as currency in the market. Activities related to cryptocurrencies constitute illegal financial activities. Stablecoins are a form of cryptocurrency and currently cannot meet requirements in areas such as customer identification and anti-money laundering. They carry risks of being used for illegal activities such as money laundering, fundraising fraud, and unlawful cross-border capital transfers.

    The meeting noted that recently, influenced by various factors, speculative cryptocurrency trading has resurged, and related illegal activities continue to occur, presenting new risks and challenges for regulatory oversight. Officials called for continued adherence to prohibitive policies on cryptocurrencies and sustained crackdowns on illegal financial activities involving digital assets.

    Previously, on September 24, 2021, the People’s Bank of China and nine other agencies jointly issued the Notice on Further Preventing and Handling the Risks of Cryptocurrency Trading and Speculation, which clearly stated that cryptocurrencies do not have the same legal status as fiat currency. Activities related to cryptocurrencies—including overseas crypto exchanges providing services to Chinese residents via the internet—are considered illegal financial activities. Any legal entity, organization, or individual engaging in cryptocurrency investment or derivatives trading in violation of public order and good customs will have the related civil acts deemed invalid, and associated losses must be borne by the parties themselves. Activities suspected of disrupting financial order or endangering financial security are subject to investigation and punishment by relevant authorities.

    Since July this year, cities including Shenzhen, Beijing, Suzhou, and regions such as Zhejiang have issued frequent risk alerts, warning the public against illegal fundraising and scams disguised under new concepts such as stablecoins and crypto assets. Regulators have repeatedly stated their intention to continue cracking down on cryptocurrency trading.

    JD.com Announces Jingdou Rule Changes Starting in 2026

    On November 28, JD.com announced that it will adjust the rules for “JD Beans” starting at 00:00 on January 1, 2026. JD Beans are reward points given to users based on their shopping, reviews, posts, and other activities on the platform. The program was launched in October 2013. When making purchases, 100 JD Beans can be used to offset 1 RMB, but the deduction cannot exceed 50% of the order’s settlement amount.

    Under the new rules, the validity period of JD Beans will be shortened—from the current “valid until the end of the next calendar year” to a maximum of 180 days. Specifically, JD Beans earned through regular shopping, reviews, and posting photos will each have a validity period of 180 days. Beans earned through specific promotional events will have a validity period ranging from 1 to 180 days, depending on the event’s stated rules. If an order is canceled or returned after sale and the JD Beans used for deduction have already expired, they cannot be restored. Before the new validity policy takes effect, all existing unexpired JD Beans will retain their original validity period.

    Beijing Revises Non-Motor Vehicle Regulations, Special Plates Coming for Delivery and Courier Bikes

    On November 28, the Standing Committee of the Beijing Municipal People’s Congress voted to approve the newly revised Beijing Non-Motorized Vehicle Management Regulations, which will take effect on May 1, 2026. This marks the first revision of the regulations in seven years.

    The full text of the new regulations has not yet been released. According to media reports, the revision clarifies the categories of non-motorized vehicles permitted on the road, prohibits scooters and balance boards from road use, and emphasizes that no competitive or large-scale cycling activities may occupy public roads without approval. The age limit for minors riding as passengers on electric bicycles has been adjusted from under 12 to under 16 years old, and both riders and passengers are required to wear helmets. The regulations also specify rules for greenways and riverside walking paths.

    Regarding parking, the new regulations stipulate that parking facilities for non-motorized vehicles should primarily be built as supporting facilities, supplemented by independent construction and temporary setups. Where existing facilities are insufficient, they must be expanded or temporary parking zones must be established, and entities are encouraged to open internal parking facilities to the public. The regulations also include charging and battery-swap facilities within infrastructure planning and, in line with recently revised fire safety regulations, further emphasize the prohibition on bringing electric bicycle batteries into residential buildings.

    The new regulations require electric bicycles used for internet-based rental services or for delivery work in courier and food-delivery sectors to be issued special license plates. Internet-rental e-bikes are brought under industry regulation. The revision also clarifies the responsible regulatory departments for new business models. Courier companies, e-commerce platform operators, and other relevant businesses that rely on non-motorized vehicles for delivery services must fulfill safety management obligations and optimize algorithmic rules as required.

    Tesla Sells Only 100 Cars in India After Four Months

    According to BBC, dealership data shows that since Tesla’s high-profile entry into the Indian market this July, the company has sold only around 100 cars. Of the roughly 600 orders received before mid-September, the actual delivery conversion rate was extremely low. Due to steep import duties, Tesla’s entry-level models cost more than 6 million rupees (about 474,500 RMB) in India, far higher than the roughly 2.2 million rupees (about 174,000 RMB) price point of mainstream local EVs.

    Despite the weak start, Tesla recently opened its largest sales and service center in India, located in the northern city of Gurugram. The company also appointed a new head of India operations and introduced a three-pronged strategy focused on increasing EV adoption, expanding the charging network, and improving customer experience. In response to concerns over the high prices, the new executive said that although models like the Model Y require a larger upfront investment, owners can save about 2 million rupees (around 158,200 RMB) over four years through reduced fuel and maintenance costs, and that over-the-air software updates will further lower the total cost of ownership throughout the vehicle’s life cycle.

    Tesla faces additional challenges in India. Currently, EVs account for less than 3% of total passenger car sales, and the country has only around 25,000 public chargers, indicating severe infrastructure gaps. Meanwhile, competitors such as BYD, BMW, and Mercedes-Benz have recently posted strong sales thanks to festival-season demand and tax incentives. Although the Indian government introduced an incentive policy last March aimed at encouraging global automakers to localize production, Elon Musk continues to favor a light-asset strategy centered on imports.

    Beyond India, Tesla’s global performance has also come under pressure. Due to rising tariffs and increased R&D spending, Tesla’s third-quarter profit fell 37% year-over-year. While quarterly revenue hit a new high, Tesla is facing slowing demand in its core mature markets of Europe, China, and the United States.

    Rumors You Can Just Glance At

    • According to X user Tibor, the ChatGPT Android app (version 1.2025.329 beta) contains multiple code references related to advertising features, including mentions of “bazaar content,” “search ad,” and “search ads carousel” placements.
    • According to Caixin, citing several Baidu employees, multiple departments across Baidu’s business lines began layoffs last week, with layoff ratios ranging from 10% to 25%, and some departments nearing 30%. This marks the company’s largest round of layoffs in recent years, exceeding typical year-end adjustments. With signing compensation included, severance packages can reach up to N+3.5 (years of service plus 3.5 months of salary). Many employees believe that the internal adoption of AI tools and the business-model shifts brought by AI are key drivers behind this round of layoffs.
    • According to The New York Times, despite inflationary pressures and economic uncertainty, U.S. consumers demonstrated strong purchasing power during Black Friday 2025, with online spending hitting record highs. Adobe Analytics data shows that online spending on Friday reached $11.8 billion, a 9.1% increase over last year; Thanksgiving Day online spending reached $6.4 billion. According to Mastercard SpendingPulse, online sales jumped 10.4%, while brick-and-mortar retail saw a modest 1.7% increase. Apparel and jewelry were among the hottest categories. However, consumer behavior showed clear signs of caution and polarization, with shoppers placing more emphasis on cost-effectiveness. Additionally, roughly half of total U.S. consumer spending came from the top 10% of households by income, partially masking the consumption downgrade among lower-income groups.