SSPAI

Tag: BYD

  • SSPAI Morning Brief: Clicks launches the Power Keyboard and Communicator phone

    SSPAI Morning Brief: Clicks launches the Power Keyboard and Communicator phone

    Morning Brief

    1. Clicks launches the Power Keyboard and Communicator phone
    2. Pebble releases the Round 2 watch
    3. DeepSeek publishes a paper introducing the efficient training technique mHC
    4. ASUS notifies channels of price increases starting today
    5. A new batch of works enters the public domain
    6. BYD surpasses Tesla to become the world’s top EV seller in 2025
    7. Rumors You Can Just Glance At

    Clicks launches the Power Keyboard and Communicator phone

    On January 2, tech startup Clicks Technology unveiled its first batch of new products following its physical keyboard cases.

    Among them, the Clicks Communicator phone is positioned as a “modern communication companion,” with a role similar to that of a Kindle alongside an iPad, intended primarily as a user’s secondary phone. The device runs Android, features a candybar design, and comes with a 4-inch display and a full physical keyboard. It weighs 170 grams and measures 12 mm thick. To reduce information overload, the system interface is deeply customized based on Niagara Launcher, abandoning the traditional app grid in favor of a minimalist message aggregation center. In terms of hardware, the Communicator is equipped with a 50-megapixel rear camera and a 24-megapixel front camera, while retaining a 3.5 mm headphone jack, a mute switch, and a MicroSD card slot. A signal-light button on the side changes color according to notification type. The device is powered by a 4000 mAh battery. Details about the processor and storage have not been disclosed. The Communicator starts at $499 (approximately RMB 3,487), with an early-bird pre-order price of $399, and is expected to ship later this year.

    The other new product, the Clicks Power Keyboard, is a two-in-one device combining a Bluetooth keyboard and a power bank. It supports MagSafe and Qi2 wireless charging standards and can magnetically attach to the back of a phone. The keyboard features a sliding design and, in addition to serving as a physical keyboard for phones, can connect via Bluetooth 5.4 to up to three devices such as tablets and smart TVs. The Power Keyboard weighs 180 grams, is 15.2 mm thick, and has a battery capacity of 2150 mAh, of which 500 mAh is allocated specifically for keyboard use. The product is priced at $109 (approximately RMB 790), with an early-bird price of $79, and will officially go on sale this spring.

    Pebble releases the Round 2 watch

    On January 2, smartwatch brand Pebble announced the Pebble Round 2. As part of the brand’s reboot plan, the Round 2 is a revival of the Pebble Time Round released in 2015, aiming to recreate the classic circular design that was once known as the “thinnest in the industry,” now updated with more modern technology.

    In terms of hardware design, the Pebble Round 2 addresses one of the biggest drawbacks of the original model—its overly wide bezels. While retaining an ultra-thin 8.1 mm stainless steel case, the new model features a 1.3-inch color e-ink display with a pixel density doubled from the previous generation to 283 ppi, along with backlight support. The Round 2 keeps physical side buttons, allowing users to rely on tactile, eyes-free operation in scenarios such as meetings.

    To achieve a battery life of 10 to 14 days, the Pebble Round 2 makes clear trade-offs in functionality. It retains only basic health features such as step counting and sleep tracking, and does not include a heart rate sensor, making it unsuitable as a dedicated fitness-tracking device. On the software side, it runs the open-source Pebble OS and is compatible with thousands of watch faces and apps. A built-in microphone supports voice input and replies, but due to limitations imposed by Apple’s system, this feature currently mainly targets Android users, with iOS support set to roll out first in the EU. Previously, Pebble released a low-cost AI smart ring with recording and transcription capabilities, and the company has stated that it plans to bring similar AI features to its watches in the future.

    The product is priced at $199 (approximately RMB 1,390) and is now available for pre-order on the official website, with shipments expected in May this year. For customers who previously pre-ordered the square-faced Pebble Time 2, the company is also offering the option to switch their reservation to the Round 2 while retaining their place in the queue.

    DeepSeek publishes a paper introducing the efficient training technique mHC

    On January 1, DeepSeek released a technical paper co-authored by its founder Liang Wenfeng, proposing a new deep learning architecture called “Manifold-Constrained Hyper-Connections” (mHC). The research aims to optimize computational efficiency, enabling larger-scale models to be trained at lower cost in environments with limited computing resources.

