The next generation of designers showcase purposeful and innovative solutions for the modern home.

MANILA, Philippines, June 18, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — American Standard, an industry leader in bathroom solutions and part of LIXIL, announced the Asia-Pacific (APAC) Grand Prize winner for the fourth edition of the American Standard Design Award (ASDA) 2026. The final round of the competition saw first-placed national winners from across the APAC region showcasing multigenerational bathroom designs with fresh perspectives that embodies the theme of ‘Inspiring Everyday Living.’

The competition theme challenged future designers to thoughtfully rethink how residential bathrooms of the future can adapt to shifting everyday living needs. This focus on evolving everyday living inspired strong participation from emerging designers, attracting over 2000 registrants from six countries across the Asia-Pacific region. Entries were judged and advanced through national and regional competition rounds, by a panel of over 20 experts from the architecture, design and sanitary ware industry.

The ASDA Exhibition and Awarding Ceremony, held at the Ayala Museum in Manila, Philippines, brought together the APAC finalists and esteemed judges. As the major highlight, a dedicated exhibition of the winning entries gave guests the exclusive opportunity to view and explore the innovative concepts firsthand. The national winners were immersed in a holistic learning experience by participating in curated cultural heritage and architecture tours, networking with industry pioneers, and attending the exclusive ASDA MasterClass led by Cathy Saldana, Principal and Managing Director of PDP Architects, alongside other esteemed ASDA judges—all underscoring a shared commitment to mentorship and shaping the future of the design industry.

Patricia Danielle Malijan, an undergraduate design student from De La Salle-College of Saint Benilde (Taft) in the Philippines, emerged as the ASDA 2026 APAC Grand Prize Winner with the exceptional entry titled “The Humble Home: Quiet Simplicity“. Inspired by Filipino multi-generational family living, her project utilized thoughtful, intuitive zoning to allow simultaneous use and ease of movement for all age groups. The layout seamlessly integrates essential American Standard solutions—including the EasySet auto temperature mixer—to deliver an inclusive space centered around safety, fluid movement, and everyday ease.”

Sharing her personal journey, Patricia Danielle Malijan stated, “I’m incredibly honored to win the ASDA 2026 APAC Grand Prize, with the incredible support of my ASDA mentors, family, and friends around me. I was inspired to design ‘The Humble Home’ with the American Standard range to create a space for the entire family, from young to old, to enjoy their bathroom me-time in dignity, safety, and convenience. The competition has been personally meaningful as the design process taught me to think out of the box, be persistent and adaptable, and articulate how design relates to real life.”

Antoine Besseyre des Horts, Leader, LIXIL Global Design, Asia, commented, “The ASDA continues to impress the judging panel with the caliber and breadth of regional talent applying their perspectives, to inspire everyday living. We congratulate all the ASDA 2026 winners and finalists, who thoughtfully balanced macro trends like urbanization and well-being with real-life constraints. Their entries demonstrated how to address local customs and sensitivities while embracing inclusiveness to ensure a special sense of belonging for everyone in the household—concretely bringing our belief in life, love, and home to reality. We are proud to support an enriching experience for all ASDA winners and participants through four editions of the ASDA, and look forward to further elevating lifestyles through design.”

The ASDA 2026 regional finalists and first-placed National Winners are:

• Patricia Danielle Malijan – APAC Grand Prize Winner & Philippines National Winner from De La Salle-College of Saint Benilde (Taft)
• Bounpaserth Mienglavanh – Cambodia, Laos, and Myanmar (CLM) National Winner from National University of Laos
• Gabriel Procellia – Indonesia National Winner from Ciputra University
• Jinjuta Chomputsa – Thailand National Winner from Chulalongkorn University
• Nguyen Ngoc Chung – Vietnam National Winner from Hanoi University of Civil Engineering

Each national winner won a cash prize of USD 2,000, and were mentored by their national ASDA judges in their advance to the APAC regional final. The APAC Grand Prize winner was awarded a total cash prize of USD 5,000.

For more information about the ASDA competition and to view the groundbreaking winning designs, please visit the official website at https://asda.americanstandard-apac.com/winners-2026/.

About American Standard

American Standard is the industry leader in bathroom and kitchen products, providing an unmatched legacy of quality and innovation for more than 150 years. American Standard is passionate about improving daily living in ways big and small. From toilet seat innovations to best in class kitchen faucets, American Standard seeks to inspire people to create a home they will love every day. Learn more at americanstandard-apac.com and follow us on LinkedIn.

About LIXIL

LIXIL  (TSE  Code  5938)  makes  pioneering  water  and housing  products  that  solve  every  day,  real-life  challenges,  making better homes  a reality for everyone, everywhere. Drawing on our Japanese heritage, we create world-leading technology and innovate to make high quality products  that  transform  homes.  But  the  LIXIL  difference  is  how  we  do  this;  through  meaningful  design,  an  entrepreneurial  spirit,  a dedication to improving accessibility for all and responsible business growth. Our approach comes to life through industry leading brands, including  INAX,  GROHE,  American  Standard  and  TOSTEM.  Approximately  53,000  colleagues  operating  in  more  than  150  countries  are proud to make products that touch the lives of more than a billion people every day. Learn more at www.lixil.com.

