BEIJING, Nov. 18, 2025 /PRNewswire/ — From November 15 to 16, the large-scale original stage play Searching for Doolittle, jointly produced by the Publicity Department of the CPC Quzhou Municipal Committee and the China Coal Mine Art Troupe, made its debut in Quzhou. The play is adapted from the historical event of the Doolittle Raid and the rescue of its airmen in 1942.

In April 1942, Lieutenant Colonel James H. Doolittle led a successful air strike on Tokyo. Originally, they planned to return to Quzhou Airfield. Running low on fuel, the pilots were forced to parachute over regions including Hangzhou, Ningbo, and Quzhou in Zhejiang Province, as well as parts of Jiangxi Province. Seventy-five American airmen were rescued by Chinese soldiers and civilians in a courageous effort, hailed as one of the most miraculous rescues of World War II.

Set against the backdrop of this courageous rescue, the play recounts the heroic epic of the people of Quzhou saving the American airmen through the perspectives of kind-hearted local farmers, patriotic students from the National Southwestern Associated University, and civilian laborers who helped to build the airfield.

This year marks the 80^th anniversary of the victory of the Chinese People’s War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression and the World Anti-Fascist War. The premiere of Searching for Doolittle at this significant moment serves not only as an artistic tribute but also as a vibrant effort to tell China’s stories well and promote exchanges and mutual learning between civilizations.

Following its premiere in Quzhou, the play will be further refined and staged in Beijing, Hangzhou, and other cities, bringing this historic chapter to a wider audience, and ensuring that the legacy of China-U.S. people-to-people friendship is passed on to future generations.

BEIJING, Nov. 18, 2025 /PRNewswire/ — On Oct. 17, The Esports Innovation and Communication Seminar, held under the guidance of the China Media Group (CMG) National Institute for Esports Development and hosted by CCTV Animation Group Co., Ltd., concluded in Mudanjiang, Heilongjiang Province. The event brought together leaders from the global esports sector, highlighting China’s growing influence in competitive gaming infrastructure and broader ecosystem growth while offering actionable insights for international operators.

Arthur Lang, CEO of International Business at Singtel, said, “Chinese esports firms are integrating 5G, edge computing, and artificial intelligence to deliver immersive audience experiences unlike any before.” Singtel has partnered with multiple operators across Southeast Asia, adapting Chinese esports deployment models to support cross-border tournaments for titles such as Valorant with under 40 milliseconds of latency.

A representative from Middle Eastern telecom operator Airtel noted that Chinese innovations in 8K UHD live production and AI-driven real-time data analysis are reshaping production standards for esports events. “We have implemented these technical approaches in the Middle Eastern market, raising the performance standard of local tournament broadcasts.”

Beyond technology, the cultural dimension of Chinese esports also drew recognition. According to Singtel’s research in the Asia-Pacific region, esports content featuring traditional Chinese cultural elements has resonated strongly with younger audiences in Southeast Asia. Characters inspired by Wuxia (martial arts heroes) aesthetics and stage designs drawn from Dunhuang murals have become effective touchpoints for cross-cultural dialogue.

Chinese esports also shows distinctive strength in engaging younger demographics. North American operator T-Mobile has adopted strategies from Chinese platforms—such as building esports communities and launching co-branded activities—to strengthen youth participation and belonging. The Head of T-Mobile’s Esports Program commented that Chinese platforms are successfully turning passive viewers into active participants, a model worth examining.

Singtel has outlined plans to expand cooperation with Chinese esports companies to jointly develop new models such as “Esports + Cultural Tourism” and “Esports + Music,” with the goal of delivering more diverse digital entertainment experiences to users worldwide.

Chinese esports, powered by both technological innovation and cultural resonance, is establishing a new benchmark for the global industry. With active involvement from international operators, esports is becoming a key convergence point linking technology with culture, and tradition with modernity, opening a new phase of global collaboration in the digital age. 