    The mHC technique is a further refinement of the “Hyper-Connections” architecture. Hyper-Connections were originally proposed by researchers at ByteDance in September 2024, with the goal of improving upon the mainstream ResNet (Residual Network) architecture invented by He Kaiming and others at Microsoft Research Asia. The approach was designed to address signal attenuation in deep networks—where information gradually weakens as it propagates through layers, preventing deeper layers from receiving effective signals—as well as model collapse, in which different inputs become increasingly similar or even converge after successive layers of processing.

    The DeepSeek team points out that while ByteDance’s approach increased network complexity, it overlooked the rapidly rising memory costs in large-model training, resulting in limited real-world scalability. In response, DeepSeek’s mHC approach introduces specific manifold constraints that force data flows to operate only along certain geometric trajectories (manifolds). This preserves the advantages of hyper-connections while successfully addressing memory and cost bottlenecks, achieving what the paper describes as “almost negligible computational overhead.” According to the paper, the DeepSeek research team conducted experiments on models with 3 billion, 9 billion, and 27 billion parameters, and the empirical results show that mHC offers better scalability than traditional architectures while maintaining stability during large-scale training.

    The paper was uploaded to arXiv under Liang Wenfeng’s personal account. Previously, Liang had personally published only DeepSeek’s most important technical papers, such as those related to the R1 and V3 models, and in this work he is listed as the final author. This move confirms that he remains deeply involved in core research and development, and is widely seen as a signal that the technical direction for DeepSeek’s next-generation core models has been set. Market expectations suggest that DeepSeek may follow the R1 release strategy and unveil a new large model before the Lunar New Year holiday in mid-February.

    ASUS notifies channels of price increases starting today

    According to VideoCardz, ASUS sent a “2026 Product Price Adjustment Notice” to its partners on December 30 last year, announcing that price adjustments will take effect starting January 5, 2026.

    The notice states that due to structural volatility in the global supply chain, multiple key components are facing severe cost pressures, particularly DRAM and NAND memory. These changes stem from “adjustments in global foundry capacity allocation,” “rising investment costs in advanced process nodes,” and “structural gaps in the industry caused by demand for AI computing power.”

    Although ASUS did not specify which models would be affected, it clearly stated that it would implement “strategic price adjustments for certain product portfolios.” As the effective date of the price increase comes just ahead of the opening of CES 2026, industry analysts believe that ASUS’s upcoming next-generation hardware—especially AI PCs and gaming devices expected to be unveiled at CES—will be the first to be impacted, potentially setting new market price benchmarks.

    ASUS emphasized that the adjustment is a “necessary decision made after long-term absorption of and responses to cost pressures,” with the goal of “ensuring stable supply and maintaining quality and service standards.” Regarding subsequent impacts, ASUS business representatives will proactively contact partners to provide detailed explanations and assist in planning the most appropriate response strategies or configuration recommendations.

    ASUS’s public relations department has confirmed the authenticity of the document, while clarifying to the media that it is an internal commercial communication intended solely for channel partners, rather than an official press release issued to the public.

    A new batch of works enters the public domain

    On January 1, 2026, the world marked its annual milestone for copyright expiration. Works by renowned figures such as Freud, Einstein, and Toynbee entered the public domain across jurisdictions including the United States, Europe, and China.

    In the United States, with the expiration of copyright protection for works published in 1930, books such as William Faulkner’s As I Lay Dying and Sigmund Freud’s Civilization and Its Discontents, as well as films like All Quiet on the Western Front, entered the public domain. Paintings by Piet Mondrian and Paul Klee, the original “Betty Boop” doll, and Disney’s earliest depiction of Pluto (then known as Rover) are also no longer subject to copyright restrictions, making derivative creations based on these early materials possible.

    In jurisdictions that apply a copyright term of “the author’s lifetime plus 70 years,” such as the European Union, the United Kingdom, and Russia, works by authors who died in 1955 have now reached the end of their protection period. This means that works by physicist Albert Einstein, Dale Carnegie—the author of How to Win Friends and Influence People—and Nobel Prize–winning writer Thomas Mann are no longer protected by copyright in these regions.

