Daily Tech Roundup: China’s Chip Fund Gets $47 Billion Boost, SAIC Motor Unveils Solid-State Battery Roadmap

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China is pumping another $47.5 billion into a state-backed chip investment fund to drive development in its semiconductor industry. Photo: VCG

Welcome to the Daily Tech Roundup — a briefing of the top technology news making headlines in China and the rest of Asia.

China piles $47 billion into new chip investment fund

China is pumping another 344 billion yuan ($47.5 billion) into a state-backed semiconductor investment fund to drive its chip industry development amid an escalating technology race with the U.S.

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China invests $47.5 billion in a new semiconductor fund to bolster its chip industry against U.S. restrictions.
Malaysia becomes Southeast Asia’s second-largest auto market, surpassing Thailand, driven by Chinese automakers' support.
SAIC Motor plans to mass-produce solid-state EV batteries by 2026, aiming for commercialization in 2027.

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Who’s Who

Huawei Technologies Co. Ltd.: Huawei Technologies Co. Ltd. is a Chinese tech company affected by U.S. export controls, prompting Beijing to develop its semiconductor industry. The National Integrated Circuit Industry Investment Fund, known as the Big Fund, is a central part of this strategy to counteract these controls.

SenseTime Group Inc.: SenseTime Group Inc. is a leading Chinese artificial intelligence (AI) firm. Co-founder Xu Bing highlighted at the Beyond Expo 2024 that while the U.S. has around 10 times China's computing power in AI, China is swiftly advancing its domestic chip technology and GPU computing power, positioning itself to narrow this gap.

SAIC Motor Corp. Ltd.: SAIC Motor Corp. Ltd. aims to start mass-producing solid-state batteries for electric vehicles by 2026, making it potentially one of the first to commercialize this technology. Their plan includes establishing a production line by 2025, beginning mass production in 2026, and launching battery-equipped models in 2027. The automaker's main partner is QingTao (KunShan) Energy Development Co. Ltd., with whom SAIC has a joint venture and additional investments.

QingTao (KunShan) Energy Development Co. Ltd.: QingTao (KunShan) Energy Development Co. Ltd. is a battery startup that is partnering with SAIC Motor Corp. Ltd. to develop solid-state batteries for electric vehicles. The collaboration aims to establish a solid-state battery production line by 2025, start mass production in 2026, and launch battery-equipped models in 2027. QingTao formed a joint venture with SAIC and received additional investment from the automaker in May 2023.

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