Ren Zhengfei Reaffirms Huawei Won't Build Cars; DeepSeek Revenue Run Rate Reported at $1 Billion

DeepSeek's annualized revenue run rate has reached about $1 billion, more than doubling within several months, Reuters reported Sept. 24, citing The Information. The figure is extrapolated from current revenue and does not represent revenue actually booked for a full year, and DeepSeek has not publicly disclosed its financial data. API price increases of roughly 2.3 to 4.5 times contributed to the growth, the report said, citing two people directly familiar with the matter. Founder Liang Wenfeng discussed the latest revenue scale at an investor meeting. The company is pursuing a second funding round targeting 50 billion yuan and aims to complete it by the end of October. Reuters previously reported that DeepSeek has hired CITIC Securities to prepare for a listing on Shanghai's STAR Market.

NetEase Cloud Music's HarmonyOS version officially launched, allowing Huawei phone users to download it from the app market. The version covers phones, foldables and tablets, with playlists, favorites and play history synchronized across devices. Compared with an earlier trial version, it adds local music import, player style switching, audio quality and sound effect settings, and dark mode, and supports music comments, playlist saving and cloud village notes. The app adjusts layouts for foldables and tablets and offers desktop cards and system-level playback controls. HarmonyOS users previously ran the app mainly through Android compatibility.

Yu Chengdong, Huawei's consumer business chief, said Seres proposed leading the AITO brand after years of cooperation strengthened its capabilities, and Huawei chose to support the move. He said Huawei's team will focus on the Zunjie, Xiangjie, Zhijie and Shangjie brands, giving them more resources and more energy to refine products and experiences. He mentioned participating in a styling review of a large Zunjie SUV at a JAC plant and previewed two new Zhijie models launching next week. HarmonyOS Intelligent Mobility announced on Sept. 15 that Seres would lead AITO's product definition, design, brand marketing, retail and service.

Tencent announced that its AI assistant QClaw will stop operations at midnight on Dec. 24. New user registration, subscription purchases and renewals stopped on Sept. 24, and existing users can still use the service before shutdown. Unused paid subscriptions and credit packages can be refunded. Users can export configurations, memory, agent personas and chat records, or migrate data to Tencent's WorkBuddy through a website entry. Backups remain downloadable until March 24, 2027, after which Tencent said it will delete user data as required by law, except information that must be retained.

Tencent also launched WeChat mini-program generation and publishing capabilities for WorkBuddy on Sept. 24. Users can describe requirements in code development mode to generate mini-programs with cloud database, file storage and WeChat authorization login, then preview, test and publish in the same workspace. Version 5.6.1 or higher is required. WorkBuddy connects as a WeChat third-party service provider to authorized mini-program accounts. Users without an account can create a 14-day trial version that cannot be directly converted to an official version. Official versions still require WeChat review.

Doubao's public relations head Liu Xing denied rumors of layoffs or halving its dialogue team, saying the change was a division-of-labor adjustment involving 11 people in the general Session team, three of whom left. The team had fewer than 50 members. Some functions moved to Doubao's transaction and work teams, with some staff still handling dialogue experience work.

Qualcomm announced a renewed global patent licensing agreement with Apple, effective April 1, 2027. John Han, who heads Qualcomm's technology licensing business, confirmed the renewal in the announcement. The announcement covers patent licensing and did not disclose the term or financial terms, nor was it described as a new chip supply arrangement.

Google unveiled plans for the first orbital test of Project Suncatcher, partnering with satellite company Planet to send a prototype satellite carrying TPUs on SpaceX's Transporter-18 rideshare mission. The launch is scheduled for next week, focusing on collecting data on chip performance after launch vibration, space radiation and temperature changes. Ground tests showed Trillium TPUs withstood total ionizing radiation doses exceeding those required for a simulated five-year space mission, though thermal and long-term stability still need orbital data. Teams are testing heat pipe and radiator combinations because satellite computing equipment cannot rely on air flow for cooling. Google plans to test laser links between two satellites in 2027.

Jeffrey Ding, a political scientist at George Washington University, told The New Yorker that AI leadership depends on diffusion rather than first releases. He noted that when the U.S. became the leading economy in steel, electricity, chemicals and automobiles, its firms originated fewer than one-third of key innovations in those industries. He said comparing who has the most advanced model overlooks productivity changes from AI spreading across the economy, and argued the U.S. should invest more in community colleges, vocational schools and state universities to train workers who can apply AI in local banks and municipal departments. Ding said China's "AI Plus" policy emphasizes factories, hospitals and administrative services, while the U.S. still has advantages in cloud computing investment and adoption.

Google released Gemini 3.8 Live with Live Avatar, available in Gemini Enterprise. It combines real-time conversation with low-latency video generation, allowing avatars to respond synchronously while listening to speech and processing visual information, with lip movements and expressions changing with dialogue. Google demonstrated customer service and interactive explanation scenarios. The system can call tools asynchronously during conversations to handle background queries, and switches among 97 languages with synchronized lip adjustments, according to the company. Businesses can choose preset avatars, while customizing avatars from reference images is currently available only to approved customers. Generated audio and video carry SynthID watermarks.

Nikon released the Z5IIC full-frame mirrorless camera at 9,999 yuan. It uses the Z5II imaging platform with a back-illuminated CMOS sensor and EXPEED 7 processor. The mode dial adds scene modes to a Nikon full-frame mirrorless camera for the first time, automatically adjusting color and brightness based on the subject. It has a dedicated button for Nikon and creator preset recipes and a product display mode that shifts focus to an item moved in front of the lens. Video specifications include 4K 60fps and full-HD 120fps recording, and it can be used as a webcam via USB.

Rokid showed its second-generation AI glasses with a display at the fifth Global Digital Trade Expo in Hangzhou on Sept. 24. The glasses retain photography, translation, teleprompter, navigation and payment functions, with an official launch set for Oct. 27, when sales plans will be announced. They add a composition frame for shooting and upgraded stabilization and low-light performance. Translation adds two-way conversation and call translation via Bluetooth, displaying translated text on the lenses in real time. Voice interaction supports custom wake words, and the AI assistant can offer proactive reminders based on context. Rokid also demonstrated multilingual tour guidance for tour groups and released AIOS "Lingmou Rvis" for industrial sites.

Tencent officially launched TenPayGo in Shenzhen on Sept. 24, an independent app for overseas visitors to China that works at merchants accepting WeChat Pay. Users can view transaction records, with payments covering shopping, dining, transport, hotels and attractions. Tencent said the product supports overseas bank cards and some other account features.