    In jurisdictions that apply a copyright term of “the author’s lifetime plus 50 years,” including China and most parts of Asia and Africa, works by authors who died in 1975 have reached the end of their protection period. This includes figures such as Chiang Kai-shek, historian Arnold J. Toynbee, Soviet composer Dmitri Shostakovich, and political philosopher Hannah Arendt.

    BYD surpasses Tesla to become the world’s top EV seller in 2025

    According to The New York Times, Tesla lost its position as the world’s largest electric vehicle manufacturer in 2025, being surpassed by BYD for the first time. Data released on December 31 show that Tesla’s annual deliveries fell 9% year on year to 1.64 million vehicles, with fourth-quarter sales plunging 16% due to policy impacts. In contrast, BYD’s annual sales of pure electric vehicles rose 28% to 2.26 million units, and the company achieved significant expansion across Asia, Europe, and Latin America thanks to its pricing advantage.

    Tesla’s sales decline was primarily driven by a sharp shift in U.S. policy. Despite Elon Musk’s strong support for Donald Trump in the 2024 election, after Republicans regained control of the White House and Congress, they swiftly repealed the federal EV tax credit of up to $7,500 and began rolling back clean air regulations. As the dominant player holding about 45% of the U.S. EV market, Tesla became the biggest casualty of these policy changes, with fourth-quarter deliveries dropping sharply from 496,000 a year earlier to 418,000 units.

    Beyond the deteriorating external environment, Tesla’s own lagging product updates were also a key factor. Its flagship Model Y has seen no major refresh since its launch in 2020, while the newly introduced Cybertruck has delivered disappointing sales. In the European market, Tesla’s sales have already been overtaken by Volkswagen. In addition, Musk has shifted the company’s focus toward robotaxis and humanoid robots, which have yet to generate meaningful revenue, and Tesla has fallen behind Alphabet-owned Waymo in the deployment of autonomous driving.

    Industry analysts predict that the U.S. EV market will remain sluggish in 2026, with a recovery unlikely until 2027, when more low-cost models priced below $30,000 enter the market. Despite weak vehicle sales, Tesla’s stock price remains near historical highs, as Wall Street continues to bet on its long-term potential in autonomous driving. Meanwhile, although BYD is unable to enter the U.S. market due to high tariff barriers, it has firmly established its leadership in the rest of the world.

    Rumors You Can Just Glance At

    • Recently, multiple Reddit users complained that Duolingo was displaying subscription ads through its real-time events feature, a practice prohibited by App Store review guidelines and one that could potentially lead to removal from the store. Duolingo later appeared to have stopped showing the ads.
    • According to official data from Stack Overflow, the site added only 3,862 new questions in December 2025, a figure that has fallen below the level seen in August 2008, shortly after the platform’s launch.
    • Internal Meta documents reviewed by Reuters show that in response to pressure from global regulators cracking down on scam ads on social media, Meta developed a set of countermeasures known as the “Global Playbook.” The documents reveal that rather than fully verifying advertisers’ identities or eliminating scams, Meta made it harder for regulators to discover violating ads by manipulating search results in order to pass compliance reviews. For example, in Japan, Meta teams found that regulators searched public ad libraries using specific keywords such as celebrity names to identify scam ads. Ahead of regulatory reviews, Meta selectively cleaned up search results related to those keywords, creating the impression that scam ads had been significantly reduced. In addition, when regulation was tightened in one region, algorithms would automatically divert scam ad traffic to other regions with looser oversight. Previously, Meta had faced tough questioning from governments in Japan, Singapore, and elsewhere over the proliferation of investment scams and AI-generated fake celebrity endorsement ads on Facebook and Instagram.
    • On the evening of January 3, Lei Jun revealed during a New Year livestream that Xiaomi’s original vehicle delivery target for 2025 had been set at 300,000 units, later raised to 350,000, and ultimately surpassed 410,000 units. He also announced that Xiaomi’s vehicle delivery target for 2026 is 550,000 units. During the four-hour livestream, Lei Jun and his engineering team completely disassembled a YU7. After the teardown, Lei Jun addressed a series of recent public controversies surrounding Xiaomi Auto. Regarding marketing claims such as “1,300 kilometers on a single charge” and “instant braking from 200 km/h,” Lei Jun said these statements originated from driving demonstration videos meant to showcase the SU7’s range and braking performance, with full videos available as evidence, but were taken out of context during dissemination. He also acknowledged that “fine-print marketing” is a bad industry practice, accepted the criticism, and said that since November last year he has required business teams to use larger, clearer text whenever possible.
  • SSPAI Morning Brief: Market Regulator Drafts Compliance Guidelines to Curb “Selling Cars at a Loss”

