Rivian Automotive, Inc. (RIVN.US) CEO RJ Scaringe said the company is contemplating manufacturing its own lidar and may cooperate with a Chinese company for production.

Last year, Rivian launched a new initiative aimed at producing its own chips as part of its plan to develop proprietary autonomous driving technology, in order to vie with Tesla, Inc. (TSLA.US).

Rivian is considering leveraging Chinese technology to manufacture lidar in the US, instead of directly sourcing from Chinese suppliers. Scaringe noted that the goal could be achieved through the establishment of a JV.
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Intel Corporation (INTC.US) shares last spiked 4.4% to US$100.03 in pre-market trading on Tuesday (5th).

Apple Inc. (AAPL.US) explores outsourcing OEM chip manufacturing to Intel Corporation (INTC.US) and Samsung Electronics (005930.KS) as secondary options beyond its long-term partner Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company Ltd. (TSM.US), Bloomberg reported, citing people with the knowledge of the matter.

Apple had reportedly held early-stage talks with Intel. Meanwhile, senior Apple executives had also visited Samsung Electronics advanced chip fabrication plant currently under construction in Texas. Negotiations with both companies remain at an early stage, and no orders have been finalized.
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Apple Inc. (AAPL.US) explores outsourcing OEM chip manufacturing to Intel Corporation (INTC.US) and Samsung Electronics (005930.KS) as secondary options beyond its long-term partner Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company Ltd. (TSM.US), Bloomberg reported, citing people with the knowledge of the matter.

Apple had reportedly held early-stage talks with Intel. Meanwhile, senior Apple executives had also visited Samsung Electronics advanced chip fabrication plant currently under construction in Texas. Negotiations with both companies remain at an early stage, and no orders have been finalized.
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Anthropic is in talks with investors for a new round of financing, targeting a valuation of US$900 billion, surpassing OpenAI's US$852 billion valuation in a funding round in late March, CNBC quoted sources as saying.

A few days ago, Anthropic released the Claude Mythos Preview, a model equipped with advanced cybersecurity features and available only to select companies, which sent shockwaves through Wall Street.

Mythos is also one of the reasons Anthropic is seeking new funding, as Anthropic needs sufficient capital to purchase the computing power required to run Mythos.
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With four officials dissenting, the most dissenting votes in more than 33 years, the Federal Reserve kept interest rates unchanged as expected.

The three major US stock indices softened on Wednesday. The DJIA ended down 280 points or 0.6% at 48,861, marking a five-day losing streak. The S&P 500 dropped 2 points to close at 7,135. The Nasdaq rose 9 points, closing at 24,673.

Amazon (AMZN.US) maintained a 1% gain for the day, while Microsoft (MSFT.US) fell 1%. Seagate (STX.US) surged 11% amid an aggressive rally in memory and storage hardware stocks.
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In the first 26 days of April, China's retail sales in the new energy passenger car market reached 614,000 units, down 11% YoY and 6% MoM, according to data released by the China Passenger Car Association (CPCA). Total retail sales YTD amounted to 2.523 million units, down 19% YoY.
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Oil prices hiked to historical new highs, while Iran peace talks stalled and tensions in the Strait of Hormuz escalated again, leading to mixed performance in US equities on Monday.

The S&P 500 and Nasdaq opened lower but closed higher, both setting new closing highs. The S&P 500 ticked up only 8 points or 0.1% to close at 7,173, while the Nasdaq added 50 points or 0.2% to 24,887. The DJIA slid 62 points or 0.1% to 49,167.

It is reported that Qualcomm (QCOM.US) is partnering with OpenAI to develop AI smartphone chips, and is cooperating with MediaTek for production, with mass production expected in 2028. The stock hit its high for the day shortly after the market opened, hyping up 8% but closing up just 1%.

Although the Nasdaq closed lower, individual large-cap stocks posted notable gains. Nvidia (NVDA.US) leaped 4%, while Intel (INTC.US) mounted 3%. Alphabet (GOOG.US) jumped up nearly 2%.

Microsoft (MSFT.US) stabilized. The company will no longer pay revenue share to OpenAI, and its OpenAI license will now become non-exclusive.
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XPENG-W (09868.HK) is set to disclose a more advanced, automotive-grade, anthropomorphic robot in 3Q26, Chairman and CEO He Xiaopeng revealed at the 2026 Beijing Auto Show. The carmaker is also aiming to mass-produce robots in China by the end of 2026 and to kick off deliveries in more countries next year.

Regarding flying cars, He also disclosed that XPENG-W is developing a second-generation flying car, which is intended to suit not only China but also overseas markets like Europe and the US.

When asked about comparisons between XPENG-W's VLA and Tesla (TSLA.US)'s FSD, He said that both Tesla's FSD in the US and the advanced driver assistance systems of XPENG-W, NIO-SW (09866.HK), and Huawei in China are excellent.
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Tesla (TSLA.US) CEO Elon Musk said in a post that production of the Cybercab has commenced, Bloomberg reported.

Unveiled in 2024, the Cybercab is a BEV designed specifically for autonomous taxi (Robotaxi) services. The model is not equipped with a steering wheel or pedals, meaning that mass production will require specific exemptions from US regulators.

Musk stated that the business is unlikely to generate meaningful revenue until at least 2027.
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EOPTOLINK (300502.SZ) selected CITIC Securities and JP Morgan to advance its Hong Kong listing plan, with expected fundraising of approximately USD3 billion, Bloomberg reported, quoting people with the knowledge of the matter.

Over the past year, EOPTOLINK has seen its share price in Shenzhen proliferate, bringing its market cap to USD78 billion. The company focuses on the R&D, production and sale of various high-performance optical modules and optical components.

Buyers of optical modules include leading global technology companies such as Alphabet (GOOGL.US) and Amazon (AMZN.US), as data centers require optical modules to connect advanced chips within AI computing clusters.
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