China EV market share hits 27 percent as tax breaks extended

PLUS: Indonesia's digital success under the radar; Singapore picks Google AI; India claims streaming record

Asia In Brief China's State Council last week announced an extension of tax breaks for vehicles powered by alternative energy.

China is already the world's largest market for electric vehicles, according to the International Energy Agency, which asserts it accounts for 60 percent of sales.

The State Council cited data from the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers to the effect that 2.291 million alternative energy vehicles rolled off local production lines from January to April 2023, producing 2.222 million sales and leading to EV market share of 27 percent.

Tesla, by contrast, shipped 1.369 million cars – globally – in all of 2022.

Indonesia an underrated digital performer, says think tank

Indonesia's digital successes aren't getting the attention they're due, according to Australian think tank The Lowy Institute.

In a June 1 post, research fellow Hilman Palaon wrote "Unlike India and China, Indonesia did not have the benefit of an already established tech sector, an especially dynamic business tradition more generally, or leading universities and technical research institutes.

"But in the digital age, Indonesia is thriving – offering potential lessons for other countries that find themselves in a similar starting position."

Palaon argues that e-commerce player Bukalapak and superapp GOTO have done well by offering services in local languages and making their apps more accessible to local users than those from Amazon and Alibaba. That success has helped to spark an outsized startup sector.

He also praised government digital services.

"To be sure, Indonesia still faces significant challenges," he added. "Internet speed and access remain an issue."

"But the progress Indonesia has made, especially its success with locally developed solutions, and where it goes next warrant more attention."

China calls for AI regulation

China has signaled a need for greater regulation of AI in the name of national security.

State-controlled media report that Xi Jinping last week presided over a meeting of China's National Security Commission that decided "It is imperative to maintain political security, improve security governance of network data and artificial intelligence" and more.

The mention of AI is notable, as China has a policy to use it widely. Recent proliferation of AI – especially generative AI that often produces inaccurate results – appears to have earned some disapproving attention from Beijing.

Singapore's central bank picks Google for AI

The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), the nation's central bank, will work with Google Cloud to collaborate on generative artificial intelligence solutions "that are grounded on responsible AI practices."

The two orgs will collaborate on "identifying potential use cases, conducting technical pilots, and co-creating solutions in responsible generative AI for MAS's internal and industry-facing digital services."

India's Jio Cinema claims streaming world record

Indian video-streaming outfit Jio Cinema last week claimed a world record audience for a live-streamed program, after 32 million tuned in for the final of the Indian Premier League cricket tournament.

The Register mentioned that figure to a YouTube staffer, who did not dispute Jio Cinema's claim to hold the record.

In other news …

Our regional coverage from last week included news that cyber espionage group Dark Pink attacked targets in Thailand and Vietnam, according to Singaporean infosec researchers Group-IB. Also in Singapore, the sovereign wealth fund Temasek revealed it cut the compensation of staff who decided to invest in collapsed and disgraced crypto exchange FTX.

Malaysia's government indicated it's open to Huawei having a presence on local networks.

North Korea tried to launch a surveillance satellite, prompting South Korea and the US to call out the role a cyber gang dubbed Kimsuky plays in the North's tech-swiping efforts.

Australia authorities fined a pair of tech companies for abusing skilled worker visas, and underpaying IT staff who hold them.

An Indian official was fined after draining a reservoir to find his phone.

Rackspace's datacenter services in Sydney and Hong Kong experienced a 12-hour outage.

Taiwan's Computex conference dominated regional news, with stories including:

And for a little light relief, we looked at Air New Zealand's reasons for weighing international passengers. ®

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