    SSPAI Morning Brief: Market Regulator Drafts Compliance Guidelines to Curb “Selling Cars at a Loss”

    Morning Brief

    1. Market regulator drafts compliance guidelines to curb “selling cars at a loss”
    2. Motion-sensing game console Nex Playground gains popularity in the U.S.
    3. Musk seeks evidence from Alipay in lawsuit accusing Apple of monopoly practices
    4. OpenAI begins selling physical merchandise
    5. Central authorities signal continuation of national subsidies next year, with policies to be optimized
    6. Doubao mobile assistant clarifies it cannot capture screenshots of banking keyboards
    7. Rumors You Can Just Glance At

    Market regulator drafts compliance guidelines to curb “selling cars at a loss”

    On December 12, China’s State Administration for Market Regulation (SAMR) released the Automobile Industry Price Conduct Compliance Guidelines (Draft for Public Comment) and opened it for public feedback. The document emphasizes that automobile manufacturers and dealers that “sell cars at a loss” through various means will face significant legal risks.

    The Guidelines first detail pricing conduct requirements for automobile manufacturers, calling for: the establishment of end-to-end pricing management systems covering vehicle sales and financial services; clear and transparent rebate policies that respect dealers’ independent pricing rights; prohibitions on price collusion, below-cost sales aimed at excluding competitors, and price discrimination; and requirements that “paid unlock” features disclose free-use periods and fee standards to protect consumers’ right to be informed.

    The Guidelines also specify pricing conduct requirements for automobile dealers, including: clear price marking and strict separation of vehicle prices from sales service fees; standardized promotions; bans on deceptive pricing, false reference prices, and failure to honor pricing commitments; encouragement for platforms to provide two-way alerts for conspicuously low prices; and strict prohibitions on charging without providing services, duplicate charges, and passing on improper fees.

    In addition, the Guidelines encourage companies to establish internal compliance management systems covering price decision-making, contract management, internal oversight, and risk prevention, so as to prevent pricing violations at the source.

    In response, automakers such as Changan Automobile, BYD, BAIC Group, and XPeng have successively stated their support and indicated they will actively comply with the Guidelines.

    Since the beginning of this year, regulators have continued to roll out measures to curb “involution” in the auto industry. In March, a senior official at the National Development and Reform Commission criticized disorderly competition in the car market, noting that some companies were sacrificing profits to grab market share, and pledged efforts to rectify market chaos and regulate competition. In May, an official from the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology said oversight of involution-style competition would be intensified. In June, under regulatory guidance, automakers committed to shortening supplier payment terms to 60 days; in September, the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers further issued initiatives to standardize practices.

    Motion-sensing game console Nex Playground gains popularity in the U.S.

    According to The Wall Street Journal, during the 2025 U.S. holiday shopping season, a motion-sensing game console called Nex Playground unexpectedly emerged as a market “dark horse.” Launched by Silicon Valley startup Nex, Nex Playground topped Amazon’s Toys & Games rankings during Black Friday and sold out at brick-and-mortar retailers such as Walmart and Target. Data shows that its single-week sales surpassed Microsoft’s Xbox, trailing only Sony’s PS5 and Nintendo’s Switch 2, ranking third in overall U.S. game hardware sales.

    Priced at $249 (approximately RMB 1,757), Nex Playground’s core appeal lies in completely abandoning traditional controllers in favor of capturing player movements via built-in cameras and AI-powered computer vision. Unlike conventional consoles, the product targets family and parent–child scenarios, encouraging kids to “get moving” in the living room rather than slumping on the couch—an approach that has resonated strongly with parents. In addition, Nex secured the IP licensing rights to Bluey, a children’s animated series with exceptionally high viewership on streaming platforms, which became a key driver behind the surge in sales.

