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Ant International embeds AI agents across all platforms in biggest-ever product upgrade

The new suite features accounts tailored for AI agents, allowing users to delegate specific tasks without relinquishing account control Ant International, the overseas affiliate of China’s Ant Group, is executing an artificial intelligence overhaul across its entire suite of global financial services, introducing AI agents designed to help manage payments, foreign exchange and treasury operations. Described by the company as its largest-ever product upgrade, the initiative embeds AI-native solutions across all platforms: cross-border payment network Alipay+, merchant services provider Antom, account and treasury platform WorldFirst, and digital credit platform Bettr. The global roll-out has begun and would extend through winter, the company said. Peng Yang, CEO of Ant International, said the shift would prepare global commerce for a “fully agentised future”, adding that fintech providers needed “a future-ready trust infrastructure” paired with financial AI models and connected AI-native solutions.

September 18, 2026

Business

Tesla auditing Chinese suppliers ahead of Optimus roll-out: sources

The supplier audits come as Elon Musk’s firm aims to quickly ramp up production of its Optimus humanoid robot after its release later this year Tesla officials and engineers have begun auditing part of the firm’s Chinese supply chain, as Elon Musk’s company aims to quickly ramp up production of its Optimus humanoid robot after it hits the global market later this year, according to sources with knowledge of the matter. Chinese companies set to undergo supplier audits included heat-control component manufacturer Zhejiang Sanhua Intelligent Controls, auto parts supplier Ningbo Joyson Electronic, and chassis producer Tuopu Group, two corporate executives with business ties to the manufacturers told the South China Morning Post. A supplier audit is a process in which a vendor’s production and compliance standards are evaluated to ensure product quality.

September 18, 2026

Business

Xi-Trump summit preview: what to watch for as investors brace for best and worst scenarios

Tariff cuts or a new 7.5 per cent duty on China? Possible outcomes on the cards as leaders navigate a trade truce and a widening tech schism President Xi Jinping is scheduled to sit down with US President Donald Trump in Washington next week, and their planned summit looks to be closely watched as an indicator of the current state of ties between the world’s two largest economies. Here is a breakdown of the outlook from the perspectives of global financial institutions and policy analysts. The bar for next week’s meeting, slated for Thursday, is relatively low, according to some research houses and research organisations. The results of a recent Goldman Sachs investor survey showed that most respondents expected the meeting to be symbolic, though onshore Chinese investors were relatively constructive: 38 per cent expected incremental progress, compared with 26 per cent among offshore respondents.

September 18, 2026

Business

Ending the nuclear arms race starts with cities doing their part

As cities are the main targets of nuclear weapons, they have a responsibility to speak out and encourage efforts to eliminate them The catastrophic danger posed to cities by nuclear weapons is nothing new. Putting major urban areas at risk across generations is, in fact, the point of these weapons of terror. The practice of doing so is benignly called nuclear deterrence, but it requires holding the cities of adversaries – real and imagined – under constant threat. The use of even the smallest nuclear weapons in today’s arsenals would cause a humanitarian emergency in cities. That is why city leadership should have a voice in nuclear policymaking. Through this, nations are looking for ways to reduce and prevent the known reverberating effects of explosive ordnance contamination in urban areas, effects which are compounded and made long-lasting by the destruction of cultural, educational, commercial, infrastructure and healthcare facilities. Nuclear weapons are highly explosive weapons which also leave a lasting radioactive legacy.

September 18, 2026

Business

The Takaichi Fallout: The BOJ’s reluctant hike

By continuing to browse our site you agree to our use of cookies, revised Privacy Policy and Terms of Use. You can change your cookie settings through your browser. The BOJ just raised interest rates by 25 bps to 1.25% — a 31-year high. With household spending down for eight straight months, raising rates isn't a simple choice. Swipe through the graphics to see why the Bank of Japan is running out of good options.

September 18, 2026

Business

CUHK instructor triggers backlash over WeChat attendance registration policy

Department later clarifies rule after students raise privacy concerns over using mainland app and location tracking to register class attendance An instructor at Hong Kong’s second-oldest university has faced a backlash over asking students to use mainland Chinese messaging app WeChat to register their attendance and keep its location services enabled, before later saying the arrangement was optional. The policy was revealed after a screenshot of an email from a teaching staff member in the information engineering department at the Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK) was posted to the social media platform Threads on Friday. “Starting from the next class, attendance will be recorded by scanning a QR code through WeChat. Please install the WeChat app and enable location services before coming to class,” the email said.

