The metaverse race is heating up in China. Just like Meta and Microsoft in the U.S., Chinese firms such as Baidu and Tencent are investing in the nascent industry, but strict tech regulations mean China’s virtual worlds are set to offer very different user experiences.

Chinese tech giant Tencent on Thursday released a new AI model that it says can answer queries faster than global hit DeepSeek's R1, in the latest sign the startup's domestic and overseas success is putting pressure on its larger competitors in China.

Stocks are drifting lower although still near a record high as a holiday-shortened week gets off to a sluggish start. The S&P 500 edged 0.1% lower in Tuesday afternoon trading and is just below its all-time closing high set last month.

Shenzhen, known as the “Capital of Technology” and the “City of the Future”, stands as a global innovation powerhouse driving the future of tech. Home to world-renowned tech giants such as Tencent, Huawei,

Chinese technology stocks advanced sharply on Friday, with Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. jumping 11.41% in Hong Kong trading, as investors responded to positive earnings guidance and anticipated monetary policy easing from Beijing.

China's technology stocks rallied Tuesday. E-commerce firm Alibaba and smartphone maker Xiaomi both saw their stock price surge over 4%, while video games firm Tencent and online services company Meituan also gained.

President Donald Trump said tariffs on Canada, Mexico, and China will go into effect Tuesday. Trump is proposing an additional 10% tariff on Chinese imports. China vowed to respond. Chinese stocks struggled today after President Donald Trump said additional tariffs on Chinese imports are slated to go into effect Tuesday.

Early European trading was mostly down, with France’s CAC 40 down 0.18%, while Germany’s DAX dipped 0.26%. Britain’s FTSE 100 remained mostly unchanged. Hong Kong's Hang Seng rose 1.59% to 22,976.81,

Tencent's new model doubles response speed while matching top performers like GPT-4o in reasoning tasks, intensifying the AI race between China and the U.S.

Wall Street is flirting with a record again as U.S. stock indexes creep higher on Tuesday. The S&P 500 was up 0.1% in early trading and just above its all-time closing high set last month. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 59 points,