Global initiative targets 5GW of AIDC in desert regions by 2030, unlocking a new model for clean, scalable AI growth. 

PARIS, June 18, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — At VivaTech 2026, Envision announced Mission Gobi, a global initiative to develop 5GW of green AI data center (AIDC) capacity in desert and arid regions by 2030. The initiative reflects Envision’s vision for AI-native energy infrastructure and builds on the company’s AI Power System capabilities already being deployed at scale.

Against the backdrop of Europe’s energy transition, power security and rising electricity demand, Lei Zhang noted that the AI revolution is exposing a new structural bottleneck in energy systems.

“The traditional power system was not designed for the scale and speed of the AI era. Mission Gobi offers a new system-level approach — integrating renewable energy, storage, grid infrastructure and computing to deliver scalable, cost-competitive clean power. Building on our successful partnerships in Europe, we believe it can support Europe’s AI growth, energy security and clean energy transition,” Lei Zhang said.

“Importantly, Mission Gobi is designed as a replicable blueprint. Developing even 1% of global desert and Gobi regions could support terawatt-scale computing capacity at highly competitive cost, helping accelerate the deployment of AI infrastructure worldwide.”

Envision has already begun deploying AI Power Systems at scale. In Chifeng, China, the company operates the world’s first AI data center running entirely on direct green power. In Ulanqab, the Envision Galaxy Campus is being built as the world’s only gigawatt-scale AIDC powered by directly connected renewable energy.

As nations seek to strengthen both AI leadership and energy security, Envision believes AInative power systems can unlock a new era of sustainable growth.

Through Mission Gobi, the company will work with governments, utilities, technology companies, infrastructure investors, and local partners worldwide to accelerate the deployment of clean, intelligent, flexible, and affordable power systems.

Mission Gobi is more than a project. It is a blueprint for powering the Age of Intelligence.

CHANGSHA, China, June 18, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Zoomlion Heavy Industry Science & Technology Co., Ltd. (“Zoomlion”) hosted its seventh Science and Technology Innovation Conference on June 16, showcasing over 130 innovations across AI, intelligent equipment, green technology and high-end manufacturing as the company outlined its R&D priorities to support its global growth strategy.

Themed around AI and global development, the conference serves as Zoomlion’s principal forum for reviewing research progress and recognizing innovation.

Exhibits included the world’s largest-tonnage hybrid mining truck, the world’s tallest aerial work platform at 82 meters, and an industry-first 100kg-class hydrogen-powered drone. A range of intelligent systems were also on display, including remote-operated tower cranes and robots designed for firefighting, levee inspection and humanoid applications.

The exhibits reflected Zoomlion’s continued push toward digital, intelligent and green technologies, a direction the company said will remain central to its next stage of innovation.

“The new technologies, products and systems we are presenting are truly inspiring,” Chairman and CEO Zhan Chunxin said. “In the AI era, we must make full use of AI as a key tool to empower our industries, products and business management, and accelerate Zoomlion’s transition toward a technology-driven, value-growth company.”

That shift is already reflected in Zoomlion’s sales mix, with digital, intelligent and green products accounting for 74.5% of product sales in 2025. The company spends approximately 8% of annual revenue on R&D, a commitment Zhan said had helped it overcome longstanding engineering challenges and would be sustained.

Zhan also outlined an overseas R&D push, directing engineers to conduct localized development and product certification for different regional markets and deploy technical staff to support sales. Zoomlion reported international revenue of 30.5 billion yuan ($4.4 billion) in 2025, roughly 59% of total sales.

The conference recognized 84 science and technology achievements, with awards presented to Zoomlion staff across product, engineering, digital and green technology categories and total bonuses reaching 22 million yuan ($3.3 million). The Future Value Award went to Zoomlion’s industrial technology unit ZValley for its 1.3-meter bipedal humanoid robot project. Two new awards were also introduced to recognize outstanding early-career researchers.

The conference was held at the global Headquarters and Research Building of Zoomlion Smart City. The Smart City’s earthmoving machinery park was named one of China’s first 15 industry-leading smart factories at the 2025 World Intelligent Manufacturing Conference.

HANGZHOU, China, June 18, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — On June 1, the “Grand Tour • 2026 CAA Graduation Season” was inaugurated in Hangzhou. Hosted by the China Academy of Art (CAA), the event spans nine venues across Hangzhou, featuring nearly 3,000 graduation works by 2,888 graduates from 20 academic units.

The 2026 International Youth Art Dialogue series also launched on June 1, comprising three major events: “Mission of Art Education in Light of Global Civilizations — Dialogue among International Art Academy Presidents,” “International Young Artists Dialogue,” and “One Art Boundless Seas — International Youth Art Exhibition.” These brought together deans from over 50 international art academies and young artists from more than 50 countries.