September 18, 2026

Business

Australian man pleads not guilty to murder of Thai teen girl found in suitcase

An Australian accused of murdering a teenage girl in Thailand and abandoning her body in a suitcase pleaded not guilty in court on Friday, citing self-defence. Simon Peter Carman, 45, was arrested at a Bangkok airport in June as he prepared to take a flight back to Australia after the 17-year-old victim’s friend had reported her missing. The young woman’s body was found in a suitcase near a railway track in Pattaya, a seaside resort city south of the capital, Bangkok. Police said she died of...

September 18, 2026

Business

Could China’s sixth-generation fighter carry a laser to defend against incoming missiles?

Beijing expo display offers strongest public hint yet that China is developing airborne laser systems for advanced fighter aircraft China may be aiming to equip its sixth-generation fighter jets with laser weapons that experts say could help defend them against incoming missiles. According to social media posts, the booth display said the system weighed less than 380kg (838lbs), although key performance figures were partly obscured. Transmission power was listed as “*00kW” – implying at least 100kW if the asterisk concealed a single digit – while the system’s dynamic tracking accuracy, a measure of how precisely it could maintain its aim over time, was redacted as “* μrad (RMS)”.

September 18, 2026

Business

Hong Kong to recruit AI chief by mid-2027, with confidence in local talent pool

Post will pay up to HK$278,200 per month, authorities reveal, adding they also understand public concerns over bolstering cybercrime laws Hong Kong will begin recruitment for an artificial intelligence (AI) commissioner in the second quarter of next year to assist in drafting policies for the technology and risk governance, with authorities confident the city does not lack suitable talent. Tech authorities on Friday revealed details of the new post under the Digital Policy Office, which will pay between HK$262,125 and HK$278,200 (US$33,414 to US$35,436) a month. Permanent Secretary for Innovation, Technology and Industry Kevin Choi Kit-ming said that recruitment for the post would begin in the second quarter of 2027.

September 18, 2026

Business

Howard replaces his father, Warren Buffett, as Berkshire Hathaway chairman

The US$1 trillion conglomerate said the 96-year-old will become chairman emeritus and will take on his new role immediately Warren Buffett is stepping down as chairman of Berkshire Hathaway after serving in the role at the conglomerate for more than 50 years. Buffett, 96, will become chairman emeritus and will take on his new role immediately, the company said on Friday. His son, Howard, will become Berkshire Hathaway’s new chairman, part of a long-planned succession. Howard Buffett has been on the Berkshire Hathaway board since 1993. Warren Buffett will remain a director. He has served as Berkshire Hathaway’s chairman since 1970. Greg Abel took over for Buffett as the CEO of the US$1 trillion conglomerate to start the year, but Buffett remains one of the most influential investors in the world.

September 18, 2026

Business

The Takaichi Fallout: Japan’s rate hike can’t fix what politics broke

By continuing to browse our site you agree to our use of cookies, revised Privacy Policy and Terms of Use. You can change your cookie settings through your browser. Editor's note: Lin G. is a CGTN economic commentator. The views expressed in this article are the author's own and do not necessarily reflect those of CGTN. On Friday, the Bank of Japan delivered a long-anticipated yet highly reluctant interest rate hike, pushing its policy rate to 1.25%, the highest level in 31 years, in a difficult move aimed at countering the persistent downward pressure on the yen and stabilizing the country's exchange rate. This policy adjustment has pushed Japan deeper into a difficult monetary dilemma: leaving rates unchanged could prolong the downward pressure on the yen and add to external economic pressures, while raising rates risks placing further strain on an already fragile domestic economy and a heavily indebted government.

September 18, 2026

Business

Academic: Higher rates could widen US wealth divide

By continuing to browse our site you agree to our use of cookies, revised Privacy Policy and Terms of Use. You can change your cookie settings through your browser. Inflation and higher interest rates do not affect everyone equally. Warwick Powell, adjunct professor at Queensland University of Technology, says asset owners may benefit from higher returns, while households and businesses reliant on credit face rising costs.

September 18, 2026