New companies, products and partnerships highlight Taiwan’s role in accelerating deep tech 

TAIPEI, Nov. 18, 2025 /PRNewswire/ — Playground Global, the leading deep tech venture capital firm, today announced new companies, innovations, and partnerships across its next-gen compute portfolio — spotlighting Taiwan as the accelerator for the next era of computing. From power and photonics to interconnect and lithography, seven Playground companies shared major milestones at a press conference in Taipei — demonstrating how Taiwan’s ecosystem takes the industry’s most advanced technologies from concept to scale. Playground also co-hosted a dinner with Foxconn Chairman Young Liu as part of the visit, highlighting a shared focus on advancing deep tech in Taiwan and the longevity of Playground and Foxconn’s partnership.

“I’ve been coming to Taiwan for more than 40 years, and every time I’m reminded this is where technology breakthroughs become reality,” said Pat Gelsinger, General Partner at Playground Global. “No ecosystem moves faster from idea to scale. Taiwan’s precision, pace, and deep tech expertise make it the world’s proving ground for the industry’s most ambitious hardware companies — and a critical hub for Playground as we support founders from concept and prototype to production.”

Behind that rapid progress is a deeper transformation, said Peter Barrett, General Partner at Playground Global. “From advancing the fundamentals of how we compute, from giant leaps in EUV lithography to new ways of powering and interconnecting semiconductors, to entirely new architectures for AI and high-performance computing that break with eighty years of convention, and onward to quantum systems and technologies beyond semiconductors, Playground’s portfolio companies underscore a profound truth: we are only at the beginning of the computing revolution.”

Playground Portfolio Companies Announce New Breakthroughs and Partnerships in Taiwan
Across company launches, product unveilings, and collaborations, Playground’s portfolio showcased how deep tech innovations are being built and scaled through Taiwan’s world-class ecosystem.

PowerLattice Technologies –  Company and product launch, new funding 
PowerLattice came out of stealth today with $25 million in funding from Playground to introduce the industry’s first power-delivery chiplet. By bringing power directly into the processor package, PowerLattice delivers the performance and efficiency gains AI systems need to continue scaling — cutting energy use by over 50% and doubling performance. PowerLattice is already sampling with major U.S. customers as it moves toward full-scale deployment.

PicoJool – Company and product launch, new funding
PicoJool, a pioneer in high-performance optical connectivity, emerged from stealth today with $12 million in funding from Playground. PicoJool builds light-speed optical interconnects that replace copper in AI and high-performance computing data centers—cutting power and heat, reducing cost, and unlocking significantly more bandwidth per rack. Based in the U.S., PicoJool manufactures entirely in Taiwan, leveraging the local semiconductor ecosystem to accelerate development and scale. 

Vertical Semiconductor – Product sampling in Taiwan
Backed by $11 million in funding, Vertical Semiconductor is rewriting how power flows through AI data centers. The MIT spinout is developing vertical GaN transistors that deliver more power to AI chips all while cutting heat, shrinking power system footprints, and improving overall performance. Today, Vertical introduced early sampling of its high-efficiency transistors, unlocking smaller, cooler, and more cost-effective power systems for next-generation AI infrastructure.

Ayar Labs – New partnership in Taiwan; Gelsinger joins board
Ayar Labs is redefining AI system design with its breakthrough optical I/O chiplets for co-packaged optics. By using silicon photonics to move data with light instead of electricity, Ayar Labs solution eliminates bandwidth, latency, and power bottlenecks that limit traditional electrical interconnects. Its optical solution delivers 5–10× more bandwidth, 3–5× greater energy efficiency, and 10× lower latency — unlocking entirely new system architectures for next-generation AI and high-performance computing. Yesterday, the company announced a strategic partnership with Global Unichip Corp.(GUC), to integrate CPO into GUC’s advanced ASIC design services. Ayar Labs also announced that Pat Gelsinger has joined its board, strengthening the company’s leadership as it enters its next phase of growth and global integration.

d-Matrix – New partnerships in Taiwan
An AI inference pioneer, d-Matrix is enabling faster, more efficient, and scalable AI with its breakthrough in-memory compute architecture. Its chiplet-based platform overcomes the “memory wall” in generative AI, delivering up to 10× lower latency and 10× greater energy efficiency than GPU-based systems — powering the next generation of high-performance, low-power AI infrastructure. d-Matrix recently raised $275 million in Series C funding, valuing the company at $2 billion and bringing the total raised to date to $450 million. Today, d-Matrix announced a collaboration With Alchip, ASE, and TSMC on the World’s First 3D DRAM Solution to Supercharge AI Inference. 