    Nex’s success stems from a high-risk business pivot. The company originally started by developing an AI basketball training app and once received investment from NBA star Steve Nash. After recognizing the market ceiling of a single sports-focused app, the team leveraged its core vision technology to first pivot into AR game development, and then crossed over into the supply-chain-intensive hardware sector, aiming to fill the gap left by the discontinuation of the Nintendo Wii in the motion-gaming market.

    The commercial returns from this transformation have been striking. Two years ago, the device sold only 5,000 units; this year, sales during Black Friday and Cyber Monday surpassed 300,000 units, with full-year sales projected to reach 600,000. Company revenue is expected to grow from roughly $3 million annually to $150 million, with profitability anticipated for the first time.

    Musk seeks evidence from Alipay in lawsuit accusing Apple of monopoly practices

    According to 9to5Mac, newly disclosed court filings show that in xAI’s antitrust lawsuit against Apple and OpenAI, Elon Musk’s company sought documentary evidence from foreign tech firms including China’s Alipay and South Korea’s Kakao. The aim is to argue that Apple preserves its iPhone hardware monopoly and high pricing by restricting the growth of “super apps.”

    In the case, xAI alleges that Apple not only entered into exclusive agreements with OpenAI and suppressed the visibility of competitors such as Grok in the App Store, but also used ecosystem rules to block “super apps” that integrate instant messaging, payments, transportation, and e-commerce. Musk’s team contends that such apps reduce users’ dependence on a specific operating system, making it easier for consumers to switch from iPhones to other brands, and are therefore deliberately constrained by Apple.

    Under evidence-gathering requests sent to judicial authorities in China and South Korea pursuant to the 1970 Hague Evidence Convention, xAI asked Alipay and KakaoTalk to provide their App Store ranking histories, revenue data, and internal strategic assessments on “how super apps affect users’ willingness to switch smartphones.” Under the Hague Convention, judicial authorities in one contracting state may request evidence from the competent authority of another contracting state in civil or commercial matters. xAI is expected to submit similar requests to other leading Asian app developers, including WeChat and Grab.

    Musk has long sought to transform the social platform X (formerly Twitter) into a Western-style “super app” akin to WeChat. While the lawsuit initially appeared to stem from a dispute over Grok’s App Store ranking, the expanding scope of evidence collection suggests the case’s core has clearly shifted toward Musk’s ambitions for an all-in-one app.

    OpenAI begins selling physical merchandise

    According to Business Insider, to mark its 10th anniversary, OpenAI has opened its official merchandise store, OpenAI Supply Co., to the public for the first time. Previously, the store was accessible only to internal employees. After OpenAI shared the store link on X, it quickly sparked a buying frenzy, with most popular sizes of hoodies and T-shirts already sold out.

    The store currently lists 10 items available for purchase, largely themed around OpenAI’s technological vision and geek culture. For example, there is a set of Pokémon-style collectible trading cards featuring models such as Sora 2 and GPT-5, as well as several apparel designs incorporating elements of “artificial general intelligence” (AGI). Beyond the items for sale, the website also showcases a large archive of past merchandise, including hats printed with the “1-800-CHATGPT” phone number and retro designs featuring San Francisco city motifs.

    Central authorities signal continuation of national subsidies next year, with policies to be optimized

    According to Yicai, the Central Economic Work Conference held in Beijing from December 10 to 11 made it clear that next year China will “adhere to demand-driven growth and build a strong domestic market,” and will optimize the implementation of the “Two New” policies.

    The so-called “Two New” policies refer to large-scale equipment upgrades and the trade-in program for consumer goods, the latter of which is commonly known as the “national subsidy.” The conference’s clarification that the “Two New” policies will be optimized in 2026 indicates that national subsidies will continue next year, though with adjustments to specific measures.