Yu Xuhong, President of CAA, stated that this Graduation Season presents a fully developed academic profile, with significant breakthroughs across professional fields. He emphasized that artistic creation should step out of enclosed spaces, engage face-to-face with the public, and be tested within real social contexts. He noted that Hangzhou itself is an international hub, and CAA’s graduation exhibition has become substantively involved in shaping the new landscape of world art.

Since 2009, CAA has pioneered the public exhibition of graduation works across all majors, setting a precedent among art institutions. In 2019, the exhibition expanded beyond campus into the city of Hangzhou, establishing the most influential graduation season in China.

This year’s theme, “Grand Tour,” reflects a practice of personally engaging with the world. On the road, mountains and rivers become the classroom; only by traveling thousands of miles can one grasp the transformations of past and present. The Grand Tour has evolved into a rite of passage—young minds inscribe themselves into history through walking and understand culture through seeing.

The opening ceremony on June 1 featured a thematic performance and fashion show, integrating screens with physical structures. A specially composed theme song, “Grand Tour,” responded to the ideals and passions of youth, while nearly 140 ready-to-wear outfits were showcased.

The International Youth Art Dialogue, infused with the spirit of the “Grand Tour,” weaves together teaching, creation, research, and exhibition. It serves as an open platform where young artists and educators from around the world gather to envision the future of art education and cross-cultural exchange.

In an age of uncertainty, the value of art lies in its ability to navigate through change, connect hearts, and establish direction amidst turbulence. The graduation exhibition of CAA remains a cultural event open to society—a spiritual manifesto for the youth of this era. May the young take mountains and rivers as their stage, and journey forth into the great odyssey of their youth.

The exhibition runs until June 21.

HSINCHU, June 18, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — In response to the rapid development of the humanoid robot, dexterous hand, and smart robot markets, Artery Technology announces the addition of a BGA100 package option to its high-performance AT32F435/437 MCU series, further expanding its product portfolio. The new BGA100 package measures only 7×7 mm. While maintaining high-performance computing capabilities and rich peripheral resources, it effectively reduces PCB footprint, offering higher space utilization and design flexibility for high-density control systems. It is particularly suitable for space-constrained applications such as dexterous hands, robot joints, UAV flight controllers, and smart gimbals.

In recent years, humanoid robots have gradually become a key development direction for the global technology industry, with dexterous hands and robot joints regarded as core components for achieving precise motion control. As the degrees of freedom in robots continue to increase, control architectures are evolving from centralized designs toward distributed designs. More control nodes are being directly embedded within joints, fingers, and end-effectors, requiring systems to integrate computing, control, sensing, and communication functions simultaneously within limited spaces.

Under this trend, the importance of miniaturized and highly integrated control solutions is growing day by day. To meet the demands of high-density design, Artery has added the BGA100 package to the AT32F435/437 series. The small-size package helps improve PCB space utilization and allows control circuits to be further integrated into space-limited structures such as joints and fingers, assisting developers in creating more compact and highly integrated control systems.

In addition to the advantages of the small-size package, the AT32F435/437 also features rich motor control resources capable of supporting multi-axis control architecture designs. Through built-in Advanced Timers, high-speed ADCs, and encoder feedback processing capabilities, a single MCU can support up to three sets of motor control systems. This helps reduce system complexity and the number of control nodes, thereby improving overall space utilization. This architecture is particularly suitable for multi-axis synchronous control applications such as dexterous hands, robot joints, and smart servos, assisting developers in building higher-density and cost-effective control systems.

Key features of the AT32F435/437 BGA100 include:

• 7×7 mm Small-Size Package

The BGA100 package measures only 7×7 mm, effectively reducing PCB footprint and helping to integrate control circuits into space-constrained joints, fingers, and other high-density control systems.

• Single MCU Supports Up to 3 Sets of Motor Control

The AT32F435/437 adopts an Arm Cortex-M4 core with a maximum frequency of 288MHz. It includes built-in DSP/FPU computing units, multiple Advanced Timers, and high-speed ADC resources, capable of supporting multi-axis motion control and real-time feedback computation requirements.

• Supports Distributed Control Architecture

The product features two built-in CAN 2.0B communication interfaces, meeting the real-time data exchange needs of multi-node control systems and facilitating synchronous control and collaborative operation between joints and control nodes.

• Suitable for High-Density Embedded Control Applications

In addition to dexterous hands and robot joints, the AT32F435/437 BGA100 package is also suitable for application scenarios with high demands for space and performance, such as UAV flight controllers, smart gimbals, smart servos, and industrial control. Taking dexterous hand applications as an example, a single finger typically requires the integration of multiple joints, motors, drivers, encoders, and sensing elements, leaving very limited system space. The AT32F435/437 BGA100 package assists developers in integrating high-performance control capabilities within limited spaces and achieves multi-motor control via a single MCU, meeting the new generation of robotic systems’ demands for high-density design and real-time control.

As smart robots, high-end automation equipment, and edge control applications continue to develop, the demand for miniaturized, high-performance, and highly integrated control solutions in system design continues to rise. By adding the BGA100 package option, Artery further perfects its AT32 MCU product layout, providing developers with more design choices to help create smaller and more efficient smart control systems.