NextSilicon – Technology debut in Taiwan
NextSilicon is reinventing high-performance computing with its Intelligent Compute Architecture, delivering 10× speedups over traditional GPUs while consuming half the power. Its software-optimized accelerator adapts dynamically to complex workloads, enabling unmatched performance and efficiency across industries from finance to scientific research. Backed by over $300 million in funding, the company today announced in Taiwan its flagship chip, Maverick-2, along with a custom RISC-V CPU core, expanding its reach beyond accelerators.

xLight – Company debut in Taiwan
Backed by over $50 million in funding, xLight is addressing the biggest productivity bottleneck in semiconductor manufacturing: the EUV lithography light source. In its Taiwan introduction, the company shared how it’s developing the world’s most powerful free electron lasers to help foundries boost throughput, improve yield, and reduce costs — delivering up to 5× greater energy efficiency per wafer. xLight is building the next-generation light engines that will double existing fab productivity, and power the fabs of tomorrow.

Playground’s engagement with Taiwan is more than an investment — it’s a shared bet on the future of computing. The combination of Playground’s technical depth and global perspective with Taiwan’s unmatched capabilities in semiconductors, advanced packaging, and precision manufacturing is laying the foundation for the next era of high-performance, sustainable innovation.

About Playground Global
Playground Global is a deep tech venture capital firm with over $1.2 billion under management, backing early-stage startups tackling foundational challenges in next-generation compute, automation, energy transition, and engineered biology. Founded in 2015 and based in Palo Alto, Playground partners closely with technical and scientific founders to turn breakthrough ideas into enduring companies. The firm’s portfolio includes PsiQuantum, MosaicML (acquired by Databricks), d-Matrix, Agility Robotics, Ideon, Ultima Genomics, and Strand Therapeutics. Learn more at www.playground.vc

New Weixin/WeChat Mini Program set to enhance Chinese visitors’ tourism and mobility experience in Singapore

HONG KONG, Nov. 18, 2025 /PRNewswire/ — Tencent Cloud, the cloud business of global technology company Tencent, today announced the expansion of its strategic partnership with Ryde Group Ltd (NYSE American: RYDE) (“Ryde” or the “Company”), a technology leader in mobility and quick commerce in Singapore. This new phase introduces the launch of the Weixin Mini Program in Singapore, building upon the earlier integration of Tencent Cloud Real-Time Communication (TRTC) technology that enhanced in-app communications within the Ryde platform. Weixin is China’s most popular messaging and social platform, known internationally as WeChat.

The newly launched Weixin/WeChat Mini Program aims to elevate accessibility and convenience for Chinese tourists visiting Singapore. Through this feature, users can seamlessly book Ryde rides directly within the Weixin/WeChat ecosystem — eliminating the need for additional app downloads. The interface supports Simplified Chinese, displays fares in RMB, and enables smooth payments via Weixin/WeChat Pay.

This collaboration further strengthens Ryde’s partnership with Tencent Cloud, extending beyond backend infrastructure to introduce user-centric services that harness Weixin/WeChat’s extensive reach. Together, both companies advance their shared vision of improving cross-border mobility, delivering personalized user experiences, and supporting Singapore’s vibrant inbound tourism from China.

Kenneth Siow, Regional Director for Southeast Asia and General Manager for Singapore & Malaysia at Tencent Cloud International, said, “This expanded partnership underscores our firm commitment to deepening digital integration within the Weixin/WeChat ecosystem. It exemplifies Tencent’s dedication to extending Weixin/WeChat Pay and Mini Program solutions beyond China, delivering tangible benefits to overseas markets. We are proud to support Singapore’s inbound tourism by enhancing connectivity and user experience through our Mini Programs.”

Nitin Dolli, CTO at Ryde Group, said, “Partnering with Tencent Cloud strengthens Ryde’s position as a leading local platform collaborating with global technology pioneers to deliver sustainable, scalable mobility solutions. The new Mini Program enhances accessibility for over 3 million Chinese visitors each year, offering a familiar and localized booking experience that aligns with their language and currency preferences. We are excited to build on this collaboration, exploring new opportunities that enhance our competitive edge and reinforce our dedication to creating smarter, more seamless experiences for our users.”