    To boost consumption, China issued RMB 150 billion in ultra-long-term special government bonds in 2024 to support consumer goods trade-ins. Given the strong results that year, China doubled the amount in 2025, issuing RMB 300 billion in ultra-long-term special bonds for the same purpose. The 2025 national subsidy program also expanded on the 2024 scope, adding three categories of digital products—smartphones, tablets, and smartwatches/bands—as well as four categories of home appliances, including microwave ovens, water purifiers, dishwashers, and rice cookers.

    Data from the Ministry of Commerce shows that from January to November this year, consumer goods trade-ins drove related product sales exceeding RMB 2.5 trillion, benefiting more than 360 million instances of consumers. Among them, over 11.2 million vehicles were traded in, more than 128.44 million home appliances were replaced, subsidies covered over 90.15 million purchases of phones and other digital products, more than 12.91 million electric bicycles were traded in, and over 120 million home renovation and kitchen/bathroom “refresh” items were upgraded.

    Experts interviewed said that the national subsidy budget in 2026 may see a moderate increase over 2025 levels, with further optimization of funding allocation—potentially expanding into service consumption—to better leverage fiscal spending to stimulate consumption, promote industrial transformation and upgrading, and support economic growth.

    Doubao mobile assistant clarifies it cannot capture screenshots of banking keyboards

    On December 13, in response to recent online claims that the “Doubao Mobile Assistant” exploits special permissions to steal private information such as banking keyboard inputs, the Doubao team issued a statement clarifying that this interpretation is incorrect. The company said the assistant uses the system’s native screenshot APIs and strictly follows Android’s underlying security mechanisms, making it impossible to capture protected interfaces such as those used by banking apps.

    The core of the controversy centers on the use of permissions such as READ_FRAME_BUFFER. Doubao explained that the assistant employs a “virtual screen” technology, running third-party apps within a virtualized environment. While this permission allows reading the graphics buffer for AI inference, on Android, once an app invokes the FLAG_SECURE interface (as is typically the case during sensitive steps like password entry), the system returns black-screen data at the graphics rendering layer for any screenshot or screen-recording request. As a result, even with screen-reading permissions, no actual content can be seen.

    Regarding the CAPTURE_SECURE_VIDEO_OUTPUT permission, Doubao said its practical purpose is to ensure that users can visually view protected pages normally when operating in small-window modes such as the “Dynamic Island,” rather than seeing a completely black screen. This, however, does not change the page’s inherent screenshot-blocking properties.

    Doubao added that the mobile assistant currently operates on a workflow of user command → screenshot upload to the cloud → model feedback. Because the multimodal large models required for interface analysis have massive parameter sizes and are constrained by current mobile chip performance, screenshots must be uploaded to the cloud for processing. The company emphasized that screenshots are taken only when explicitly triggered by user commands, and uploaded data is used solely for real-time visual understanding and reasoning, with no cloud storage after the task is completed.

    The technical preview version of the “Doubao Mobile Assistant” was released on December 1 and preinstalled on the nubia M153 engineering prototype jointly developed by ByteDance and ZTE, which was sold in limited quantities. On December 3, after encountering risk-control restrictions that prevented normal use of WeChat, Doubao removed the assistant’s ability to operate WeChat. On December 5, Doubao announced plans to standardize and adjust certain AI phone-operation capabilities, including—but not limited to—score farming, incentive farming, and scenarios involving financial apps and games.

    Rumors You Can Just Glance At

    • According to Macworld, a leaked internal build of iOS 26 reveals some of Apple’s future development plans. Among them, iOS 26.4—expected to be released in spring 2026—will include a revamped Siri integrated with Apple Intelligence and based on Google’s Gemini model, along with a redesigned Health app interface. The code also indicates Apple is developing a new verification system that checks device integrity before Apple ID sign-in, meaning devices that have been “jailbroken” or otherwise modified without authorization may be unable to access online services such as iCloud. In addition, the Apple TV app may add a “Sports” subscription, and the Freeform app is set to gain folder management features.
    • On the hardware side, AirPods Pro 3 will leverage the built-in U2 ultra-wideband chip to support “outdoor Precision Finding” within the Find My network. Looking further ahead, iOS 27 is expected to improve the Photos app’s “Featured” functionality and AirPods pairing mechanisms, while iOS 28 plans to add sleep-tracking metrics such as “time in bed” for Apple Watch. macOS 28 is also slated to receive the Health app.