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About Tencent Cloud:

Tencent Cloud, one of the world’s leading cloud companies, is committed to creating innovative solutions to resolve real-world issues and enabling digital transformation for smart industries. Through our extensive global infrastructure, Tencent Cloud provides businesses across the globe with stable and secure industry-leading cloud products and services, leveraging technological advancements such as cloud computing, Big Data analytics, AI, IoT, and network security. It is our constant mission to meet the needs of industries across the board, including the fields of gaming, media and entertainment, finance, healthcare, property, retail, travel, and transportation.

About Ryde Group Ltd:

Ryde, a homegrown super mobility app founded in Singapore, is the world’s FIRST on-demand carpooling app since 2014! As a publicly listed company on the NYSE, we are reimagining the way people and goods move around. We offer a full suite of services, including carpooling, private hire, taxi, and delivery, but what truly sets us apart is our commitment to empower our private-hire and taxi partners. We take 0% commission, ensuring that more of every hard-earned dollar goes to driver-partners on our platform. For

more information, please visit https://rydesharing.com/ to learn more. 

FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS

Statements in this press release about future expectations, plans and prospects, as well as any other statements regarding matters that are not historical facts, may constitute “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of The Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These statements include, but are not limited to, statements relating to the expected trading commencement and closing dates. The words “anticipate,” “believe,” “continue,” “could,” “estimate,” “expect,” “intend,” “may,” “plan,” “potential,” “predict,” “project,” “should,” “target,” “will,” “would” and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements, although not all forward-looking statements contain these identifying words. Actual results may differ materially from those indicated by such forward-looking statements as a result of various important factors. Any forward-looking statements contained in this press release speak only as of the date hereof, and Ryde Group Ltd specifically disclaims any obligation to update any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by law.

Global Energy Transition Seen as Driving Force Reshaping the Economy

BELEM, Brazil, Nov. 18, 2025 /PRNewswire/ — At the 30th Conference of the Parties (COP30) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, Chinese Clean Energy Solution Company Gotion called for stronger global cooperation to accelerate the renewable transition and build a more interconnected clean-energy future.

Delivering a keynote speech titled “Powering a New Era: How the Renewable Revolution is Rewriting the Logic of Global Growth“, Gotion said the energy transition is “not just changing how we produce power — it is redefining what prosperity means in the 21st century. It gives us a once-in-a-century opportunity to rebuild the global economy on a foundation of sustainability and fairness.” They urged governments and industries to work together to turn technological progress into shared opportunity.

Meanwhile renewables are not fragmenting global systems, but connecting them in new and more balanced ways. Gotion noted “We are moving from an age of ‘energy geopolitics’ to an age of ‘energy symbiosis.’ From dependence to interdependence. From competition for resources to collaboration for resilience.” , describing this shift as the emergence of energy symbiosis — an interconnected model that turns energy rivalry into partnership.

As a symbol of renewable energy transformation, the establishment of the Silicon Valley Research Institute in 2014 marked the starting point for Gotion’s internationalization. Following the strategic guideline of “In local, for local”, the company has established Gotion’s global factory in the region of Americas, Asia-Pacific and Europe–Africa. For the past decade, Gotion has consistently adhered to a four-in-one strategy featuring localized supply chain, localized battery recycling,localized marketing, and localized after-sales service. Today, Gotion has made a name for themselves in the global market, it will work together with customers to build a localized and diversified supply chain system characterized by a full value chain.

Slovakia Gotion Gigafactory marks a milestone in Europe–Asia industrial cooperation and the continent’s broader shift toward clean manufacturing. It shows how renewable-driven industries can strengthen supply chains while advancing Europe’s climate ambitions. And in Morocco, Gotion is helping to establish Africa’s first full battery value chain, integrating local resources with global innovation.

From China to Europe to Africa to Middle East to Americas, Gotion initiatives reflect a growing vision of global energy integration — one in which renewable abundance becomes the foundation for sustainable growth and shared prosperity.